Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Insights
  • Home
  • Content
    • Perspectives
    • Innovative Programs & Policies
    • Research You Should Know
    • In Case You Missed It
  • About Endeavor
    • Our Mission
    • Our Model
    • Our Entrepreneurs
    • Insight & Research
    • Investor Network
    • Programs
    • Our Background
    • FAQS
  • About EEI
Research You Should Know 0

Who Are the Leading Job Creators?

By Endeavor Insight · On June 18, 2014

Using data from a number of studies, a team of researchers has found that a few rapidly growing firms—known as Gazelles—account for the lions’ share of new jobs.

The research team found that Gazelles exist in all industries and share three key characteristics:

  1. Gazelles grow rapidly. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development defines Gazelles as firms that maintain a 20% or more growth rate over a three year period. Gazelles also continue to grow in recessions.
  2. Gazelles are younger than other firms. All studies indicate that Gazelles are younger on average. Some Gazelle definitions require them to be less than five years old.
  3. Gazelles are smaller on average. Although most Gazelle firms are small, larger Gazelles, or “Super-Gazelles,” also substantially contribute to job creation. However, data suggests that age is a more important factor than size.

Evidence within the report confirms that Gazelles are disproportionately responsible for job creation. One study of Finnish Gazelles found that altogether, high-growth firms increased employment by 400% during the research period. From 1998-1992, 4% of all U.S. companies created 70% of all the new jobs.

These findings imply that, “an employment-enhancing policy should aim at lowering barriers to new firm entry and firm exit to support an experimental process increasing the number of trials (new firms) from which potential Gazelles can be recruited, and not hindering the closure of failures.”

For the full report by Magnus Henrekson and Dan Johansson, please click here.

Contributed by Caroline Pringle.

Print Friendly
gazelleshgfshigh-growth firmsjob creationjobsunemployment
Share Tweet

You Might Also Like

  • Research You Should Know

    Place-Based Innovation Policies are Important for Building Entrepreneurial Ecosystems

  • Research You Should Know

    Middle American Cities Are Some of the Nation’s Largest Talent Generators

  • Research You Should Know

    National Governments Want More Companies to Scale

No Comments

Leave a reply Cancel reply

Subscribe to our monthly update

  • Popular
  • Comments
  • Tags
  • How Can Decision Makers Foster Productive Entrepreneurship Communities?

    October 29, 2018
  • Three Tips for Entrepreneurship Policy-Makers from Philip Auerswald

    October 14, 2015
  • The Three Most Important Resources Companies Need to Succeed

    March 10, 2014
  • Start-Up Chile: Heading toward Failure or Success?

    September 9, 2014
  • How Five Percent of Kenyan Companies Can Help Create 3.9 Million Jobs

    May 11, 2015
  • How Local and State Governments Can Best Support Entrepreneurship

    April 15, 2015
  • ride says: Тhanks for finally writing about >The Three Most Important Resourϲes Compan...
  • American Dreamers says: Very insightful article. This can help out all aspiring ...
  • Steven Koltai says: In my work in 36 countries over the past 8 years beginning as the first Senior...
  • Mark Neild says: Of course it may be that just providing entrepreneurs in developing countries ...
  • Endeavor Insight says: Thank you, Julia! Big hugs from Team Insight....
entrepreneurial ecosystem entrepreneurship ecosystems access to finance entrepreneurship startups access to capital jobs scaleups entrepreneurship policy research success high-growth firms economic growth smes public policy economic development europe high-growth

Perspectives

  • Network Building Sets Women Entrepreneurs Up for Success

    February 12, 2020
  • Emerging Fintech Entrepreneurship in the African Remittance Market

    June 29, 2017
  • Xavier Niel is Building the World’s Largest Startup Incubator in Paris

    May 26, 2016

Innovative Programs & Policies

  • How Social Entrepreneurs ‘Zig-Zag’ Their Way to Scale

    December 5, 2019
  • Five Ways for Entrepreneurship Support Programs to Become More Effective

    November 22, 2019
  • What Types of Companies Have the Strongest Impact on Economic Growth?

    June 7, 2019

Research You Should Know

  • Place-Based Innovation Policies are Important for Building Entrepreneurial Ecosystems

    March 30, 2020
  • Middle American Cities Are Some of the Nation’s Largest Talent Generators

    March 23, 2020
  • National Governments Want More Companies to Scale

    March 12, 2020

In Case You Missed It

  • What Is the Typical Career Path of CEOs at Large Firms?

    July 24, 2019
  • The Fintech Sector is Rapidly Expanding in Latin America

    June 25, 2018
  • Scaling Entrepreneurs Drive Innovation in Emerging Markets

    June 7, 2018

Endeavor

To learn more about Endeavor and our worldwide network of high-growth companies please visit our website.

© Endeavor 2019. All rights reserved.