What is SMEC?

(1) About SMEC System

SMEC, standing for Small and Medium sized Enterprise Consultant, is a non-literal translation of the original “SME Diagnostician,” or SME “Shindan-shi” in Japanese. SMEC, is a specialist who diagnoses and gives advice to the Small and Medium sized Enterprises, abbreviated SMEs, concerning their various management issues.
SMEC is, at the same time, a state qualification to be registered by the Minister of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry( METI) based on the article 11 of the Small and Medium Enterprise Guidance Law.
The SMEC System is so designed as to make easy the selection of those who are supposed to diagnose and give advice to SMEs by registering the specialists equipped with the capability above a certain level.
The Small and Medium Enterprise Guidance Law defines SMECs to be the private management consultants who are engaged in the business, whether it is public or private, that guarantees the necessary management resources for SMEs.

(2) About the role and mission of SMEC

The basic role of SMECs is to help SMEs in drafting their growth strategies and give advice for their implementation, and at the same time, to work in wider fields such as a liaison between SMEs, the Administration and the Financial Institutions, or as a facilitator for the proper SME policy implementation by use of their expertise.

(3) What kind of work and function are expected for SMECs?

The law stipulates the work of SMECs as “to diagnose the management of SMEs and give them an advice.”
SMEC will fist of all give advice for the drafting of the growth strategy of SMEs based on his/her specialty, then will help make a management plan for the implementation of the drafted strategy. Further, he/she will monitor the performance of SMEs and assist them to cover wider are of activities as mentioned in the item (2) above.