Exploring the feasibility of a productivity-based approach for evaluating business support interventions

This document describes a comprehensive evaluation of various UK economic policies aimed at enhancing growth and productivity, with a particular focus on the Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme and the Regional Selective Assistance program. The evaluation methodology includes productivity decomposition, quasi-experimental designs, and Propensity Score Matching to model scenarios and measure the causal effects of the interventions. Results suggest that while supported businesses generally show higher productivity growth and employment, there are complexities such as the potential protection of inefficient plants and resource reallocation within firms. The study also examines the challenges in measuring indirect economic impacts like spatial spillovers and the role of SMEs in economic development. It emphasizes the need for further research to validate the findings and improve evaluation methods. The document also discusses broader economic and organizational contexts, referencing academic literature and stressing the importance of effective communication in research. **This summary was written by an AI model and therefore should not be considered a definitive summary of the report. If you are aware of inaccuracies, please email evaluation.registry@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.**

Description

• Lead department: Closed organisation: Department for Business, Innovation & Skills
• Evaluation stage: A complete evaluation report
• Other departments: No other departments listed
• Evaluation types: Value for money evaluation; Impact evaluation; Process evaluation
• Impact methods: Randomised control trial (RCT)
• RCT methods: No RCT methods listed
• Process methods: Individual interviews
• Value for money methods: Other
• Grant information: This intervention is not distributing funding via a grant
• Government Major Project information: This intervention is not a major project
• Policies: No policies provided

Event Dates

• Event Name: Publication of final results
• Event date: July 2016

Evaluation Costs

• Cost: Not provided

Evaluation sharing

• Link(s) to published report(s): Yes
• Links to evaluation plans: No link provided
• Findings: Not provided
• Permission to share confirmed: Yes