ENVISION network includes over three million SMEs
Launched in 2015, the business model innovation platform Businessmakeover.eu aims to raise awareness among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of the importance of business model innovation and to boost their innovative capacity. The portal now reaches more than three million SMEs and is set for even further expansion thanks to its recently-agreed partnership with UEAPME.
UEAPME
Since its launch, the platform has enjoyed a flying start, through cooperation with various professional organisations already active in the European SME community. The recently-agreed partnership with its 17th partner UEAPME (European Association of Craft, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises) marks an important new step in this: with its 80 member organisations, this association will help reach out to a further twelve million SME members in the EU.
Business challenges
One appealing aspect of the platform is the business challenges that members of the ENVISION team post on the platform for SMEs. These challenges aim to improve and innovate business models and are open to the general public; everyone is welcome to take part. Participants can win prizes and learn a great deal from the community. “We are working to build a community of three million SMEs. In 2016, we will be devoting a lot of energy to analysing new challenges faced by SMEs. We also aim to offer practical solutions by listening carefully to SMEs and sharing what we learn with others. We are also trying to help SMEs that are struggling to keep their businesses running, and to release money for innovation. We can offer assistance and expertise from and for the community by making use of social media and other channels,” explains ENVISION coordinator Harry Bouwman.
Egg Taxi
Some of the typical business challenges with which ENVISION can help are: ‘surviving in today's market’, ‘achieving growth’, ‘increasing customer satisfaction’ and many more. In addition to the tools and challenges, ENVISION also aims to use its channels to disseminate inspirational examples of model companies. A recent example of this is the Egg Taxi company, a Finnish SME developed to deliver fresh free range eggs directly to its customers using an 'egg taxi' that runs fixed routes. The company currently delivers as many as 5,400 kg or 90,000 eggs across Finland every week. You can find more information about the Egg Taxi on the ENVISION Facebook page.
Innovation
“Business innovation is a timeless concept. Yet we would like to see the 21 million European SMEs set just one day aside to think differently. What can I change in my day-to-day routine in order to increase my revenue? The greatest potential for growth is in normal companies with at least one employee. I would therefore like to ask them to renew their business model with the help of the tools from Businessmakeover.eu,” says Gerhard Huemer, Director of Economic Policy at UEAPME.
In addition to UAPME, there are agreements with 16 other organisations: : Association of Organisations of Mediterranean Businesswomen, Inova Consultancy Ltd, Nordic Export Partners (Nexpa), The Women's Organisation, Foundation for Women Entrepeneurs (FWE), Tia Formazione, Embassy for Women Entrepreneurship, Digile Limited, Scholten Consultancy, FCEM Femmes Chefs d'Entreprises Mondiales, Austrian Economic Chamber, Confartigianato Vicenza Italy, Digital Flow, Kopenhagen Business school, Åbo Akademi en de Association of Businesswomen in IZMIR
About ENVISION
ENVISION is a pan-European project that aims to strengthen SMEs by means of accessible and interactive online platforms, such as Businessmakeover.eu. ENVISION connects nine project partners and dozens of umbrella organisations with direct access to European SMEs. The project has received funding from the Horizon2020 programme for research and innovation from the European Union as part of subsidy agreement 645791.
Businessmakeover.eu is an attractive web portal and platform designed to help the European SME community come together and participate in business challenges: learning and gaining inspiration for business model innovation in Europe.
Contact
Mark de Reuver
Delft University of Technology
Jaffalaan 5
NL-2628BX Delft
+31 15 27 81920
g.a.dereuver@tudelft.nl
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