Social enterprise support policies: distinctions and challenges

This chapter explains what SME policy evaluation is, its purpose and who is responsible for such assessments. It then explores the challenges and current issues facing those involved in the evaluation of SME policy. It presents current research and evaluation models from both developed and developing economies. It examines the future issues and challenges for evaluation practice and policy development. It highlights potential areas for future research both by academics and practitioners either developing policy or conducting its evaluation. The chapter provides an overview of current evaluation practice, and to highlight the challenges facing evaluators operating in an economic environment which is changing with ever greater speed and intensity. Greene and Storey highlight the lack of a coherent understanding of the way in which SME policy leads to the intended impacts. They argue most policy evaluations treat the process by which the inputs lead to the outputs and impacts as a 'black box' not to be opened.

This is an Accepted Manuscript of a book chapter published by Routledge in 'Government, SMEs and entrepreneurship development: policies, tools and challenges' on November 16th 2012, available online: http://www.routledge.com/9781409430353