Small and medium enterprises from romania - progressive guide marks and development perspectives
| Author | University Professor Viorel Cornescu, PhD University of Bucharest University Lecturer Vladimir-Codrin Ionescu, PhD University of Bucharest |
| Pages | 322-337 |
Page 322
This work wants to approach relevant aspects regarding the problems of the small and medium enterprises, both from the perspective of the main progressive guide marks and from the development policies that must be promoted in the following period. The scientific step starts from the premise that now, the Romanian small and medium enterprises are representing a key sector of the sustainable economic development, an important factor of absorbing the available work force and concomitantly a flexible vector in adjusting the production of goods and services to the volume and structure of the market's demands.
It has been written a lot about the role and the importance of the entrepreneurial activities. We are mentioning here J. Schumpeter, who has introduced the concept of 'entrepreneur', Max Weber, Hovard Stevenson, Peter Drucker, K. Vesper, Jean-Piere Bechard, W.D. Bygrave, M. S. Wartman, D. Muzyca, L.J. Fillion, J. Freeley, J. Miner and others. It is certain that after 1970 the small and medium enterprises sector, especially in the advanced countries, has suffered a remarkable progress, a fact which has determined an increase of the specialists' interest to study the phenomenon, and those who were interested in business, to get involved in this. Thus it results a powerful attraction for the entrepreneurial and an orientation of the state economic policies for supporting this sector. The apparition of this sector after the events from the end of the year 1989 has meant for Romania an alternative opened to the transformations requested by the new way embraced by our economy and society.
The small and medium enterprises have contributed to a faster reorganisation of the large enterprises by hiring the laid off personnel, by exploiting the unused assets and by the externalisation of some activities. The development of the small and medium enterprises has lead to increasing the competition, decreasing the big companies' monopolist role, to increasing the exports and it has generated economic and social alternatives. The existence of the small and medium companies has determined the improvement of the population's economic behaviour, the passing over the obstacles faced by some social disadvantaged groups and the regeneration of some communities affected by the decline of the industry. Also, the active presence of these companies within the economy, within an ascending private
Page 323
sector, had a favourable impact upon the adjusting potential of the production structures to the dynamic of the economic environment on a national level and within the territorial profile. Despite the difficulties that are characteristic to the transition period, we have witnessed a continuously increase of this microeconomic sector's contribution both in the domain of the gross domestic product's formation and in the domain of employment.
During the transition period, Romania has enlisted on the direction of the opening and getting close to the advanced countries' economies, the reorganisation and the improvement of the Romanian economy taking place within a process of unification the structures, a process of controlling the resources, of privatisation and reorganising the economic sectors, a process of ensuring a neuter, competitive business environment.
Within the structural reforms implementation, Romania has benefited and it is still benefiting of a support and consultancy from the European Union and from the international financial institutions (The World Bank, The International Monetary Fund, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development etc.), by programmes of public administration reform from many years, of the justice and the budgetary system, of supporting the privatisation and the reorganisation of the banks and state enterprises, of improving the business environment, of assisting the training for the integration within the economic and institutional structures of the European Union1.
The policy regarding the business environment has as main goals supporting the private entrepreneurs and the stimulation of the free initiative. For achieving these objectives it was pursued removing the obstacles from the way of the private initiative, within a functional market economy by ensuring the state law, the private property and a powerful middle class as well as the business environment's stability and predictability, the efficient usage of the resources, the free employment, goods, services and capitals circulation, limiting the bureaucracy and diminishing the corruption. In other words, it is about the creation and the development in Romania of a business environment characteristic to a market economy, opened to the affirmation of the entrepreneurial spirit and in the same time capable to encourage the initiation and the development of small and medium businesses.
We can rightfully say that the development of the small and medium enterprises in Romania is influenced by the coordinates specific the autochthonous business environment, for developing the innovative practices to lead to founding enterprises and to consolidating those that are already in the economic relations circuit, and it is also influenced by the motivating and encouraging those attracted by this sector.
Romania's policy regarding the enterprises is addressed to the whole business environment and its main objectives are the encouraging and the facilitation of founding new enterprises, as well as creating a dynamic business environment within each company to have access to the products and services markets from the European Union and other areas of the world.
The multi-annual Programme reserved for the small and medium enterprises and the entrepreneurial spirit was adopted through the Decision no. 2000/819/EC. The programme is focused on the impact that the new economy has created upon the small and medium enterprises and represents an instrument by which Romania, as a member of the European Union, wants to accomplish the objectives stipulated in The European Charter for Small Enterprises2.
Page 324
Basically, the objectives of this programme are the following:
- improving the rate of the economic increase and of the enterprises' competitiveness within an economy based on knowledge and which is wearing the mark of the globalisation phenomenon;
- promoting the entrepreneurial spirit;
- simplifying and improving the administrative and statutory frame for the enterprises so that the research, the innovation and the founding of new companies to be developed;
- improving the financial environment for the small and medium enterprises;
- simplifying the access to the assistance services, to the programmes and the communitarian networks, as well as the adequate coordination of these facilities. Another recommendation from the European Commission, applied in Romania, is regarding the improvement and the simplifying of the business environment in order to create small and medium enterprises. The main objectives of this recommendation are the following3:
- stimulating the innovation potential and encouraging the increase of the enterprises; - creating new jobs within the private sector;
- improving the interface between the public administration and the business environment;
- orientating the public administration towards client and reducing the response time to the enterprises' requests;
- encouraging the foundation of new enterprises by creating a favourable regulation environment.
Concomitant with the application of the European Union's recommendations, Romania has elaborated a strategy which is aiming the development of the small and medium enterprises sector within a dynamic and stimulating business environment4. Simultaneously, to develop this microeconomic sector, The National Agency for Small and Medium Enterprise and Cooperatives has elaborated and launched a pack of multianual national programmes, that are now coordinated by the Minister for small and medium enterprises, trade, tourism and liberal professions. The main multianual programmes that are now in progress are the following:
- The programme regarding the increase of the competitiveness of the small and medium enterprises by implementing and certificating the quality systems;
- The multi-national programme during 2006-2009 to support the small and medium enterprises in developing export;
- The multi-national programme during 2006-2009 to support the access of the small and medium enterprises to training services and consultancy;
- The Programme to support the development of small and medium enterprises with funds to limit the amounts paid for the reinvested profits gross;
- The programme for organising the Small and Medium Enterprises Fair; - The Programme of development and modernization activities marketing products and services market.
* The recommendation no.97/344/CE regarding the improvement and simplification of the business environment for founding new small and medium enterprises.
Page 325
In Romania, the small and medium companies have reappeared in 1990* based on the adopting of the Law no. 31/1990** and Law Decree no. 66 and 67/1990***, there was a real "explosion' of new enterprises as a result of the reduced role of the small and medium enterprises during the pre-transition period, which was a result of the over-industrialisation and the discouraging of the private initiative5.
From...
To continue reading
Request your trial