Applied Knowledge Exchange

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SMEs play a vital role in driving the Scottish economy and “yet they do not always received the recognition they deserve for their extraordinary achievements”.

These were the views emphasised by Alasdair Northrop, Editor of Scottish Business Insider, at the SME 300 Awards 2009 event in Glasgow.

According to Scottish Government research, SMEs account for 99.2% of enterprises here and they employ around 52.8% of the population.

Overall the SME 300 companies saw a 0.3% fall in profits reflecting the beginning of the recession. However, that compared to a 2.2% fall in Insider’s Top 500 companies listing, which seems to indicate that SMEs are more resilient in this climate.

Insider, in association with accountancy firm Scott-Moncrieff, set up the awards three years ago to mark the achievements of SMEs in a number of areas including leadership, innovation and focus.

Cormac Bryce, PhD Researcher in the Division of Accounting, Finance & Risk at  the Caledonian Business School, conducted in-depth research for the SME 300 Awards 2009.

Cormac’s research was then put to the panel of judges led by Gio Benedetti. The other judges were Vivien Kyles, Chief Executive of Hamilton Park Racecourse; Audrey Corfield, Head of Office for Glasgow at Marsh; founder of Braveheart Geoffrey Thomson; and Chartered Accountant Nelson Gray.