More door-knocking and simplified forms helped SPRING Singapore reach out to more small and medium enterprises (SMEs) last year to offer assistance to help them grow their business.
SPRING worked with 117,324 SMEs last year, a 4 per cent increase from 2011, the organisation said yesterday as it released figures for its year in review.
The figures were boosted by the work of SPRING’s five Enterprise Development Centres, which actively sought out SMEs to work with.
The centres assisted 15,972 companies last year, a 32 per cent increase from 2011.
The higher numbers come amid concerns over the impact of manpower constraints and the cost of doing business on SMEs.
Some 1,570 companies also benefited from the Innovation and Capability Voucher (ICV) scheme which offers vouchers that are good for S$5,000 worth of consulting aid.
In its original form, it only assisted SMEs looking for help to innovate their product lines, but since June last year, it has grown to include improvements in productivity, human resources and financial management aid. Some 1,027 companies were able to tap the expanded sections of the scheme for vouchers.
SPRING also attributed part of the increase in numbers to a simplified online application form. Processing went down to two working days, as opposed to a week, and the online form — which was downsized from 10 to two pages — can now be completed in 10 minutes.
Original post on Today Online.