Exploring innovation and digital innovation
24 May 2021
Urban-rural profile of micro-businesses
Research by the National Innovation Centre for Rural Enterprise (NICRE) has explored the levels of innovation and digital innovation in rural and urban micro-businesses.
Using data on more than 5,000 micro-businesses – firms with up to nine employees – in England and Wales, Ambition, innovation and digital innovation in rural and urban micro-businesses has four key findings:
- Rural micro-businesses are less likely to be innovating than similar firms in urban locations
- There is no difference between levels of digital innovation among rural and urban micro-businesses
- There are strong positive associations between micro-firms’ business ambitions and both innovation and digital innovation.
- There is a strong positive association between digital innovation and innovation related to products and processes.
Combination of factors
The research, authored by Dr Serdal Ozusaglam and Professor Stephen Roper, from NICRE founding university partners the Enterprise Research Centre, suggests that levels of innovation reflect a combination of where firms are located and owner-managers’ aspirations for growth or stability.
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