Research On Small And Medium-sized Enterprises' Core Competence Based On Knowledge Capital

With the tendency of economic globalization, it has brought new opportunities as well as higher request for enterprises'development. It is very important for the High-tech Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (High-tech SMEs) which don't have big scale and a lot of property to promote core competence to obtain competitive advantage.Nowadays, the era of knowledge economy is coming. Knowledge and technology is becoming the key factors instead of capital, labor and other factors in economic growth. Small and Medium-sized Enterprises(SMEs), especially the High-tech SMEs have to establish knowledge-based core competence and implement knowledge capital management in order to obtain and maintain competitive advantage.Firstly this paper makes a literature review on knowledge capital theory and core competence theory, and analyses the relationship between core competence and knowledge capital, then it defines the High-tech SMEs'core competence and its structure. According to the definition, it builds an evaluation index system and an evaluation model for the High-tech SMEs' core competence. Secondly, this paper designs a questionnaire to conduct empirical research. Through analytical network hierarchy process(ANP) we can evaluate the core competence of a High-tech SME, and get the knowledge capital elements impacting a High-tech SME's core competence. Finally, the paper proposes some specific strategies of building a High-tech SME's core competence.Through research, we get the following conclusions:first, there is close relationship between core competence and knowledge capital. Second, knowledge capital is the cornerstone constituting a High-tech SME's core competence and can be divided into four parts:staff capabilities based on human capital, management capabilities based on structural capital, marketing capabilities based on customer capital and innovation capabilities based on innovation capital. Third, empirical analysis shows that the evaluation model based on knowledge capital has scientific rationality, and it can be applied to core competence evaluation. Finally, we can improve a High-tech SME's core competence by strengthening knowledge capital management.