Employees of manufacturing companies are often asked to participate in the implementation of firm strategic initiatives such as innovation, customer relationship management, entering new overseas markets and competitive actions within the marketplace. Previous studies that examined this participation invariably looked at employee participation and involvement in the implementation of one of these intervention strategies in isolation, rather than considering employee behaviours and involvement when a company simultaneously implements two or more of these initiatives. This study explored the interaction between both innovation and market orientation using a series of interviews with key managers from manufacturing Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the Greater Western Sydney economic development zone in NSW, Australia. Interview transcripts were analysed and key concepts, themes and connections identified using word frequency analysis software, Leximancer.