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Purchasing Development in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) Issue number 19 Vol.10 n°2 - 2009 The Boeing 787 case study Purchase this article : 5 € Abstract: This paper presents a comparative study of the levels of complexity, development, and organizational demographics of purchasing in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Denmark and two states in the United States. SMEs are strongly dependent on the efficiency of the purchasing function and also very dependent on existing suppliers because they have difficulties in finding viable substitutes. Additionally, the time spent on routine transactions and problem solving instead of strategic sourcing and long-term relationships with key suppliers is relatively high in SMEs. Using structural equation modeling with survey data, we demonstrate that in the United States, purchasing complexity indeed determines the level of purchasing development in SMEs. The evidence in Denmark is not so clear, however. Authors: Seung-Kuk Paik, California State University, Northridge Prabir K. Bagchi , School of Business, The George Washington University Tage Skjøtt-Larsen, Copenhagen Business School Jeffery Adams, , University of Houston-Downtown Keywords: Purchasing Supply chain Management small business SME