Browse by: "S"
Index
Title Index
Year Index
Despite potential benefits, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) lag behind larger firms in their adoption of digital technologies. Moreover, digital adoption by SMEs is to a large extent still confined to basic services, and adoption gaps increase as technologies become more sophisticated. The COVID-19 crisis has accelerated SME digitalisation, but barriers to adoption persist. The stakes are high, not only because SMEs make up most of the business and industrial fabric in most countries and regions, but also because they are strategic actors in large firms’ supply chains and play a key role in building inclusive and resilient societies. This Going Digital Toolkit note identifies the challenges that governments face in enabling SMEs to benefit from digital transformation and outlines key policy recommendations, including: 1) encouraging digital uptake by SMEs, 2) supporting SME training and upskilling, 3) strengthening management skills in SMEs, and 4) leveraging financial technology (Fintech) and alternative sources of finance for SMEs.
High and rising unemployment rates in the early 1990s have moved the employment question centrestage in the policy debate. Among the structural aspects, the relation between firm size and employment creation has attracted policy makers’ attention, triggered by empirical work on the United States which showed that the small business sector had been a major source of net job creation. This work and the rising interest by policymakers led to further studies of the subject, the identification of important methodological and data questions and a broader body of empirical research about the relation between firm size and job creation.
This document aims at identifying common results and trends from national studies, as well as identifying “best practices” of analysis and data gathering, and thereby promoting international harmonisation of such analytical work. Principal results from a survey of national studies include: (a) both the rates of gross job creations and gross job losses are ...
After a brief overview of current financing difficulties for SMEs and policy measures to support SME lending during the crisis,this article presents a literature review related to difficulties in SME’s access to finance during the crisis, against a background of a sharp decline in bank profitability and an erosion of bank capital that negatively affected lending. The articles reviewed are classified according to four main issues of interest:the impairment of the bank-credit channel and its economic effects;factors potentially attenuating the effect of a financial squeeze;the role of global banking in mitigating but also transmitting financial shocks; and,looking ahead,issues related to so-called “credit-less recoveries” that should be relevant in guiding policy makers in the current environment of financial deleveraging. All the results hold important implications for policy making given the bail-outs and the large injections ofliquidity by central banks during the crisis.
Digitalisation has triggered a profound transformation of the retail sector, primarily composed of SMEs. While retail businesses are embracing more hybrid practices of managing online and brick-and-mortar channels, getting more traditional SME retailers fit for the hybrid era could open up new opportunities, with far reaching implications on the local economy. Through a novel survey conducted in six OECD countries (France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, and Spain) in co-operation with e-commerce platforms, this
report provides new insights to better understand retail SMEs’ perceived advantages and challenges of operating online sales through these platforms, with a particular spotlight on hybrid SME retailers.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (“SMEs”) are important stakeholders for both environmental and economic policymaking. Among OECD countries, they represent roughly 99.7% of all enterprises and 60% of total employment. Simultaneously, while their individual environmental footprint is small, on aggregate, SMEs contribute up to 70% of industrial pollution in Europe. Thus, they have tremendous potential as drivers of green and inclusive growth. Through a comprehensive literature review, this issue paper assesses the trade-offs and synergies between SMEs’ ability to deliver green growth – through greening processes like eco-innovation and adoption of green measures - and their ability to contribute to inclusive growth – through job creation and inclusive business models. This issue paper also reviews relevant policy measures that can help SMEs navigate the opportunities and challenges in delivering green and inclusive growth.
This paper provides an overview of discussions on how to ensure the effectiveness and administrability of competition law in practice. It was prepared as a background note for a discussion on safe harbours and legal presumptions held at the OECD in December 2017.
This report examines the safety aspects associated with the increasing use of e-scooters and other forms of micromobility in cities. The rise of micromobility challenges existing regulations for urban traffic and forces policy makers to rethink them. The report considers a range of actions to make urban traffic with micromobility safe, including in street layout, vehicle design and vehicle operation, user education and enforcement of rules. It also asks whether a shift towards micromobility can have potential safety benefits.
The report on seamless travel and improved traveller experience considers the concept and scope of seamless travel, the international policy context for its further development, and issues and good practice in four key areas: i) Visa requirements and acquisition; ii) Digital traveller identity and biometrics; iii) Multi-modal transport and connectivity; and iv) Visitor handling, information and management. Based on the findings and analysis, it presents a set of key conclusions and guidelines for action, for the attention of G20, OECD and other countries, and relevant international organisations. The report’s Guidelines for Action on Safe and Seamless Travel were adopted in the Diriyah Communiqué of the 2020 G20 Tourism Ministers’ Meeting.
Through social benefit programmes (SBP), governments protect individuals and families from economic and social risks, and provide a safety net for households and businesses. As governments are witnessing an increase in cases of fraud in SBPs, maintaining the effectiveness and accountability of these programmes is more vital than ever. This note considers how governments can safeguard SBPs from fraud and error in both the short and long term to ensure that entitlements are reaching beneficiaries as the effects of the COVID-19 crisis continue to be felt.
Before the war, the Ukrainian Pay-As-You-Go pension system required large government transfers. Since then, large scale emigration and an increasing number of people eligible for pensions have further increased the need for government transfers and exacerbated the challenges of population ageing. At the same time, the system provides relatively low pension benefits, despite fairly high contribution rates and short time in retirement. This reflects to a large degree a relatively narrow contribution base due to a large informal economy and underreporting of labour income. Reform of the system must encourage participation, secure liveable pensions, and safeguard the system’s fiscal sustainability.
In 2020, the ITF published Safe Micromobility, a report assessing the safety of micromobility and new mobility services. In the four years since publication, much has changed in terms of the evidence base regarding the safety of micromobility. This report summarises an analysis of the current evidence base of the most recent micromobility safety trends and risks. It provides safety recommendations for both authorities and micromobility operators in line with the Safe System approach.
This report examines how increasing automation of cars and trucks could affect road safety, and which security vulnerabilities will need to be addressed with the rise of self-driving vehicles. It applies the principles of the Safe System approach and relevance of Vision Zero for road safety to the wider discussion on vehicle automation. It also takes into consideration the security of the cyber-physical system associated with automated driving, including a definition of relevant system boundaries and future-proof minimum requirements for safety and security.
On 11 March 2011, the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident occurred.1 In responding to this accident, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on 30 March 2011, with broad support by the IAEA Member States, called for a Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Safety which took place in Vienna from 20–24 June 2011.2 On 20 June 2011, the Conference adopted a Declaration on Nuclear Safety, which, inter alia, expresses sympathy and solidarity with Japan and emphasises “the importance of implementing enhanced national and international measures to ensure that the highest and most robust levels of nuclear safety are in place, based on the IAEA safety standards, which should be continuously reviewed, strengthened and implemented as broadly and effectively as possible and commit to increase bilateral, regional and international cooperation to that effect.”3 The declaration furthermore requested the Director General of the IAEA to prepare a report and to draft an action plan building on the declaration and on the outcome of the ministerial conference.
A review has been conducted of the documentation developed by Andra, collectively known as the Dossier 2005 Argile, by an international review team (IRT) of independent specialists covering all relevant aspects of research, safety assessment, and the geological sciences. As described below, the Dossier represents a key milestone in the programme of work, for which Andra is responsible, to assess the feasibility of the deep geological disposal of high-level and long-lived radioactive waste in France. This report presents the consensus view of the IRT. It is based on the documentation of the Dossier 2005 Argile, but it also draws importantly on information exchanged in writing with Andra in answers to questions raised by the review team, and on direct interactions with staff from Andra during two working seminars in France. Also, in order to fulfil its mandate, the IRT reviewed materials external to the Dossier, namely the document concerning the R&D Programme for a potential new phase of work in the period 2006-2010, in a draft, provisional version.
Public sector remuneration systems are shaped by an intricate interaction of administrative culture, economic conditions, and political systems. This paper discusses critical considerations to bear in mind when designing, planning and implementing reforms of public service wage systems. It explores key concepts such as job evaluation, pay structures, performance-related pay, market analysis for competitive pay levels and wage bill planning. It provides guidance on the process of reforming public sector salary systems to enhance their competitiveness, equity, transparency and affordability. The paper offers insights drawn from the reform efforts of several EU Member States and SIGMA partners in the Western Balkans, Moldova and Ukraine, presenting real-life examples and updated guidelines for effective, sustainable salary system changes. The primary focus is on reforms of wage systems within central government administrations, acknowledging the complexity arising from diverse classifications of civil service and public employees, and the varying scope and structure of salary systems. This paper serves as a practical guide, presenting options along with their advantages and disadvantages to aid policymakers in aligning reforms with their national public administration context and strategies.
This paper explores how the basic amount of a fine is calculated, analyses how the basic fine adjustments due to aggravating and mitigating circumstances vary or converge across jurisdictions and reviews several challenges competition authorities often face when levying fines based on the fine-setting process in practice as well as the various types of sanctions and examines the pros and cons of the sanctions. It was prepared as background for a discussion held at the 2016 OECD Global Forum on Competition.