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The SMEs - small medium enterprises are often referred to as the pillar of the European economy,
providing a potential source for jobs and economic growth.

SMEs are defined by the European Commission as having less than 250 persons employed. Based on the
number of people, there are:

- micro enterprises: with less than 10 persons employed;
- small enterprises: with 10-49 persons employed;
- medium-sized enterprises: with 50-249 persons employed;
- small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs): with 1-249 persons employed;
- large enterprises: with 250 or more persons employed.

These are the basic forms of business ownership :
1

Sole Proprietorship: The simplest type of business owned and operated by a single person and very easy
to set up.

Partnership: A business owned by two or more people who share responsibilities and profits.

Limited Partnership: A business partnership, often between business operators and investors.

Corporation: A type of fully-independent business with shareholders, one of the most complex business
types.

Limited Liability Company (LLC): A mixture of a partnership and a corporation, designed to make it easier
to start small businesses. One of the most popular business types for startups.

Non-profit Organization: A type of business that uses its profits for charitable purposes.

Cooperative (Co-op): A business owned and operated for the benefit of the members of the organization
that use its services.

In the context of a modern market economy, it is absolutely necessary that small, medium-sized and large
enterprises are able to coexist in a rationally proportional balance, each of them having advantages, as well
as disadvantages. They generate most of the national income and, at the same time, ensure workplaces for
the population. 2

4.2 The value of the entrepreneurship education

Growing unemployment and industrial restructuring, with a high priority on employment development,
have been boosted by research proving that employment growth was closely related to the birth of new
firms and SMEs. Business is a major driver of socio-economic impact, a major predictor of business
success, especially in the long term.

1 https://www.volusion.com/blog/business-types/
2 https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/3e01/c10e94c102f358a413624810c2634824c77d.pdf