Mario Draghi’s recent report on The Future of European Competitiveness underscores the pressing need for reform across Europe. Without swift action, Europe risks falling behind globally, jeopardising its future growth. The message is clear: reform is crucial to keep Europe competitive on the world stage.
What implications does this hold for Europe’s small- and medium-sized accountancy practices (SMPs)? What role can they play in enhancing Europe’s competitiveness, particularly by supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups? And how might SMPs evolve to meet this need effectively? This article explores how SMPs can transform to better support SMEs—a manifesto for making Europe’s SMPs more competitive, with lessons that apply globally.
What steps must SMPs take to fulfil this role?
The European Federation of Accountants and Auditors for SMEs (EFAA for SMEs) recognises SMEs as crucial to Europe’s sustainable transition and overall competitiveness. Equally, we see SMPs as essential for enabling SMEs to contribute effectively to this transition. In essence, SMPs act as key enablers for SMEs. Our European Parliamentary Election 2024 Manifesto, outlining the top 5 priorities for SMPs, emphasises that SMPs are vital partners for SMEs, supporting them in building financial resilience, adopting new technologies, and integrating sustainable practices.
SMPs, like their SME clients, face the same technological and digital transformations and need to remain competitive. This shared experience gives SMPs valuable insights they can pass on to SMEs. Offering tailored services to clients ranging from micro enterprises to complex medium-sized businesses, SMPs are uniquely suited to SMEs’ specific needs and leverage insights gathered from diverse clients. Furthermore, as SMEs themselves within the accountancy sector, SMPs understand and communicate in terms SMEs can easily relate to.
Info obtained here
