TABLE OF CONTENTS With the sheer number of small- and medium-sized firms or enterprises (SMEs) in existence, and the very diversity of the goods and services that they offer, it is little wonder that no one has been able to create a meaningful taxonomy to classify them, although it seems to be part of human nature that we insist on keep trying. In the process of trying, successive governments, research and educational institutions, have developed a range of overlapping and contradictory definitions, which vary from country to country.
Back in 1971 the British government had shown a little interest in the structure of small businesses when the Bolton Committee Report (1971) attempted, rather haphazardly to define the sizes of small firms across a number of key industries. For example, a small manufacturing firm had less than 200 staff whereas small mines and quarries had only 25 or less. In the motor trade a small firm had a turnover of under 100 k but in the wholesale trade the turnover was 200k. Small transport firms had less than five vehicles, and catering businesses were small so long as they were not multiple outlets or brewery managed. With such vague definitions it was not surprising that the government had no clear or positive policies towards small firms, although the New Enterprise Programme of the 1970s was the first, albeit unsatisfactory, attempt to support small firms by encouraging them to undertake training and development to improve their staff and management...
