Intellectual capital and distinctive skills in SMEs of the timber industry in Argentina

In the knowledge economy, intellectual capital is increasingly becoming important as a source of core competences. A core competence is obtained by combining internal and external factors of the company by means of the strategy to generate better performance than its competitors. The Argentinian wood SMEs often have specific characteristics and, in particular, a limited intellectual capital. Consequently, it is expected that the process of establishing core competences is different. This paper analyzes the characteristics of that process. The results show how they organize their resources and capabilities to provide their competitiveness. This competitiveness leads to better organizational performance, but does not directly affect economic performance.