Coopetition in the small business sector: Taking stock and looking forward

Abstract

A growing literature explores the phenomenon of simultaneous cooperating and competing firms. Mostly in strategic management, this literature primarily focused upon large firms. The dynamics of coopetition in small firms, including new and micro-firms, however, remains under-explored raising questions about how they both engage with and manage this complex paradoxical relationship. Shifting the focus in coopetition research to small firms is vital as despite many noted benefits, evidence suggests that liabilities of newness and smallness affect engagement in cooperative relationships. Due to the specificities of small firms, it remains unlikely that the knowledge derived from their larger counterparts will adequately reflect the drivers and mechanisms of small firm coopetition. How does coopetition unfold in the small firm sector? How do challenges and specificities of small firms influence principles and mechanisms identified by the literature on large firm coopetition? To analyse such issues, in this annual review article, we evaluate the emerging body of research on small firm coopetition. Connecting coopetition strategy with small firms and entrepreneurship, we provide a comprehensive review of this emerging literature drawing from which, we then formulate future research needs and directions.