Institute For The Future

Launched in 2007, the Intuit–IFTF Future of Small Business project is a three-part study that looks forward 10 years to examine the prospects, influences, and profiles of small business. 

Small businesses are an important and growing driver of U.S. economic growth and dynamism. They employ over half of America’s private sector workers, produce over half of America’s non-farm private GDP, and create roughly 75% of new private sector jobs. The next decade will see the growth of small business continue, and the social and economic impacts of small business increase.

To better understand this important segment of the U.S. and global economy, Intuit and the Institute for the Future undertook a research project in 2007-2008 to identify, analyze, and forecast the significant trends and forces impacting small business over the next decade. Our findings are presented in a series of three forecast reports:

• Demographic Trends and Small Business
• Technology Trends and Small Business
• The New Artisan Economy