Strategic management in Latin America: Issues and assessment

This paper summarizes the best papers of the Strategic Management in Latin America (SMLA) conference which took place in January 2009 in Sao Paulo. Within a context of economic crisis that started in 2008 the authors find that the matters of business strategy within Latin America, addressed in the paper of this special issue, are relevant today just as when the authors submitted their papers. The strategic choices made by individual firms independent of the ever changing economic climate in which they find themselves is the key to the firm. The papers in this special issue cover a variety of topics encompassed within the area of strategic management: competitiveness, strategy formulation and execution, functional business disciplines and institutional strength in Latin America.