Success factors of high-tech SBUs: Towards a conceptual model based on the Israeli electronics and computers industry

Of the few studies that have been performed on success and failure of business units in industrial organizations, most were based on marketing and financial data collected in the PIMS program. This study explores the factors contributing to success and failure of high-tech business units. It is based on a survey conducted in the electronics and computers industry in Israel. The article argues that the success of business units in this industry should not be measured in financial terms only. There are two additional dimensions to success: positioning in the market and preparing the necessary assets and infrastructure for future development, manufacturing and marketing of new products. Some unique success and failure factors, other than those revealed in studies at the product level, were found to contribute to the success of high-tech business units.