ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the major evolutionary trends characterising the development of the Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) regional clusters since their formation, and their further adaptation in the 1990s. It begins by examining the changing industrial structure of advanced economies since the 1970s, chiefly in relation to the increased importance of SMEs in economic and innovative processes. The chapter focuses on parallel changes in the location and organisational strategies of large firms, especially regarding the innovative process. Finally, it also reviews the differing origins and characteristics of each of the regional clusters of high-technology SMEs studied by the Network, the chapter assess the nature and causes of evolutionary trends in the 1990s. Rapid technological development and associated explosive growth in demand also help explain exceptional growth in numbers of computer, internet and information technology service SMEs, in this case coupled with low barriers to entry and the evolution of numerous specialised market niches which small firms can target successfully.
