Net Job and Business Growth

The net job and business growth indicator measures the annual change in both the number of firms and the number of employees between 1978 and 2022. The data is categorized by the size of the firm: those with 1-19 employees, those with between 20 and 499 employees, and those with more than 500 employees.

This data contributes to the big picture of economic conditions in Champaign County. More firms and larger employment numbers are generally positive economic indicators, but any strictly economic indicator should be considered in the context of other factors.

The number of firms and number of employees show very different trends.

Historically, there have been significantly more firms with 1-19 employees than firms in the larger two size categories. The number of firms with 1-19 employees has also been relatively consistent until 2021: there were 95 fewer such firms in 2021 than 1978, and the largest year-to-year change in that 43-year period of analysis was a -3.2% decrease between 1979 and 1980. However, there were 437 fewer such firms in 2022 than 1978. There was a decrease in these firms of 12.5% from 2021 to 2022, the only double-digit year-to-year change and the largest year-to-year change over 44 years.

The larger two size categories have shown an increasing trend over the period of analysis. There were 43 more firms with 20-499 employees in 2022 than 1978, a total increase of 9%. The number of firms with more than 500 employees almost doubled, increasing by 206 firms from 212 in 1978 to 418 in 2022, a total increase of 97.2%.

The trends of employment also vary based on firm size. Firms with 1-19 employees have consistently, and unsurprisingly, accounted for less of the total employment than the larger two categories. Employment in firms with 1-19 employees has also remained relatively consistent over the period of analysis. Employment in firms with more than 500 employees saw an overall trend of growth, interrupted by brief and intermittent decreases, between 1978 and 2022. Employment in the middle category (firms with between 20 and 499 employees) was also greater in 2022 than in 1978.

This data is from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Business Dynamics Statistics Data Tables. This data is at the geographic scale of the Champaign-Urbana Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which is comprised of Champaign and Piatt Counties, or a larger area than the cities or Champaign County.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau; 2022 Business Dynamics Statistics Data Tables; "BDSFSIZE - Business Dynamics Statistics: Firm Size: 1978-2022"; retrieved 21 October 2024.