Article2009

Project management in small to medium‐sized enterprises

J. Rodney Turner · Ann Ledwith · J. M. Kelly

114 citations0/0 files storedInternational Journal of Managing Projects in Business

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Abstract

Purpose Small to medium enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in the economy, in terms of employment and their contribution to national wealth. A significant proportion of that contribution comes from innovation. SMEs are also the engine for future growth in the economy. Project management has a role to play in managing that innovation and growth. The purpose of this paper is to find the extent to which SMEs use projects, project management and the tools of project management, and to determine what differences there are by size of company and industry. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire was developed to examine the extent to which small firms carry out projects, the resources they employ, the way they measure project success and the tools and techniques that they use. The questionnaire was answered by 280 companies from a range of industries and sizes. Findings It is found that companies of all sizes spend roughly the same proportion of turnover on projects, but the smaller the company, the smaller their projects, the less they use project management and its tools. Surprisingly, hi‐tech companies spend less on projects than lo‐tech or service companies, but have larger projects and use project management to a greater extent. They also use the gadgets of project management to a greater extent. Research limitations/implications It is concluded that SMEs do require less‐bureaucratic versions of project management, perhaps with different tool sets than the more traditional versions designed for medium‐sized or large projects, and with different versions for medium, small and micro projects. For all firms, the important success factors are client consultation; planning, monitoring and control; and resource allocation are also identified. Originality/value The findings suggest the need for further research into the nature of those “lite” versions of project management designed for SMEs.

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References

2002Current practice in project management — an empirical study 2004Networks, Firm Size and Innovation 1994The Management of Projects 2007The Influence of Project Managers on Project Success Criteria and Project Success by Type of Project 2008THE HANDBOOK OF PROJECT-BASED MANAGEMENT 1997TQM and organization size 2005Fast tracking innovation in manufacturing SMEs 1997Critical Success Factors in Effective Project Implementation

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