This question has been answered through an empirical investigation carried out in Norway. The results show that social networks are important as channels for resources. The introduction of resources as an intervening variable considerably increases the explanatory power of the network approach. The study also indicates that it is useful to distinguish between the network developed before the entrepreneurial process and the network developed through the process. Faced with market globalization, firms need to be able to adapt themselves rapidly to change, and to develop aggressive innovation policies.
Innovation is a key factor in firms' competitiveness.
However, research to date has focused mainly on larger companies and few studies have considered SMEs. The main purpose of this paper is to present the findings of a research project carried out to identify the main difficulties perceived by Portuguese SMEs in relation to innovation, and to ascertain the behavioural patterns that characterize their responses to these difficulties. First, the case studies presented are concerned with problematical issues pertinent to students of entrepreneurship. Thus, they constitute appropriate teaching and learning vehicles on a variety of postgraduate and undergraduate programmes. Each case study is accompanied by a set of guidelines for the use of tutors.