Inter‐organizational relationship strategies and management styles in SMEs: The US‐China‐Russia study

Purpose – The paper seeks to investigate and conceptualize differences in managerial styles and inter‐organizational relationship (IOR) strategies of small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in the international environment, and make managerial implications useful for business practitioners and educators.Design/methodology/approach – The study applies comparative management research methodology. The management style dimensions analyzed in the paper are supervision, decision making, information‐sharing styles, and paternalistic orientation. The types of IOR strategies considered are conjugate, confederate, agglomeratic, and organic. Data were collected through surveying managers of entrepreneurial firms from the USA, China, and Russia, operating in the same industry. Factor analysis was applied for scale validation, and regression models were used for hypotheses testing.Findings – The relationship between managerial styles and types of IOR strategies pursued by SMEs was documented. The cross‐cultural diff...

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