... their business needs. These improvements may not always be new to the world, but they can provide above-average performance to these firms. This article proposes that a broad innovation strategy that seeks to resolve issues up and down a firm’s value chain and support systems is optimal for SMEs to achieve...

...Conrad den Hertog Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a new and comprehensive business strategy matrix which can be used to create competitive advantage for the value chain of every business unit of any firm. Design/methodology/approach – This paper reviews the key findings...

...Wayne McPhee Purpose – The sustainable activity model re-envisions Porter's value chain to reflect the emerging impact of sustainability on firm strategy. The model helps to convert high level sustainability vision statements into a new set of actions that can create value from emerging...

...Erwin van Tuijl Purpose – Illustrated with the case of Renault-Dacia in Romania we aim to give insights in how and why foreign car makers contribute to upgrading. In addition, we analyse the spatial implications of this process for different parts of the value chain. Design...

...; growing complexities in corporate governance; and increasingly sophisticated information and communication technology (ICT) capabilities. These threats are enabling the disaggregation of value chains and increased headquarters monitoring and control. This shift in how subsidiaries are managed is leading...

...Jamie Anderson Purpose In this paper it is argued that value chain structure, that is the way that skills and activities are divided between different firms within an industry, often evolves in a locally specific way and this has serious implications for the global expansion of firms...

.... Originality/value Present some of the key trends that are significant enough to warrant the attention of global managers in general and strategy planners in particular. The two examples demonstrate the search for the optimal location to perform value chain activities. Within the industries...