Production operations management in small firm clusters: An alternative view from the Zimbabwean experience

Abstract

In Zimbabwe, like in most countries, there is a significant number of small manufacturing firms operating in "clusters" or industrial districts located in the vicinity of major towns and cities. It has been suggested that the competitive advantage of such firms over other small firms operating in isolation is their ability to apply "flexible specialisation" techniques and division of labour in the management of production operations. This study shows that Zimbabwe's small-firm clusters are unique in that they do not apply these methods in their conventional forms, resulting in the ability of each firm to minimise the investment required in plant and machinery. The study then recommends that the competitiveness of such firms should be further enhanced by introducing policy interventions that attract private capital into the cluster and are targeted at groups of firms rather than individual firms in the cluster.