Is the current situation of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) conducive to attaining their economic expectations?

Abstract

There are high expectations for growth and performance of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the current economic environment. SMEs are expected to play a significant role in the development plans for Asia Pacific, Canada, British Columbia and the Okanagan region (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation 2002, Canadian Federation of Independent Business et al, 2002, and Economic Development Commission 2002). While these expectations have been clearly articulated in national and international circles, very little has been heard from the SMEs themselves. This study attempts to listen to the SMEs in the Regional District of the Central Okanagan (RDCO) to determine whether they are confident that they can meet the economic expectations to provide employment growth and investment opportunities. The results show that while SMEs confidently predict increases in sales revenues and have plans to increase the numbers of employees, they have less confidence about their ability overall to meet these economic expectations. This is largely due to the highly changing regional, national and international environment in which they operate.