Interfirm Cooperation as a Strategy of SMEs in the Environmental Sector

The development of the environmental sector in Mexico in the eighties opened business opportunities to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). To survive and grow, there are multiple challenges; therefore it is important for smaller firms to overcome their main constraints. This document presents the findings on cooperative relationships as a strategy adopted by small and medium-sized enterprises. Twenty-two interviews were analyzed qualitatively, finding that cooperation has made it possible to many of the firms to differentiate from their competitors and to improve their capability to compete with outsiders. This has become a strong stimuli for internationalization to some of them. This work shows the importance of balancing firms' symmetries for enabling cooperation and using the asymmetries to provide learning opportunities and experience.