European HiGroSME Conference

European HiGroSME Conference

"Supporting High-Growth Potential Firms:
The Policy Challenge of Building Tomorrow's Winners"

16/17 November 2006

CDTI - Madrid
Calle Cid, 4
28001 Madrid

Research consistently shows that most new employment is created by just a few firms, often young ones. Also, only a few firms achieve high sustained rates of growth. Such fast-growing firms have been called "gazelles". Who are they? Why are they different? Can public policy intervene to increase their number or to accelerate and sustain their growth? If yes, how best to do it?

These questions are at the heart of the HiGroSME project, which has been launched by a group of European technology and innovation programme management agencies with the financial support of the European Commission. Through investigations and workshops the HiGroSME project has reached the provisional conclusion that most European countries and programmes are ill-adapted to providing effective support for high-growth potential firms.

Do we need new programmes for high-growth potential firms? Do we need new delivery mechanisms? Some countries have concluded that we do, and the Madrid conference included case studies of new approaches from North America and Europe. The Madrid conference was intended as a forum at which to share with interested national and regional technology and innovation programme managers and policy makers the results so far from the HiGroSME project. We discussed together, with the help of acknowledged experts, the characteristics of high-growth firms, their assistance needs, and the most effective delivery mechanisms.

It is intended to organise a follow-up conference in 2007 to continue the discussion on new or improved HiGro support actions. This could also be the opportunity to discuss with those recently launched HiGro programmes presented in Madrid how best to evaluate their impact and cost-benefit.

Programme / Presentations

Contact:

Project Coordination
Christian Wehrmann
VDI/VDE Innovation+Technik GmbH
10623 Berlin
Germany
Phone:  +49 30 310078-197
Fax:  +49 30 310078-225
eMail: wehrmann@vdivde-it.de
Internet: www.vdivde-it.de