Call for fresh thinking to support high-growth firms

A dip in the number of high-growth enterprises indicates a need to rethink how to support this sector, says the director of the University’s Small to Medium Enterprise Research Centre.

Professor David Deakins has called a symposium to discuss policy interventions and support. He says the issue needs to be addressed by business specialists and policymakers.

High-growth enterprises, defined by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development as having 10 or more employees and an average growth in employment or gst sales of more than 20 per cent a year over a three-year period, create jobs and contribute disproportionately to a country’s gross domestic product.

Figures released by the Ministry of Economic Development, based on gst sales, show a drop in the percentage of high-growth firms from 7.6 per cent two years ago to 5.8 per cent last year.

Professor Deakins says while it is important to the nation's prosperity that high-growth firms are not lost overseas, there is also a view that we must accept they operate in a global marketplace and may need to relocate at some stage. “We must first try to retain them but also encourage them to grow here and benefit from that growth in the early years of operation."

The symposium, to be held at the Wellington campus on September 2, will be addressed by University Vice-Chancellor Steve Maharey and Small Business Minister Maurice Williamson.

Speakers include Massey graduate Dr Brian Ward, who three years ago founded Mesynthes, an innovative company that develops and manufactures devices for wound healing and tissue reconstruction. Dr Ward, who graduated with a Bachelor of Veterinary Science and a Master of Business Administration, will share his experience about starting up a potential high-growth business. Keynote speaker is entrepreneurship specialist Professor Colin Mason, from Glasgow's University of Strathclyde.

The full programme and registration form is available here: http://sme-centre.massey.ac.nz/files/About_Symp2010.htm.