Knowledge management as intellectual property: Evidence from Mexican manufacturing SMEs

Dr Gonzalo Maldonado-Guzmán is Professor at the Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes, Coordinator of the Small and Medium Enterprises Observatory and Coordinator of the Research and Postgraduate Studies Department. His areas of research include marketing, corporative social responsibility, innovation and knowledge management, IT and intellectual property in SMEs. He has coordinated projects in the Aguascalientes state, México in innovation and organisational culture in Micro and SMEs. He has international projects with Universities of Murcia, Cantabria and Cartagena, in Spain.

Dr Gabriela Citlalli López-Torres completed a PhD in Operations Management at the Manchester Business School (UK) in 2010. Her work experience includes working at the London Business School (UK), as program developer of the Master in Business Administration (MBA). She taught at the University of Manchester. She has participated in ISO 9000 certifications at the Economical Ministry of Aguascalientes. Her industrial experience is in the automotive and electronic sector. She is professor researcher at the Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes.

Dr Jose Arturo Garza-Reyes is a Reader in Operations Management and Business Excellence at the Derby Business School, the University of Derby, UK. He has published a number of articles in leading international journals and conferences, and two books in the areas of quality management systems and manufacturing performance measurement systems. He is co-Founder and Editor of the Int. J. of Supply Chain and Operations Resilience (IJSCOR), and has participated as Guest Editor for special issues in various international journals. His research interests include general aspects of operations and manufacturing management, operations and quality improvement and supply chain improvement.

Dr Vikas Kumar is a Associate Professor in Enterprise Operations Management at Bristol Business School, University of West of England (UWE), UK. Prior to joining UWE, he was working as a Lecturer in Management at Dublin City University Business School in Ireland. He holds a PhD degree in Management Studies from Exeter Business School, UK and a Bachelor of Technology (first class distinction) degree in Metallurgy and Material Science engineering from NIFFT, India. He has published more than 50 articles in leading International journals and International conferences including the International Journal of Production Research, Expert System with Applications, Computers & Industrial Engineering and Production Planning & Control. He serves on the editorial board of six international journals including Int. J. of Services, Economics and Management, Int. J. of Manufacturing Systems, Int. J. of Lean Enterprise Research and Int. J. of Network and Mobile Technologies. His current research interests include healthcare management, supply chain management, process modelling, operations strategy, and service operations management.

Dr Juan L. Martinez-Covarrubias is the Chief Economist at the Regional Assemblies in the Republic of Ireland and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Derby, UK. He is an applied economist in the area of Industrial Economics, who have honed over 10-year experience in economic research; policy evaluation; and teaching of Economics. Juan has produced several research papers and reports providing insights to policy makers in the areas of business innovation and regional competitiveness. His research interests include economics of innovation; green economy; industrial economics; and policy evaluation. He is member of Regional Studies Association (RSA), The Competitive Institute (TCI), Regional Science Association International: British and Irish Section (RSAI:BIS), and Higher Education Academy (FHEA).