Small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) involvement in the marketplace for public sector contracts has been the subject of scholarly interest for some time. Studies undertaken to date have largely concentrated on SME resource disadvantage relative to large firms in competing for and winning public sector contracts. Much less attention has been paid to disadvantage within the SME population and how factors such as size, sector and owner characteristics affect SME tendering. In response, this paper examines the relationship between size and SME public sector tendering. Findings show that size as measured by number of employees significantly influences SMEs' tendering resources, behaviour, and success; micro-enterprises, in particular, are found to be resource disadvantaged, tender less often, and have lower success rates compared to small and medium-sized enterprises. These findings support the case for recognising SMEs as heterogeneous tenderers and point to the need for more focused research on how SME characteristics influence ability and willingness to tender. Questions are also raised over the efficacy of current 'one-size-fits-all' policy for facilitating SME access to public procurement.

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If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -The purpose of this paper is to present findings from longitudinal case studies of small firm mentoring relationships in Ireland. The rationale is to explore the gaps between the theory and practice of small firm mentoring. Design/methodology/approach -The paper uses a comparative case study design involving interviews, observation and secondary sources of evidence including business plans. Findings -In contrast to the literature the paper extends the role of mentors in the small firm context as offering direct and indirect support, which reduces uncertainty in order to increase legitimacy of the business entity.Research limitations/implications -The cases highlight a conflict between the broad theoretical scope of the mentor process vs a narrow role assumed by best practice. Practical implications -The research presents an opportunity to enhance the pragmatic vs paternalistic perspective of small firm mentoring. The authors argue that for mentoring theory to be useful then a mentor's role-set in small firms may be wider and should be more direct than mentors in large corporations. Originality/value -The emergent theoretical framework combines organisational learning and decision-making theories. The paper contributes to the theoretical development of mentoring by extending the range and defining the role of mentors in the context of small firms.

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