Small enterprises employment Dr Harm van Lieshout A

Small enterprises & employment Dr. Harm van Lieshout

A healthy working life in a healthy business • Providing employment is a key contribution of SMEs – In particular in the North Netherlands • Healthy Ageing key sector for Economic Policy in North Netherlands • Centre of Applied Labour Market Research –‘The Labour Market in the Energy Port Groningen Region’ – ‘Healthy Ageing & Work’ 21 -102015 Small enterpises and employment 2

The firm: a succesful coordination mechanism • Williamson: markets and hierarchies: – firms are literally born from the costs of doing business – work organisation requires more than spot-market labour contracts – different varieties of capitalism share the firm as its core coordination mechanism • Entrepreurship has gained social status since the 1970 s – became a focus of Dutch (higher) education over the last decade, such as our Consortium for Valorisation and Entrepreneurship (CVO) Groningen 21 -102015 Small enterpises and employment 3

Policy paradoxes? • SMEs are considered important for employment, in particular in the North Netherlands • Emerging sectors start with SMEs – of course, the hope of economic policymakers is that firms will become big rather than remain small • SMEs are considered to be reluctant employers, in particular in the Netherlands – two year liability for sick workers; – changes in dismissal law means no more free lay-offs 21 -102015 Small enterpises and employment 4

A little help from my friends • Economic succes requires more than individual firms – i. e. Southern Germany (associations), Italian Industrial Districts (networks) • States again adopting economic policy (sector selection) • Triple helix thinking has added education as a partner in this field – i. e. En. Tran. Ce, Health Hub Roden, Build. In. G • Understanding small enterprises implies understanding multi-level (labour) market governance 21 -102015 Small enterpises and employment 5

Understanding Small Enterprises • Understanding SMEs is essantial to our aspired succes as an economic partner • Small entprises are not small big enterprises, and differ substantially among them – ie. , they do not neccarily want to grow • The key ingredient to our help from education remains the education of a new highly skilled generation of workers … and entrepreneurs • Entrpreneurs do not necessarily want to be employers, and are not necessarily good at it. • But to ensure a healthy life in a healthy business, they need to be 21 -102015 Small enterpises and employment 6

So let’s share our talent at understanding small enterprises and move the world