Virtual R&D teams in small and medium enterprises: a literature review

Ale Ebrahim, N. and Ahmed, S. and Taha , Z. (2009) Virtual R&D teams in small and medium enterprises: a literature review. Scientific Research and Essays, 4 (13). pp. 1575-1590. ISSN 1992-2248,

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Abstract

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the driving engine behind economic growth. While SMEs play a critical role in generating employment and supporting trade, they face numerous challenges, the prominent among them are the need to respond to fasting time-to-market, low-cost and rapid solutions to complex organizational problems. Towards that end, research and development (R & D) aspect deserves particular attention to promote and facilitate the operations of SMEs. Virtual R & D team could be a viable option. However, literature shows that virtual R & D teaming in SMEs is still at its infancy. This article provides a comprehensive literature review on different aspects of virtual R & D teams collected from the reputed publications. The purpose of the state-of-the-art literature review is to provide an overview on the structure and dynamics of R & D collaboration in SMEs. Specifying the foundation and importance of virtual teams, the relationship between virtual R & D team and SMEs has been examined. It concludes with the identification of the gaps in the existing literatures and calls for future research. It is argued that setting-up an infrastructure for virtual R & D team in SMEs still requires a large amount of engineering efforts and deserves consideration at top level management.

Item Type:	Article
Funders:	UNSPECIFIED
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Virtual teams, small and medium enterprises, literature review
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) T Technology > T Technology (General)
Divisions:	Faculty of Engineering
Depositing User:	Dr. Nader Ale Ebrahim
Date Deposited:	14 Oct 2011 01:25
Last Modified:	14 Oct 2011 01:25
URI:	http://eprints.um.edu.my/id/eprint/2175

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