Measuring Job Trends Among Entrepreneurial and Older Firms: A Methods Note

Abstract: Job trends among entrepreneurial firms are important considerations for policymakers and others interested in entrepreneurship and economic development. In an effort to track trends related to private sector jobs among firms of various ages, over time, and across geographies, we developed the Entrepreneurial Jobs Indicators. These four indicators – creation, contribution, compensation, and constancy – are calculated using the Quarterly Workforce Indicators, an administrative data series from the U.S. Census Bureau. This working paper details the data and methods used to create the Entrepreneurial Jobs Indicators.

Keywords: jobs, entrepreneurship, measurement, indicators, firm age, job creation, earnings

Acknowledgements: Travis Howe and Sameeksha Desai developed the original framework for this project. Diane Burton, Robert Fairlie, Alyse Freilich, John Haltiwanger, Jessica Looze, Derek Ozkal, Stephen Tibbets, and Aleksandra Tsvetkova provided thoughtful discussion and ideas for refinement of this project. Katie Anderson, Thom Goff, Erin Kenney, and Hayden Murray provided methodological and data analysis support.

Research Working Papers are made available by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation to share research and encourage discussion. These papers have not necessarily been peer-reviewed, and the views and findings expressed are those of the authors and do not reflect the official views of the Kauffman Foundation.