Forest harvesting entrepreneurs, perception of their business status and its influence on performance evaluation

Forest harvesting business performance has traditionally been associated with the quest for productivity and lower operating costs. As a result, public policies and programs implemented by governments or contract givers designed to provide assistance to Forest Harvesting Entrepreneurs (FHE) are usually conceived around these two parameters. Often perceived as forest machine "owner-operators", or even company employees, the status of FHEs has yet to be clearly defined. While several studies have focused on forest entrepreneurs or contractors, few have specifically been aimed at defining their business status. It is hypothesized that the assumption of a business status as either owner-operator or owner-manager may influence the selection of criteria to measure their performance. This paper draws a parallel between characteristics of Small and Medium Business (SME) and FHE owner-managers in order to detect similarities shared by both groups. Based on results from a survey and a review of the research literature on organizational performance, a proposal is put forward that FHEs and their partners within the wood supply network reconsider the traditional logging performance paradigm to include factors such as entrepreneur motivation, management habits and aptitudes, business strategy and other non-financial dimensions. The introduction of a broader and more comprehensive definition of FHEs brings about a significant shift in perspective in forestry research, which can lead to innovative progress that will improve the performance of FHEs and, more generally, of the forest supply chain.