EU Standardises SME Support

In an effort to raise standards for small business support and training across the continent, the European Union has launched ODESSA (Operation Development for Europe’s SME Support Agencies).

The project will be managed by UK business support organisation, Examplas in partnership with the Slovak National Agency for the Development of SMEs and the Toledo Chamber of Commerce in Spain.  Its aim is to address the enormously varied standard of support for SMEs across Europe.

What impact this will have on business support organisations in the private and public sector in the UK is unclear.  Also one would hope that an increase in standards, which can only be a good thing, is not confused with an increase in bureaucracy and paperwork for those delivering learning and development programmes to SMEs.

| development | EU | exemplas | ODESSA | SME support | training |