View article

This white paper summarises what we know about the connection between entrepreneurs’ growth intentions and realised enterprise growth. It addresses the following questions: How strong is the association between entrepreneurial growth intentions and subsequent performance? What affects entrepreneurial growth intentions at the individual level and national level, and how big are these effects? What can be done to raise entrepreneurial growth intentions in the UK? What further research needs to be done in this area?

Growth intentions matter. Large scale studies have concluded that the proportion of entrepreneurs with growth intentions in the population is a more significant predictor of economic growth than general start-up rates or self-employment rates. This suggests that “quality” of entrepreneurship is more important than “quantity” of entrepreneurship.