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Abstract

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the value-added forest products sector play an important social and economic role in Canadian forest-dependent communities. In British Columbia (BC), the sector is not reaching its full potential. Many factors limit or enable growth of the value-added forest products sector in BC. This study seeks to assess what factors are most integral to success through an in-depth examination of four value-added forest product sector SMEs in rural BC representing four different types of firms with varying levels of performance. The results of the study indicate that, though factors typically considered vital, such as access to skilled labor, fiber supply, location, and financial capital, are integral to business success, business management skill and firm size are integral and often-overlooked factors. The results of this study point to a need for a better provincewide understanding of the barriers to success commonly faced by forest products SMEs, particularly barriers to management skill development.

How do information technology and knowledge management affect SMEs’ responsiveness to the coronavirus crisis?

“…Roach, Ryman and Makani [17] argue that for most national economies, SMEs and business enterprises are the leading segment drivers. The strategic advantage of capable SMEs is identical, allowing them to create a market niche by changing their product mix to suit the clients' needs [18]. In different parts of the world, SMEs are defined in different ways.…”

Reconciling Institutional Logics Within First Nations Forestry-Based Social Enterprises

“…One way in which many First Nations have sought to achieve this is through the creation of forestry-based social enterprises. FNCSEs in particular have proliferated of late as a seemingly practical and intuitive economic strategy for First Nations seeking to extract multiple values from local forests (Wyatt et al, 2013), while creating more jobs per cubic meters of logs (Grace et al, 2018;Hayter, 2000). The smaller mills so associated are also pursued for a combination of social, cultural, ecological, and economic goals, offering opportunities to directly connect forestry-related activities with community needs and well-being (Bull et al, 2014).…”