Roundtable: Strategies for SMEs to overcome current crisis and future challenges

Place: GILDE - Gewerbe- und Innovations- Zentrum Lippe-Detmold GmbH.
Detmold Germany
Time: 1 - 2 June, 2010

Main learning objectives

The problem covers whole Europe: Especially small and medium sized enterprises have to suffer the severe economic crisis. Quite often they have to find out ways to survive and to develop new strategies for a sustainable future.

But how can local authorities support these SMEs to overcome current crisis and future challenges? Are there any suitable approaches which can be implemented quickly into practice and bring effective help? Are there tools in order to foster or even optimize their competitive strategy? How can SMEs make use of the knowledge of universities?

Among others the first day presented one of the most effective projects in Lippe giving support for "collapsing" SMEs which saved more than 230 enterprises and about 1.300 jobs. The second day focused on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in small and medium sized cities - as a regional initiative and as an approach to Quadruple Helix model.

The round table in Detmold presented and discussed some of the relevant instruments with the main objective to learn from each others by exchanging good examples related to the topic.

Downloand the report from the Roundtable meeting