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IfM Bonn News

Participation in external events SMEs in the face of transformation

How the Mittelstand enterprises are tackling ecological and digital transformation? What role does the Mittelstand policy play? Dr Christian Schröder discussed these questions at the "Handwerk um Zwölf" event, to which Handwerk.NRW regularly invites online.

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Press release NUI Regional Ranking: Leverkusen replaces Munich District at the top

The city of Leverkusen has replaced the Munich district at the top of the NUI regional ranking after five years. The district-free cities of Baden-Baden, Rosenheim and Offenbach am Main, as well as the district of Starnberg, follow in the further places.

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Press release Still more main branch business start-ups compared to closures

In the first half of this year, more main branch businesses were established in Germany (46,000) than were closed (34,000). These include startups with a commercial register or craft roll entry, or with one or more employees.

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Press release The Maternity Protection Act does not apply to self-employed women

Around 27,000 self-employed women have born a child each year. Unlike women in regular employment, they are not entitled to maternity benefits under the Maternity Protection Act, as it does not apply to them. However, they can voluntarily secure their income during the maternity leave periods before …

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Podcasts SMEs, climate protection and digitalisation. How rele-vant is regulatory policy to the challenges we currently face?

Regulatory policy is often neglected in the debate about the challenges of the digital transformation and the fight against climate change.

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External publications Female entrepreneurship in times of multiple challenges

Have women-led businesses been more impaired by the coronavirus pandemic than men-led businesses? Did female entrepreneurs use support measures to the same extent as their male counterparts?

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Press release The economic contribution of small and medium-sized enterprises remains high despite the current crises

More than 3.4 million companies in Germany are classified as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) according to the European Commission's definition of SMEs. This is more than 99% of all private sector businesses in Germany.

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Participation in external events IfM scientist appointed to jury

Dr Teita Bijedić-Krumm has been appointed to the jury for the federal competition ʺZukunft Regionʺ organised by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection. The target of the competition is to strengthen the economic power of structurally weak German regions.

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IfM Publications SME Development Indicator of the IfM Bonn

How do small and medium-sized enterprises develop in Germany – and in Europe? Are SMEs in Germany facing the same challenges as small and medium-sized enterprises in other EU countries?

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Press release Micro enterprises find it increasingly difficult to recruit apprentices

In the competition for apprentices, micro enterprises (with fewer than 10 employees subject to social security contributions) are increasingly falling behind. Despite a slight increase in the total number of apprentices to over 1.5 million, there were 3.4% fewer apprentices employed in these micro …

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External publications Welfare provision for hybrid self-employed persons

There is recurring public concern that hybrid self-employed may not be sufficiently socially protected due to the different social security systems for paid employees and the self-employed.

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IfM Publications The influence of personality traits on regional innovation capability

Do individual characteristics of the Big Five personality patterns have an impact on the development of innovation in structurally disadvantaged regions? Leonie Reher, Dr Jörg Thomä and Dr Petrik Runst analyse this question in their policy brief "Patterns of personality: An explanatory approach to …

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Press release Reform of public procurement helps reduce bureaucracy, whereas the legal form of a limited liability company (GmbH) with tied assets is seen critically

According to the researchers at IfM Bonn, the Federal Government's goal to simplify, expedite, and digitize procurement law is a step in the right direction: The planned Growth Initiative aims to reduce bureaucratic effort for both clients and contractors in future procurement procedures. …

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External publications How enterprises become Hidden Champions

When companies engage in own research and development, are internationally active and seek to maximise their market share, the chances of becoming a hidden champion increase.

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Press release The Bavarian initiative can only be a first step in the redesign of public procurement

"In principle, we welcome that the Bavarian state government aims to simplify public procurement in municipal construction by expanding the upper limits for direct awards" explained Sebastian Schneider, one of the authors of the IfM study "Mittelstand-Friendly Design of Public Tenders".

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