The participation of micro and small business of Porto Alegre and Metropolitan region in Local Innovation Agents Program to Sebrae: field research

Abstract

Micro and small business (MSEs) are important for economic and social development in Brazil, especially for job creation. The Brazilian Service of Support to Micro and Small Enterprises (SEBRAE), since 2008, acts with the Local Innovation Agents (ALIs) with the objective of making the innovation theme available to small businesses in Brazil. In this sense, the present research has the general objective of presenting the results related to the actions implemented in 245 SMEs located in Porto Alegre and Metropolitan region, which were assisted during Cycle 1 of the ALI Project. The research methodology is classified as applied, in relation to the approach as qualitative and quantitative, and as to the objectives it can be classified as exploratory and descriptive. The technical procedure used is field research, carried out by seventeen Local Innovation Agents (ALIs) who are part of the project's metropolitan region team. The participating companies are diverse: 81 from the commerce sector, 31 from industry and 133 from services. From the application and diagnosis made through the Innovation Radar (IR) with the MSEs and the proposed and implemented actions, an evolution of 10.15% is registered in the set of the six dimensions proposed by the IR. By analyzing the productivity indicator of the MSEs participating in the project, it is verified that there was an evolution of 39.33%, which demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed actions and the importance of the participation of the companies in the ALI Project of Sebrae.