ABSTRACT
A comprehensive review of the literature on economic performance and fi rm size found that there ‘is overwhelming evidence that smaller companies in general are not inferior to larger units’ (Aiginger and Tichy 1989: 2). Regardless of this, however, fi rm size strongly affects the way in which companies are competing in markets. Comparative studies have identifi ed fi ve main properties that make small and large companies differ in their market position and their requirements for competitiveness.
