Abstract
Between 2003 and 2008, the number of micro-groups registered by the French National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Insee) increased by 75%. However, few studies have focused on this significant phenomenon. The SME is a major field of study that is part of the heated debates leading “to a plural reading of what it means to be a business leader” (Sme Observatory, 2008). This article aims to show that the hypogroupe (Marchesnay, 1991) – which is the archetype/idéal-type of the statistical entity microgroup – is an organizational configuration able to sustain small businesses development. By studying the ownership structure of the capital and the owners-managers’logics of action, we analyze the changing modes of control in the hypogroupe, at both internal and external levels. Ten cases were examined in 1997. Of the six hypogroupes still active in 2009 (that is to say they haven’t been bought by another company or ceased their activity altogether), four have been selected to illustrate the changes in the role of the SME’s manager in connection with the evolution of the ownership structure of the capital and the areas of control. Like the leaders of larger companies, the owner-manager tries to articulate the professionalisation of management and more formalized modes of control on the one hand, and the conservation of features specific to the small size of his company on the other hand.