Management paradigm of scaling small and medium-sized enterprises: case study of agricultural enterprises in the Sverdlovsk region

Identifying successfully developing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the agricultural sector within the legally established categories in order to determine the factors that contribute to their scaling is an urgent scientific problem. The purpose of this study is to structure the groups of financial and economic indicators of SMEs in the agricultural sector, the positive changes of which, as a result of receiving state support measures. The research hypothesis is to identify the potential for scaling up SMEs based on the growth of their financial and economic indicators, which will confirm the need for legislative changes in the gradations of SME scaling categories. The research methods included statistical and chronological analysis, as well as synthesis and big data analysis. The results of the study helped to fill the scientific and practical gap in terms of clarifying the categories of SME scaling and the criteria for their transition, which served as a structural basis for developing a model for managing the scaling of SMEs, as well as identifying 180 SMEs that scaled in the agricultural sector but did not transition to higher categories in accordance with the legislation. The practical significance of the article lies in substantiating fundamentally new scientific and methodological approaches to assessing the results of SMEs' activities in the agricultural sector, calculating an integrated indicator for assessing the potential for scaling.