Call for paper: Small and Medium-sized Enterprises: Talent, Entrepreneurship and Competitiveness in Latin America

Small and Medium-sized Enterprises: Talent, Entrepreneurship and Competitiveness in Latin America

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are widely recognized as engines of economic growth, employment, and social cohesion (Madrid-Guijarro et al., 2009; Valdez-Juarez et al., 2025), representing around 90% of businesses and over 50% of global employment (World Bank, 2023). In OECD countries, they account for 99% of firms and nearly two-thirds of total employment (OECD, 2023). Despite this, academic research on SMEs remains uneven, with a strong bias toward developed economies (Owalla et al., 2021), which limits our understanding of contextual dynamics in emerging regions.

Although the literature often conflates SMEs, family businesses, and entrepreneurial ventures due to shared features like innovation under constraints, it is crucial to recognize their differences. Family firms prioritize continuity and informal governance (Durendez et al., 2019), while entrepreneurial ventures emphasize innovation and high growth (Ratten, 2023). SMEs, by contrast, are defined more broadly by size, sectoral diversity, and levels of formalization. This Special Issue invites submissions on family business or entrepreneurship, provided they clearly articulate how their findings contribute to SME scholarship specifically, avoiding conceptual conflations and fostering theoretical clarity.

By placing Latin American SMEs at the centre of the conversation, this Special Issue aspires to broaden the theoretical and geographical horizons of SME research and build a more inclusive, pluralistic, and context-sensitive body of knowledge in business and innovation studies

List of topic areas

Digital transformation and Industry 4.0 in SMEs
- Adoption pathways, barriers, and enablers in resource-constrained environments.
Sustainable entrepreneurship and green innovation
- Business models, practices, and policies fostering environmental sustainability in SMEs.
Entrepreneurial ecosystems
- The role of networks, institutions, and collaboration models (e.g., quadruple and quintuple helix) in enhancing SME competitiveness.
Financing and financial resilience
- Mechanisms to improve access to finance, including fintech, microfinance, and alternative funding in volatile contexts.
Talent development and human capital
- Skills, leadership, and organizational capabilities that drive SME innovation and growth.
Informality and inclusion
- Innovative approaches to formalization, productivity enhancement, and social inclusion through SMEs.
Comparative studies
- Insights that contrast Latin American SME dynamics with those of other global regions.
Accounting, Reporting, and Transparency in SMEs
- Topics of interest include digital accounting tools, ESG reporting in SMEs, and the impact of reporting regulations on SME competitiveness.
Internationalization and Global Integration of SMEs
- Research on strategies for export growth, participation in global value chains, and the role of digitalization and diaspora networks in overcoming internationalization barriers.
Public Policies, Regulation, and the Institutional Environment for SMEs
- Studies assessing the effectiveness of policy instruments aimed at fostering SME innovation, formalization, internationalization, and sustainability are especially encouraged.
Education, Training, and Capacity Building for SMEs
- Studies exploring how education, training programs, and collaborations contribute to the development of entrepreneurial, digital, and managerial capabilities.

Submissions Information

Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available here.

Author guidelines must be strictly followed. Please see here.

Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to ““Please select the issue you are submitting to”.

Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.