The development process and management of collaborative projects: a qualitative analysis

This paper provides empirical insights regarding the role, in terms of skills and attitude, that the collaborative project manager plays during the development process of collaborative projects among SMEs. This issue belongs to the recent scope of analysis developed around SME networks and respond to an explicit call for research concerning their management which, on the one hand, is a key issue form managers and, on the other hand, has not received much academic attention. Results emerging from case studies prove that the presence of a heavyweight collaborative project manager has a strong influence in collaborative projects success.