Small Businesses Still Lead the American Economy

Well, at least they did in 1996.

According to the “The Small Business Economy 2007” report produced by  the Small Business Administration (SBA), small businesses remain the engine of the American economy despite signs of slowing growth in the current environment.  The study is probably misnamed (it looks at data from 1996), but it demonstrates clearly that small businesses, particularly innovative growth companies are the key to the US economy.

For the first time, however, the study also looked at the interesting areas of Social Entrepreneurship and Pre-Venture Planning.  There are some interesting facts, figures, and analysis in here.  However, there area also some curious bits too…

From the Well, Duh…. Department, the SBA teases this analytical gem out of the data:

Professors William Gartner and Jon Liao provide compelling evidence from the Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics that business planning can significantly improve an entrepreneur’s chances of successfully starting a business.