Abstract:

Based on the provincial data of 2021 in China, an evaluation model for the digital transformation of small and mediumsized enterprises (SMEs) was constructed from five aspects: policy, facility, service, input, and effectiveness.And the AHP and entropy weight method was used to set index weight, the scoring method was used to standardize index data, and then the score of digital transformation of SMEs in 31 provinces were calculated.The score shows that there are obvious regional differences in the digital transformation of SMEs in China.The comprehensive index in the east region is the highest, and the central, western, and northeastern regions decrease successively, and are all lower than the national average.The comprehensive index has a significant positive correlation with export volume, and the correlation is higher than the correlation with GDP; the “policy” index takes the lead in the five sub-indices, and the “input” index is relatively lower.In this regard, four suggestions were put forward to promote the digital development of SMEs in China:strengthening digital financial support, lowering the threshold for using digital facilities, improving digital transformation service support, and strengthening the supply of digital workforce.

Key words: small and medium-sized enterprises, digital transformation, evaluation model, regional differences