Enterprise
This research was carried out by SE in conjunction BIS, Invest Northern Ireland and the Welsh Assembly to understand the growth ambitions of SMEs, what affects ambitions and the links between ambition and business growth.
The role of technology and technology-based firms in economic development
This paper explores the role played by technology, innovation and technology-based firms in the economy, and the contribution of high-growth firms to technological development.
Business growth ambitions amongst SMEs
The research was commissioned in October 2011 by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), Scottish Enterprise (SE), the Welsh Government and InvestNI, to investigate growth ambitions amongst small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The report aims to provide a better understanding of the scale and strength of growth ambition amongst UK SMEs, how this affects actual growth performance and the factors affecting growth ambition.
Management Practices and Productivity - July 2011 (Word, 396kB)
Short paper highlighting the role of management practices as a driver of company performance and productivity. Also assesses UK and Scottish performances using recent evidence.
High Growth Firms in Scotland - October 2010 (PDF, 1.2MB)
High growth firms (HGFs) are widely thought to be a key force fuelling economic growth within modern advanced economies. This is the first comprehensive analysis of HGFs ever undertaken in Scotland.
Best Strategies in Skills Utilisation Executive Summary - January 2010 (PDF, 114kB) 
Best Strategies in Skills Utilisation - January 2010 (PDF, 276kB)
This report was written in response to Skills Development Scotland and Scottish Enterprise's wish to identify best strategies in skills utilisation among Scottish businesses. The report is designed to support the work of the Scottish Government's Skills Utilisation Leadership Group.
Innovation
Universities and economic growth (Word, 452kB)
This short paper examines the contribution of universities to economic growth focusing specifically on:
- the attraction of research income
- commercialisation of university research
- university/business engagement
- university internationalisation
Towards a Low Carbon Economy - Understanding businesses' perspective - February 2011 (PDF, 188kB)
The research aims to provide insight and evidence to help direct Scottish Enterprise policy and service provision concerning environmental sustainability and low carbon initiatives.
Innovation as a Driver of Economic Growth - Nov 2010 (Word, 1.5MB)
The paper sets out a comparative measurement framework for assessing the Scottish innovation performance (across a range of measures) and focuses on innovation behaviours that appear to be prevalent within the domestic business base. The policy implications, based on the analysis, are then raised.
- Analysis of the Community Innovation Survey 2007 - February 2011 (PDF, 340kB)
This report is a detailed analysis of the Scottish results of the 2007 Innovation Survey. The analysis examines the main indicators of innovation included in the survey and compares the results for Scotland with those of the rest of the UK and other UK regions. the survey results suggest that the challenge is not only to have companies innovate, but for them to innovate for growth. There may be a need to focus on maximising the benefits of innovation rather than solely increasing the absolute number of innovative businesses.
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Innovation in Scotland: Analysis of the Community Innovation Survey 2009 (PDF, 447kB)
This paper presents an analysis of the Scottish results of the 2009 UK Innovation Survey. The 2009 survey is the third bi-annual survey, and this analysis focuses on Scottish trends over time and provides comparisons with the UK as a whole.