The role and the importance of the Greek SMEs in the production of innovation

Innovation is widely recognized as a key factor in the economic development of nations. Innovation is also essential for the competitiveness of firms. Its importance is intensified by factors like the increased global competition, the decreased product lifecycles and the rapidly changing consumer demands. Large firms play a key role in innovation but this doesn't mean that there is no place for SMEs. The last years the environment for innovation has changed. The importance of SMEs to the innovation process has increased. The increasing incomes, the more "niched" market demand and the changing technologies have reduced the structural disadvantages of SMEs firm size. In this paper we examine the role of the Greek SMEs in innovation generation. Our analysis shows that small firms are the main owners of the granted patents in Greece. So, firms that employ up to 50 employees account for the 57.83% of our sample, while the share of large firms is 6.02%. Most of these firms are engaged in the economic activities of machine tools, metal and plastic products, chemical substances and wholesale. The Greek SMEs have a medium age and are characterized by different levels of exports, selling their products mainly to the countries of European Union, the Balkans and the Middle East. Our findings confirm the importance of SMEs in Greece, as these firms are also the main producers of innovation. In addition our findings could be used in the development of public policy aimed at supporting and encouraging the innovation among SMEs in Greece.