Due to their great importance as job generating source as well as suppliers to big companies, also for their relatively more advantageous conditions to carry out technological innovation, micro and small companies have been receiving privileged treatment from the governments, regardless of their development levels. This differentiated treatment refers mainly to subsidised credits, especial financing programs, loans under favourable conditions and institutional support for investments in innovation, personnel training and commercialisation of new products. In the Brazilian case, in the beginning of the 80s the Finep, in association with the Sebrae, created the Patme - Technological Support to Micro and Small Companies Program. This program has its focus on both the micro and small companies' acess to more advanced productive and technological knowledge through external consultantship to the companies. So, this paper aims at appraising the Patme's impact on the small size companies' creation, development and technological diffusion process. More specifically, we intend to analyse not only the comprehension of the program's performance in the support to industrial as well as to utility companies during the 1992-98 period, but also to suggest the implementation of a monitoring and evaluating simplified system which will permit the generation of information that will serve as subsidy to the process of decision making.
