Generational change in NRW: Entrepreneurs fight for the future!

Generational change in NRW: Entrepreneurs fight for the future!

In North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), over 305,000 family businesses are facing a generational change that will affect 1.8 million employees. In the Dortmund region, 16,500 companies with 106,500 employees are directly affected. Demographic change is making the search for suitable successors increasingly difficult, as can be seen from the current IHK successor report for North Rhine-Westphalia. Accordingly, 80 percent of the companies surveyed have difficulties finding external successors. This is a significant increase compared to 56 percent eight years ago. One in ten companies is now planning to shut down or liquidate.

The challenges for companies are diverse. Almost every fourth business owner in North Rhine-Westphalia is older than 60 years. Over 50 percent of respondents report delays caused by growing bureaucracy, while 39 percent identify the shortage of skilled workers as a key hurdle. In addition, economic uncertainties such as high energy costs and global crises make long-term planning difficult. Interestingly, only 40 percent of entrepreneurs plan an intra-family handover. In addition, 12 percent of the transferring generation do not have the drive to complete the handover within two years.

Demands of the IHK NRW

The IHK NRW is calling for political support to help companies overcome these challenges. This includes reducing bureaucratic barriers and measures to mitigate the shortage of skilled workers. In addition, 75 percent of respondents aged 55 and over have clear ideas about when the company will be handed over, and 70 percent are already in the information phase.

In addition, a study highlights demographic developments and the shortage of skilled workers as key challenges for companies. This study highlights the importance of integrating older workers into the labor market as they represent significant potential. However, many companies are reluctant to hire older employees, often associating this with higher costs and perceived lack of flexibility. Generation management is becoming increasingly important, but requires a higher level of awareness and knowledge within companies.

Older workers are willing to work beyond retirement age but require changes in working conditions. Active management is necessary to promote cooperation between generations. Companies should offer more flexible working models and reduce existing prejudices in order to develop sustainable solutions in generation management. Insights into different approaches to overcoming these challenges were gained at ABB Switzerland, Swiss RE and the Hotel Waldhaus Sils, among others, which underlines the need for individual solutions to promote the ability of older people to work.

For more information on these topics, see coverage by Nordstadtblogger and a detailed analysis of the challenges as part of a study Springer Link.

– Submitted by West-East media