More on the differences between small, medium, and large companies in the Great Lakes

I mentioned in my last post that medium sized companies in the Great Lakes often have characteristics that lie between those of small and large sized companies.  Occasionally, their characteristics are very close to one or the other of them.  For example, the average managerial experience of the top manager at small firms is 11.5 years, while in medium firms it is 15.4 years and in large firms it is 15.7 years (source).  For use of a technology licensed from abroad, the percentages used are 4%, 16%, and 12%, so medium firms actually use more foreign licensed technology than large firms.

The reasons why medium firms are not just an average of small and large firms varies, but a common theme is that different influences act on different sized firms.  For example, small firms may exist only temporarily while their owners are unemployed.  Medium and large firms are much more likely to be permanent, professionally run organisations, with managers required to have more experience.