Collaborative networks: An innovative approach to enhance competitiveness of small firms in Brazil

Several SME´s of the Serra Gaúcha, a prosperous region in the Northeast of the state of Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil), have noted lately that they were becoming less competitive. The solution they found to increase competitiveness was to establish a conducive environment for cooperation among them, a process fostered by the Collaborative Networks Program of the state government. Eight out of 25 networks were investigated under the perspective of strategies for change, the learning process, and competitive positioning. Despite some weaknesses, several benefits have been obtained by the networks investigated, including increase in negotiation bargaining, cooperation, leadership development, experience sharing, logistics improvement, management development, packaging standardization, and paradigms changing.