Regional Horizontal Networks within the SME Agri-Food Sector: An Innovation and Social Network Perspective

Maura McAdam, Rodney McAdam, Adele Dunn and Clare McCall

Regional Studies, 2016, vol. 50, issue 8, 1316-1329

Abstract: McAdam M., McAdam R., Dunn A. and McCall C. Regional horizontal networks within the SME agri-food sector: an innovation and social network perspective, Regional Studies. This paper aims to explore how regional horizontal networks within the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) agri-food sector develop innovative capability and outcomes through the adoption of a combined innovation and social network perspective. To facilitate this, the Slow Food Network was deemed appropriate. A multiple case analysis was then used in order to explore 11 regional SME-based agri-food horizontal networks. The findings demonstrate that a complex life cycle development occurred within the regional SME networks. Such development required unique strategies of explorative and exploitative innovation-based knowledge exchange at different life cycle stages with resultant changes in network dynamics between the SMEs.

Date: 2016
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

Downloads: (external link)
http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/00343404.2015.1007935 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:regstd:v:50:y:2016:i:8:p:1316-1329

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/CRES20

DOI: 10.1080/00343404.2015.1007935

Access Statistics for this article

Regional Studies is currently edited by Ivan Turok

More articles in Regional Studies from Taylor & Francis Journals
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Longhurst ().