A recent survey of more than 17,000 companies, including 13,000 from the EU-27, provides valuable insights into the situation and plans of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Among the EU respondents, 5% identified themselves as start-ups and 18% as scale-ups.
The results clearly show that SMEs are highly ambitious despite the many challenges – almost half of them have seen growth in revenues and headcount since 2021. However, their continued growth is still hampered by complex regulations and administrative barriers, which remain a central concern.
Key findings of the survey
1. SMEs’ biggest challenges
- Regulatory and administrative barriers are the biggest problem for SMEs – 64% of them cited this as a key challenge.
- Late payments are a problem for 39% of the companies surveyed.
- Access to finance is a barrier for 27% of companies.
2. Positive growth plans
- Since 2021, almost half of SMEs have increased their revenues and employment.
- In the future, 67% of companies expect revenue growth and 46% plan to expand their workforce – most of them at a gradual pace (up to 10% per year).
- Start-ups stand out, with almost one in five expecting annual growth above 20%.
3. Barriers to expansion
Growth-focused companies cite the following as the main barriers:
- Lack of adequate staff,
- high energy prices
- intense competition,
- regulatory burdens.
4. Challenges of cross-border enlargement
Although many SMEs want to enter foreign markets, they face the following obstacles:
- Different business environments – a problem for 33%,
- unclear rules – 30%,
- tax and VAT legislation – 29%.
European SMEs: resilient and future-oriented
Despite the existing problems, the survey reveals a picture of a resilient and ambitious SME sector with a large untapped potential. To effectively support their development, it is crucial to simplify the regulatory environment, improve access to finance and provide support measures to facilitate internationalisation.
With optimism, innovation and a clear growth orientation, SMEs remain the backbone of the European economy – but they need support to identify and remove systemic barriers to their development.
A look at Slovenia: what does the survey say?
The Flash Eurobarometer 559 survey covered 451 SMEs in Slovenia and its results reveal specific challenges and opportunities in the Slovenian business environment:
1. Main challenges for Slovenian SMEs
- Administrative barriers and regulation remain a key problem for us, with 41% of companies citing them (EU average: 64%).
- Late payments are a problem for 19% of Slovenian companies (EU: 39%).
- Access to finance is slightly less emphasised than in the EU – 12% of companies see it as a barrier (EU: 27%).
2. Barriers to cross-border expansion
Slovenian companies doing business across borders cite the following as key barriers:
- Different business environments and language barriers: 18% (EU: 33%),
- Access to information on rules and requirements: 23% (EU: 30%),
- Tax and VAT problems: 12% (EU: 29%).
3. Barriers to innovation
Slovenian entrepreneurs are less likely than the EU average to report barriers to innovation:
- Difficult to predict market response: 11% (EU: 36%),
- Legal/administrative framework 8 % (EU: 29 %),
- Lack of skills: 10% (EU: 23%).
4. Future plans
Slovenian companies are optimistic:
- 41% plan to grow both revenues and employees (EU: 37%),
- 25% revenue growth is planned (EU: 30%),
- Only 1% of companies in Slovenia have no growth plans (EU: 3%).
5. Use of advanced technologies
- Cloud computing and big data analysis: used by 48% of Slovenian companies (EU: 46%),
- Cyber security: 23% (EU: 32%),
- Artificial intelligence: 17% (EU: 14%).
Slovenian SMEs represent a vital and increasingly digitalised part of the economy, in many respects outperforming the European average – especially in terms of growth and adoption of new technologies. However, challenges remain in the areas of regulation, access to information and the innovation environment. Targeted support policies should be even more targeted to address these specific barriers.
More at:https://europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/3359
Author Edina Babnik, Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia
