Firm dynamics and job creation in the United Kingdom:1998–2013

Abstract

This article is motivated by a very simple question – ‘what types of firms create the most jobs in the UK economy?’ One popular answer to this question has been High-Growth Firms (HGFs). These firms represent only a small minority – the ‘Vital 6%’ – of the UK business population yet, but have a disproportionate impact on job creation and innovation. We re-visit the discussion launched by the 2009 National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA) reports, which identified the 6% figure and, using more recent data, confirm the headline conclusion for job creation: a small number of job-creating firms (mostly small firms) are responsible for a significant amount of net job creation in the United Kingdom. Adopting our alternative preferred analytical approach, which involves tracking the growth performance of cohorts of start-ups confirms this conclusion; however, we find an even smaller number of job-creating firms are responsible for a very significant proportion of job creation. We conclude by considering the question – ‘what are the implications for policy choices?’.

Publication DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242614552334
Divisions: College of Business and Social Sciences > Aston Business School > Economics, Finance & Entrepreneurship
College of Business and Social Sciences > Aston Business School
Additional Information: Co-funding: Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)
Uncontrolled Keywords: growth trajectories,high-growth firms,job creation,United Kingdom,Business and International Management
Publication ISSN: 1741-2870
Last Modified: 12 Mar 2024 08:10
Date Deposited: 25 Feb 2015 10:30
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Related URLs: http://www.scop ... tnerID=8YFLogxK (Scopus URL)
http://isb.sage ... content/33/1/12 (Publisher URL)
PURE Output Type: Article
Published Date: 2015-02
Published Online Date: 2015-01-18
Authors: Anyadike-Danes, Michael (ORCID Profile 0000-0001-5175-082X)
Hart, Mark (ORCID Profile 0000-0002-0402-4128)
Du, Jun (ORCID Profile 0000-0002-0449-4437)

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