SME Performance Review: the Annual Report on European SMEs 2024/2025
Despite ongoing economic headwinds and geopolitical uncertainties, Europe’s 26.1 million SMEs continue to demonstrate remarkable resilience and adaptability. While SME real value added declined slightly in 2024 by -0.2%, the outlook for 2025 is notably ...
How small businesses can navigate global trade in an era of polycrisis
Micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises represent the vast majority of businesses worldwide and are vital to global employment, yet they face significant barriers to participating in international trade. These include limited access to finance, burdens...
Equipping SMEs with the skills to navigate the twin transition
SMEs and entrepreneurs heavily depend on skills to stay competitive and face greater challenges than larger firms in accessing and retaining skilled labour. Against the background of tight labour markets, skills gaps for SMEs are being exacerbated by the ...
The future of entrepreneurship with AI
AI-native startups are redefining the nature of entrepreneurship through accelerated scaling. With leaner teams, evolving funding dynamics, and intense competition for talent, the global startup ecosystem has reached an inflexion point. Policy-makers, inv...
Micro and small businesses can act as peace builders
In an international context where conflicts have reached their highest level since the Second World War, what role can micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) play in fragile and conflict-affected settings? Two sessions at the fourth edition of...
Celebrating Women Entrepreneurs: Key Insights from GEM Research
According to the GEM 2024/2025 Global Report entitled Entrepreneurship Reality Check, far too many women entrepreneurs are still seen by national experts as not getting equal access to resources essential to entrepreneurial success. Women’s relative acc...
SME Digitalisation to manage shocks and transitions
Although uptake of digital practices by SMEs continues to increase, so too has the “digital gap” with larger firms. Understanding the drivers and persisting bottlenecks of SME digitalisation as well as gaining a deeper understanding of their practices...
Fostering convergence in SME sustainability reporting
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play a pivotal role in driving sustainable economic growth. Representing over 90% of businesses globally, SMEs collectively have a significant impact on resource use, emissions, and supply chains. According to rec...
Advancing gender parity in entrepreneurship: strategies for a more equitable future
Gender parity in entrepreneurship is not just a moral imperative but a crucial driver of economic growth and innovation. Closing the gender gap in employment and entrepreneurship could boost global GDP by 20%, according to the World Bank. Women-led busine...
Entrepreneurship, skills training and impact work to tackle unemployment and build a resilient workforce
Nearly 65 million youth worldwide are unemployed, with many young people at the start of their work life having been impacted by the pandemic. The Global South, especially Sub-Saharan Africa, is particularly affected – with just three new jobs created f...
