Under the promotion of the Guangdong Provincial Government Governor's Consultation Conference Leading Group and the Guangdong Provincial Planning and Development Committee, the “Research and Consultancy Center for Guangdong Small and Medium-Sized Firms”(hereinafter referred to as “the Center”) was established on November 4, 2003.
The Center is a non-profit research and advisory service institution that aims to improve the competitiveness of SMEs in Guangdong Province. There are two departments affiliated to the Center. One is the Research Department that is set at the School of Business Administration of South China University of Technology and led by Professor Lan Hailin as Director and Professor Long Zhihe as the Deputy Director. It focuses on the R&D of SME’s development and management, and international cooperation. The other is the Consultant Department set at the Guangdong Provincial Productivity Promotion Center, with its focus on providing consulting services, applications on promotion, and conducing demonstration pilots for SMEs. These two Departments shall fully play the disciplinary advantages of SCUT, integrate the research strengths of international and domestic research aspects, and comprehensively introduce and digest the research on SMEs in worldwide from a multidisciplinary perspective, and jointly provide the Guangdong’s SMEs with diversified services.
The aim of the Center is to create, spread and use knowledge to promote the development of the small and medium-sized firms in Guangdong. The basic tasks of the Center are to build an information exchange platform. Through this platform, we will follow the cutting edge information and the achievements of domestic and foreign scholars in SME research, understand the policies of various countries and regions to promote the development of SMEs; to serve as a think tank for SME services. It is expected to provide recommendations and theoretic tools to develop policies on SMEs at all levels of government in Guangdong. Third, providing advice and training services for SMEs. Through the establishment of a network of cooperation between universities in various regions, the Center provides management consulting and personnel training services for SMEs in Guangdong Province.
Since its establishment, with the principle of serving the economy and society, the Center has been actively working on research and service for the small and medium-sized firms. It has completed some economic and social service projects and made remarkable achievements.
Since 2005, the Center has spent several years in completing project “the Research on Assessment of Growing Small and Medium-sized Manufacturing Firms in Guangdong Province”, and it is the brand project among the research on small and medium-sized firms. The project not only has a profound significance to the growth of the small and medium-sized firms but also greatly advances the growth projects of the small and medium-sized firms in China. Since its publication, the research result has attracted wide attention from the governments at all level, enterprises, banks and investment guarantee agencies. And “The Report on Assessment of Growing Small and Medium-sized Firms in Guangdong Province in 2005” was awarded in 2007 the Second Prize of Guangdong Provincial philosophy and social science research achievements.
To strengthen the power of “Guangdong Price”, the Center completed the compilation of a series of price indexes which cover lighting in Guzhen, traditional Chinese medical materials in Puning, ceramics in Foshan, non-basic food in Guangzhou, steel in South China, traditional Chinese medical material market of Kangmei (Bozhou) and secondary copper in Qingyuan, thanks to the leadership of the Guangdong Price Bureau and the support from local governments and enterprises. This increases the influence of “Guangdong Product and Guangdong Price” and helps to gain remarkable social and economic benefits.
Currently, the Center has become an important part in developing the service system of small and medium-sized firms in Guangdong. Its scientific research and consulting activities have become more and more influential.
