Building better business health

Building better business health: what can we learn from public health campaigns? The continuing productivity gap between the UK and its international competitors has focussed attention on the competitiveness of UK firms. So how can we boost the health and vitality of UK businesses? Or, more accurately, how can we encourage businesses themselves to take… Read more

Europe-wide study on ‘shock-proof’ firms ahead of Brexit

Europe-wide study on ‘shock-proof’ firms ahead of Brexit Two-year project will learn lessons from 3,000 of Europe’s most resilient firms to spread best practice Focus on under-represented groups will seek to understand how entrepreneurs overcome barriers With 70% of European jobs in SMEs, study is seen as vital pre-Brexit to cushion economic fallout A new… Read more

Europe-wide study on ‘shock-proof’ firms ahead of Brexit

 Two-year project will learn lessons from 3,000 of Europe’s most resilient firms to spread best practice  Focus on under-represented groups will seek to understand how entrepreneurs overcome barriers With 70% of European jobs in SMEs, study is seen as vital pre-Brexit to cushion economic fallout A new study on business resilience in five European countries will draw up… Read more

Minorities and immigrants ‘twice as entrepreneurial as white Britons’

• People from ethnic minority backgrounds and immigrants to UK are twice as likely to be early-stage entrepreneurs  • New Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) findings show gap has widened sharply since financial crisis of 2008 • Women, younger people, ethnic minority groups and migrants more likely to be motivated by ‘creating meaning’ as well as making money when… Read more

GEM UK 2017

The launch of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor ( GEM)  2017 takes place today at the NatWest Accelerator Hub in London. The annual global survey is the world’s most authoritative study of entrepreneurial activity and has been running since 1999, Speakers at the launch included Mark Hart, ERC, Aston business School and Jonathan Levie, ERC, Strathcylde… Read more

ERC Stakeholder Event.

The ERC held a Stakeholder Event on 27th June 2018 at The Shard in London at which we launched five new research projects. There was excellent engagement from the stakeholders present, with many points raised that will help inform the future direction of the new projects as they develop over the coming months. To view the… Read more

State of Small Business Britain 2018

On the 21st June the ERC welcomed over 100 delegates to The Shard for our fifth State of Small Business Britain Conference, which this year had a focus on the topical theme of ‘Productivity and Place’. Through a lively mix of presentations and discussions, the conference covered a range of issues affecting the productivity of… Read more

ERC Conference & UK Growth Dashboard 2018 Press Coverage.

Financial Times Brexit casts shadow over Northern Ireland small business boom Yorkshire Post Small firms show better productivity gains BBC News (Scotland) ‘Fear of heights’ holds back Scottish businesses The Times (Scotland) Small Scottish businesses lag behind the rest of the UK BBC News ( Scotland ) Blog – Douglas Fraser In search of the… Read more

Micro-business Britain

‘Digital dividend’ productivity boost for UK’s micro firms • Biggest ever study of UK ‘micro-businesses’ (with 1-9 employees) shows big boosts to productivity from use of digital technologies • Doubling adoption could provide a ‘digital dividend’ boost to the economy worth £16.6bn • Research points way to boosting output of group of firms traditionally seen as ‘drag’ on… Read more

Business growth snapshot shows Brexit ‘crunch spots’

21st June 2018 • Firms in Northern Ireland and parts of the North of England show strong growth and productivity gains in latest annual study of SMEs • Coastal and rural areas display lower numbers of fast-growing firms, leaving them vulnerable to economic shock • Experts warn threat of more complex trading arrangements could undo recent success of… Read more