Estudo sobre os potenciais competitivo, institucional e socioeconômico e a taxa de variação de micro e pequenas empresas nos municípios de Minas Gerais

Abstract

The general objective of the present research was to identify the relation between the external factors (institutional, socio-economic and competitive) and the variation rate of micro and small enterprises in the municipalities of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The research is characterized as empirical, descriptive and quantitative in nature, based on secondary data. The object of study was Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs), which act in the municipalities of Minas Gerais. Regarding the sampling, the research encompassed 667 of the 853 municipalities of Minas Gerais. For constructing a theoretical-analytical model, we elaborated an Indicator System for analyzing the variation rates of the MSEs. Subsequently, we defined the 'institutional', 'competitive', 'innovative' and 'socio-economic' dimensions as forms of analysis and operational interpretation of the concept. In the following stage, we established the statistics and variables for each dimension. The secondary data collected for this study were tabulated and processed using the following software: Microsoft Excel, Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), R Core Team (version 2014) and the SPDEP package (version 05-71) Bivand (2014). For data analysis, we used descriptive and multivariate statistical techniques. We performed the Pearson correlation analysis between the three potentials and the variation in number of MSEs for the municipalities of Minas Gerais. We highlight that the result was significant at 1% for all three potentials. This result demonstrates that the better the institutional, socio-economic and competitive context of the municipality, the greater the chances of opening and maintaining MSEs. In the correlation analysis between the three potential, we verified that the Competitive Potential showed high Pearson correlation coefficients, both concerning its relation with the Socioeconomic Potential (r = 0.763) and with the Institutional Potential (r = 0.554). This result demonstrates that, although the Competitive Potential presents the highest correlation with MSE variation rate, one cannot assume that the other two potentials are dispensable for the variation in the number of MSEs. When performing the correlation analysis for the disaggregated variables of each potential, we verified high Pearson correlation coefficients between the variation in number of MSEs and the variables 'government leverage capacity', 'infrastructure' and 'support of the business'. Posteriorly, the results of the correlation analysis between potentials and between variables elucidated the cohesion of the proposed methodological theoretical model. Finally, by means of cluster analysis, it was possible to group the municipalities according to their potentials as well as to the percentage variation in number of MSE.