Management summary Research study „Estimating the effects of public subsidies on the performance of supported enterprises across firm sizes“
The study aimed to investigate the effects of particular public policy on firm-level performance with a focus on firm size heterogeneity as an important determinant. The main aim was to investigate whether the larger-sized firms benefit from the direct financial assistance to a lesser extent when compared with micro- and small-sized firms.
The study methodologically relies on the implementation of the counterfactual impact analysis. The overall financial performance of firms was measured by using tangible fixed assets and their depreciation, sales, return on assets, and total factor productivity. While there are improvements in all evaluated indicators for microenterprises two years after the end of the Czech Operational Programme Enterprise and Innovation (OPEI), there are only minor positive effects of subsidies for larger enterprises.
Based on the presented empirical evidence from the OPEI, the Czech policymakers might more likely expect an increase in firm competitiveness, when allocating grants to micro- and small-sized firms.
Target groups of stakeholders: Public entrepreneurship and SME policymakers
Citation: Dvouletý, O., Blažková, I. & Potluka, O. (2021). Estimating the effects of public subsidies on the performance of supported enterprises across firm sizes. Research Evaluation. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/reseval/rvab004