Principal investigators:
Dr Andy Cosh,
Professor Alan Hughes,
Dr David Keeble,
Dr Barry Moore,
Dr Frank Wilkinson and
Michael Kitson
Survey & Database Manager: Anna Bullock
Assistant Database Manager: Isobel Milner
Project dates: ongoing
Overview
The first of these national SME surveys was carried out in 1991, in the CBR’s previous incarnation as the Small Business Research Centre.
More than 2000 independent firms with up to and including 499 employees in manufacturing and business services responded to this first survey. This first panel of firms were resurveyed in 1993, 1995 and finally in 1997. In 1997 we started a second panel of more than 2500 firms. These firms were in the same sectors and size group as the first panel. The second panel was surveyed again in 1999 and 2002. A third panel was created in 2002.
The surveys have included questions on general business characteristics; workforce and training; innovative activity, R&D and other innovation expenditure; commercial activity and competitive situation; factors affecting expansion and efficiency including business advice; capital expenditure and finance; executive structure; and acquisition activity. The surveys have varied in length with the first one for each panel containing around 50 questions, resulting in about 400 variables, and the follow up surveys being shorter.
First Panel
1991 Survey
Dates of survey: April to September 1991
Number of responses: 2,028
Publication: Small Business Research Centre (1992) The State of British Enterprise, Small Business Research Centre, University of Cambridge.
Out of Print
1993 Survey
Dates of survey: October to November 1993
Number of responses: 1,341
1995 Survey
Dates of survey: July to October 1995
Number of responses: 1,018
Publication: Cosh, A. D., Hughes, A. (eds) (1996) The Changing State of British Enterprise: growth innovation and competitive advantage in SMEs 1986-95, ESRC Centre for Business Research, Cambridge.
Price: £5.00 (pb 103 pages)
Other publications
Two datasets from the first panel:
- the complete 1991 dataset; and
- the combined datasets from the 1991, 1993 and 1995 surveys
are available from the UK Data Archive as the Cambridge Centre for Business
Research SME Dataset, 1987-1995 (SN4156).
Second Panel
1997 Survey
Dates of survey: June to September 1997
Number of responses: 2,520
Publication: Cosh, A. D., Hughes, A. (eds) (1998) Enterprise Britain: growth, innovation and public policy in the small and medium-sized enterprise sector 1994-1997, ESRC Centre for Business Research, Cambridge.
Price: £5.00 (pb 135 pages)
1999 Survey
Dates of survey: June to August 1999
Number of responses: 1,309
Publication: Cosh, A. D., Hughes, A. (eds) (2000) British Enterprise in Transition: Growth, Innovation and Public Policy in the Small and Medium Sized Enterprise Sector 1994-1999, ESRC Centre for Business Research, Cambridge.
Price: £5.00 (pb 112 pages)
Other publications
The dataset created from the 1997 survey is archived as the Cambridge Centre for
Business Research SME Dataset (Second Panel), 1997 (SN4431)
Third Panel
2002 Survey
Dates of survey: June to October 2002
Number of responses: 2,130
Publication: Cosh, A. D., Hughes, A. (eds) (2003) Enterprise Challenged: Policy and performance in the British SME sector 1999-2002, ESRC Centre for Business Research, Cambridge.
Price: £5.00 per copy (pb 132 pages)
Other publications
Fourth Panel
2004 Survey
Dates of survey: November-December 2004
Number of responses: 2,137
Publication: Cosh, A. and Hughes, A. (eds.) (2007) British Enterprise: thriving or surviving? SME Growth, innovation and public policy 2001-2004, Centre for Business Research, Cambridge.
Price: £50.00 per copy (pb 124 pages)
2008 Survey
Dates of survey: November-December 2008
Number of responses: 855
Publication: Cosh, A. and Hughes, A., Bullock, A. and Milner, I. (2009) SME finance and innovation in the current economic crisis, Centre for Busines Research Cambridge.
Other publications
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