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Upskilling and reskilling are crucial efforts to achieve Europe’s digital leadership in line with the EU’s Digital Decade Targets
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A newly published White Paper provides an evidence-based blueprint for EU’s policymakers to give new impetus to the Skills agenda and equip citizens with the right skills to thrive in the digital economy
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To attain an effective Union of Skills, Europe must leverage existing best practices and make full use of digital SMEs’ leadership in upskilling and reskilling the European workforce
After the closure of the European Year of Skills, digital skills are set to remain at the forefront of the EU’s political priorities over the next years. In her political guidelines, the European Commission President has announced the intention to build a Union of Skills and proposed an Executive Vice-President with a dedicated portfolio on People, Skills and Preparedness. This makes investing in enhancing skills development in the EU workforce an even higher political priority.
In line with the aim of the Union of Skills, DIGITAL SME publishes today an evidence-based blueprint, addressing the critical need for digital skills among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the broader population in Europe.
This blueprint is based on a comprehensive research methodology and survey of nearly 12,000 SMEs, across eight European countries. The publication emphasises the role of European digital SMEs in driving digital transformation across all industrial sectors through their cutting-edge digital solutions, services, and best practices in upskilling and reskilling.
The paper builds on a mixed-method approach, that includes a survey distributed to SMEs, expert advice, desk research on relevant EU initiatives, EU-funded projects, and specific datasets, ensuring a thorough understanding of the current European landscape and the identification of key areas for intervention. Relevant best practices implemented by digital SMEs in the field of upskilling and reskilling – with a particular focus on under-represented categories in the ICT sector, as well as on advanced digital skills – have been selected and showcased.
As a conclusion of the research effort, the White Paper provides a set of six policy recommendations for Europe to make full use of digital SMEs’ leadership in driving the digital skills agenda, as well as upskilling and reskilling of the European SMEs’ workforce in the 2024 – 2029 mandate towards the creation of a Union of Skills.
