Importance of Small to Medium Enterprises in the UK economy
Small to medium size enterprises (SMEs) play a vital role in supporting the economy as their main contributions include innovation, employment and adaptability. They help to make the UK more competitive and appealing to visitors and investors and, complement diversity, growth and creativity to towns and cities, while playing an important role in serving the communities in which they are based. Not only do they add value to the regional areas, they also help to boost competition in local markets. Additionally, SMEs provide 60% (15.7 million) jobs in the private sector as they take on those who may not be employable by larger corporations and also create 47% of the economic revenue.
Furthermore, SMEs also contribute a great deal to the larger companies, by providing vital resources and completing business functions that bigger enterprises are unable to complete. These types of businesses are able to attract new talent to develop innovative products that are better targeted towards the needs of the local community. They are also in a unique position to invest more time and care into implementing new solutions and improving upon existing ideas within the market.
Evidently, the economic period between 2006 to 2009 introduced a number of new enterprises in the UK. More people saw increasing benefits in pursing the path of entrepreneurship rather than the need to seek minimum waged jobs in a tough environment. Through this time, SME’s have shown remarkable resilience, and since then, these enterprises have increased in volume and continued to grow.
Although these businesses are still in their development or early growth stages, collectively, they have a large impact on the economy, the people and the local community. Encouraging SMEs to develop to their full potential, can possibly present over £200 billion into the UK economy by 2020, and support from the government enables this economic contribution.