IfM Bonn News

Participation in external events | 06.06.2023 Entrepreneurial goal in the Mittelstand

Family entrepreneurs more often rank their independence, the satisfaction of their staff, the maintenance or creation of jobs, and ecological goals as "very important business goals" than managers in companies that are not Mittelstand.

External publications | 02.06.2023 Company with tied ownership and business succession

Does the planned new legal form of a "company with tied assets" (GmbH-gebV) facilitate business succession?

Participation in external events | 01.06.2023 The challenge of climate change

How do small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) perceive climate change? What are the biggest challenges for them? What measures do they take against it?

IfM Publications | 30.05.2023 SMEs now play a larger role in trade and FDI relations between Germany and Brazil

Using new statistical data sources, this policy brief highlights a considerable and growing importance of German SMEs for the trade and FDI relations between Brazil and Germany. Although trade volumes and the numbers of involved SMEs have increased, there is still room to develop business …

Press release | 25.05.2023 Over 13,000 micro-enterprises were insolvent in 2022

Slightly more companies filed for insolvency in 2022 than in the previous year (+4.3%). The increase was much more substantial for companies with 11 to 100 employees (+26.1 %). Most of all insolvency applications in 2022 once again came from micro-enterprises (up to 10 employees).

Participation in external events | 25.05.2023 Ways to reduce bureaucracy

How can the government reduce bureaucracy more effectively? Are there methods for measuring the bureaucratic demands in the start-up process?

External publications | 24.05.2023 Attractiveness of vocational education in India

What role do polytechnics play in the educational and career opportunities of young adults in India? Sebastian Schneider's research shows that polytechnics are becoming increasingly important because they teach practical and theoretical content.

Participation in external events | 19.05.2023 Skills shortage in the Mittelstand

Dr Siegrun Brink presented the "Future Panel Mittelstand 2022" at the Green Business Dialogue in mid-May to show how much the shortage of skilled workers currently affects the Mittelstand companies.

Participation in external events | 15.05.2023 Working in the Mittelstand

Who belongs to the Mittelstand? What fields of work can be found in the Mittelstand companies? To what extent might business studies be interesting for school leavers? At the stand of the IfM Bonn and the Chair of Management of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises & Entrepreneurship, visitors to the …

Press release | 11.05.2023 Young bosses in their own companies

Underaged founders are between 15 and 17 years old, predominantly male and have above-average academic performance. They often pursue a business idea with digital connections in IT services or online trade.

IfM Publications | 09.05.2023 Sustainability and digitalisation in young and established companies

Do start-ups and established companies differ regarding their sustainability efforts and the extent of their digitalisation?

Participation in external events | 26.04.2023 Pandemic survived, ecological transformation in view

The economic effects of the Russian invasion of Ukraine are currently challenging small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) after the restrictions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. These led to high price increases in energy costs, especially in the summer and autumn of 2022, which …

Participation in external events | 25.04.2023 Effects of self-employment on the partnership

Dr Stefan Schneck presented his research results on the behaviour of self-employed people in their business and private life at the 43rd conference of the Eurasia Business and Economic Society (EBES), which took place in mid-April in Madrid.

Press release | 17.04.2023 Limited resources, bureaucracy and a shortage of skilled labour limit SMEs' ecological efforts

More than three out of four small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) expect their businesses to be affected by climate change's consequences, including extreme weather events and the transition to a more sustainable economy. Among large enterprises, almost 90 % share this view. More than 1,300 …

Press release | 17.04.2023 Responsible ownership does not facilitate the search for successors

"Introducing the legal form "GmbH-gebV" in Germany, comparable with the English LLC but with ‘tied assets‘, does not lead to longer-lasting companies – as the legal form initiators claimed. On the contrary: The legal form would complicate finding a successor since prospective buyers would have to …