SMEs (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises) are one of the most widespread types of enterprises. Most of them have developed a common cultural model with shareable traits.
Their size is usually an immediate consequence of their culture. Enterprises were historically born from one or more people who had an idea and started a type of business on their own. The fact that people created these companies means that their organization truly relies on them and is a direct consequence of their personal traits. It is normal to say that people found companies similar to themselves, which reflect their personality.
Like in real life, also in business, it is difficult to make decisions based only on data and not on emotions or feelings. That is what happens in SMEs coordinated by the people who founded them and who are personally attached to them. They consider their business their life and their reputation and love it like a child. Consequently, they have difficulties in deciding things that could harm their company or destroy its balance, even if the company is in danger of failure or bankruptcy, or if there are some big opportunities on the table that could make the company grow but require significant risks and the possibility of changing the entire organization.
Therefore, the limit of SMEs lies in their founders. They limit the earnings and potential growth of the enterprises by having full control over them. Every decision is directly connected to the entrepreneurs, who want to take part in every aspect.
The most toxic trait of SMEs is the cruciality that people assume. Rather than having crucial positions, like big companies, they have crucial people who inevitably slow down some decision-making and strategic processes. What makes companies grow is their vertical organization, a model in which ordinary decisions are sped up and naturally taken through the workflow.