Small vs. Young Firms Across the World: Contribution to Employment, Job Creation, and Growth

43 Pages Posted: 20 Apr 2016

See all articles by Meghana Ayyagari

Meghana Ayyagari

George Washington University - School of Business

Asli Demirgüç-Kunt

World Bank

Vojislav Maksimovic

University of Maryland - Robert H. Smith School of Business

Date Written: April 1, 2011

Abstract

This paper investigates the contribution of small firms to employment, job creation, and growth in developing countries. While small firms (<20 employees) have the smallest share of aggregate employment, the SME sector's (<100 employees) contribution is comparable to that of large firms. Small firms have the largest shares of job creation, and highest sales growth and employment growth, even after controlling for firm age. Large firms, however, have higher productivity growth. Conditional on size, young firms are the fastest growing and large mature firms have the largest employment shares but small young firms have higher job creation rates.

Keywords: Labor Markets, Microfinance, Small Scale Enterprise, Labor Policies, Access to Finance

Suggested Citation

Ayyagari, Meghana and Demirgüç-Kunt, Asli and Maksimovic, Vojislav, Small vs. Young Firms Across the World: Contribution to Employment, Job Creation, and Growth (April 1, 2011). World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. 5631, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1807732

Meghana Ayyagari (Contact Author)

George Washington University - School of Business ( email )

Washington, DC 20052
United States

Asli Demirgüç-Kunt

World Bank ( email )

1818 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20433
United States

Vojislav Maksimovic

University of Maryland - Robert H. Smith School of Business ( email )

Van Munching Hall
College Park, MD 20742-1815
United States
301-405-2125 (Phone)
301-314-9157 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://scholar.rhsmith.umd.edu/vmax/home

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