Victor Ekpu
Research Consultant
Jane Bourke
Lecturer in Economics
Dr. Jane Bourke is a Senior Lecturer in Economics, University College Cork.
Jane’s research interests are in the area of firm-level innovation, technology adoption and micro-businesses. She is also interested in the adoption of innovations and digital technologies in health care.
‘Out of the Shadows’ Growth From (non-land) Rural Enterprises
This workshop was held at Aston University on 27 February 2014. Links to the presentations are available
Bettina Becker
Associate Professor
“Growth in Every Postcode”: A Scale-Up Target Measures the Wrong Thing
If the promise of “good growth in every postcode” is going to mean anything, it has to start with the small and micro businesses. On Monday, Andy Burnham walked through the door of Number 10 as Britain’s new Prime Minister, promising “good growth in every postcode.” It’s exactly the pledge that small and micro businesses… Read more
INSIGHT FROM INNOVATION STATE OF THE NATION SURVEY ( 2025)
The Innovation State of the Nation Survey (ISNS) provides an annual overview of innovation activity across a representative sample of UK businesses. This report focuses on the 2025 survey, conducted in early 2025 and covering 2,020 firms. Results are compared with those from the 2023 and 2024 surveys to highlight short-term trends in innovation levels,… Read more
Enabling the Triple Transition in UK SMEs
Firms’ increasing use of digital technologies during the COVID-19 pandemic has been widely highlighted. At the same time, evidence of the growing climate crisis also points to the need for firms to move towards more sustainable, low carbon ways of operating. The implications of these digital and net zero transitions for firms’ productivity upgrading are… Read more








