Gazelle firms hoover up rural jobs – but ‘superstars’ boost productivity for all
22 January 2019
• Enterprise Research Centre study shows higher numbers of fast-growing firms in a region can lead to net loss of jobs, especially in rural areas
• But clusters of companies that combine job growth with productivity gains have a positive impact from ‘spillover’ effects
• Policymakers need to be aware of trade-offs from promoting job and productivity growth at the same time
The UK’s efforts to boost productivity while ironing out regional inequalities in job creation may be fundamentally at odds, according to a study of so-called ‘gazelle’ firms.
The findings, based on a study of 6.25m firms over a 17-year period by the Enterprise Research Centre (ERC), shed new light on the spillover effects highgrowth firms have on other businesses in their region.
