Insights & Perspectives

In recent months, the labor shortage in Germany has dominated headlines, but now, a flurry of layoff announcements has taken center stage. Many medium-sized enterprises are compelled by increasing profit pressures to optimize their operational processes. A frequently overlooked area is overhead. Experience shows that many mid-sized companies carry unnecessary overhead costs. Potential savings in the overhead sector typically range from 15 to 18 percent. enomyc author Jan Ulrik Holsten outlines the optimal approach to overhead cost reduction and explains why customer satisfaction must always be a priority.

One in four insolvencies is due to late payments. Especially in business trans-actions between large debtors and small creditors, long payment terms re-peatedly lead to problems. As a result, particularly SMEs, which rely on pre-dictable cash flows, are forced to delay payments to their own suppliers, incur higher financing costs, and have less room for investments. With a directive aimed at combating late payments in commercial transactions, the European Commission intends to ensure more fairness. Moreover, it aims to enhance the competitiveness and resilience of small and medium-sized enterprises. While this sounds promising, it also has its drawbacks, according to experts Marc Fahrig and Ralf Ehret, who outline what businesses should now prepare for.

Disruptive technologies such as genAI are becoming increasingly important in the business world. This presents the upper midmarket segment with the challenge of not only understanding these technologies as a trend, but also applying them in practice in order to best increase efficiency and innovative capacity. Concerns that the barriers to entry are too high for SMEs are unfounded, says head of innovation at enomyc and author, Franz Wenzel. A certain amount of preparation and training is essential, however, a strategy for AI integration that has been worked out down to the last detail is not necessary from the get go. He is convinced that two factors are much more decisive: Understanding. And time.

Skepticism and reservations, fascination and anticipation: no matter how you feel about AI – you are certainly not alone. No wonder, says Mario Trapp. After all, AI is a pioneering technology. It gives rise to tangible changes. And it provokes. Even myths: “We’re in the SME sector here. AI is too far removed from what we do at the core," is one assumption. A false one, says Trapp. As a Partner in Restructuring & Transformation and Head of Digital Strategy, he has been observing the technological developments of AI for quite some time. His world? Big data and data analysis. His industries? Many – primarily owner-managed companies. How does he himself apply AI in business? Should companies already be hiring Chief AI Officers? And which AI developments make even him uneasy? Get to know our new partner. And how to improve your prompts.

The German Supply Chain Act and a European on top of that - the vote that was torpedoed by the FDP at the last minute. Was it helpful or not? Dr. Tim Bauer himself comes from a family of entrepreneurs. He believes that the EU Parliament lacks an eye for SMEs. "They unduly back the perspective of corporations and large companies." Although an important topic in terms of content, the extension of the Supply Chain Directive to small and medium-sized enterprises - as stipulated by the EU - is a burden for SMEs in Germany. But now, regardless of the political discord, regardless of the availability or lack of resources and the factor of time, the question remains: what decisions should companies make about their supply chains from now on and why? What could a quick check look like? A conversation with our new partner in Stuttgart.

Let's be honest: new technologies and ground-breaking innovations are topics that most of us would expect to find in Silicon Valley rather than in German SMEs. The long list of German SMEs whose products and solutions are in demand all over the world shows that this is not the whole truth. The secret of their success: above-average innovative strength. The Top 100 competition honours precisely such companies. This year, enomyc is also among the winners. How is innovation "organised" there and how do customers benefit when their consultancy is innovative? We talked about this with Julia Hammer, COO and Managing Director, and Franz Wenzel, Director at enomyc.

The International Furniture and Interior Design Fair (imm) in Cologne is the industry's annual high mass. But instead of celebrating its own successes alongside new trends, as in previous years, there was little sign of a party atmosphere last week. Quite the opposite: according to official figures from the associations, the turnover of furniture manufacturers and retailers fell by 5 to 7 per cent last year, with a drop of almost 12 per cent for living room, dining room and bedroom furniture. Six out of ten manufacturers are working short-time. enomyc industry expert Marc Fahrig spoke to Jan Kurth, Managing Director of the German Furniture Industry Association (VDM/VHK) and Markus Meyer, President of the German Furniture and Kitchens Trade Association, about the causes of the crisis, current priorities and new opportunities . [1]

It’s a horror scenario for any company: losing one your highest-revenue customers. The management wants to know how the loss will affect the operating result. The consequences for turnover, inventory, material and personnel costs also need to be identified as quickly as possible. In theory, this is the time for management control. In practice, however, this is often hopelessly overwhelmed. In his article, enomyc author Peter Kink describes how companies can quickly gain an overview with targeted mass data analysis. And why, despite everything, corporate management remains a managerial domain.

Weihnachten und der Jahreswechsel sind eine Zeit der Besinnung.