Special Challenges for Women Taking Over Family Businesses in the Skilled Trades and STEM Fields
Skilled trades and retail have deep-rooted traditions and strong ties in Germany. However, businesses in these sectors are suffering severely from a shortage of staff and skilled workers and often view their future with pessimism. Many small and medium-sized businesses—across all industries—face immense challenges that pose a latent threat to their continued existence. Often, there is a lack of a suitable successor within the family, a lack of financing, or a lack of streamlined and unbureaucratic procedures.
The reputation of skilled trades training and work is at an all-time low, yet at the same time, we all complain about long wait times for our orders to be completed. At the same time, there is a growing number of highly trained, motivated, and innovative young people who love the skilled trades and want to lead these businesses into a stable future.
Is business succession the solution here? I am convinced it is.
After all, successful business succession ensures that accumulated assets, employees’ jobs, and—as a result—societal stability are preserved.
Furthermore, the strength and diversity of small and medium-sized enterprises—often family-owned businesses—are part of our European culture and social identity. This strength can only be maintained and shape the future if these companies continue to operate with confidence and business stability. It is essential to preserve this strong business base, regardless of whether the path involves family succession, internal succession, external succession, or a combination thereof.
At this point, I would like to draw particular attention to the great diversity in our society and within the SME sector, and to the fact that this potential is still not sufficiently valued or utilized within companies.
Women are overlooked when filling leadership positions or considering succession plans, despite their outstanding qualifications. Mixed leadership and management teams—including family-friendly initiatives—remain in the minority. And when it comes to bank financing for starting a business or acquiring a company, I frequently hear in my day-to-day consulting work that women—despite having compelling qualifications and business plans—are advised to turn to their own families first for financing.
To fully tap into Germany’s economic potential, we need small and medium-sized business owners—the doers who are committed to fostering greater diversity.
And we cannot afford to forgo 50% of that potential in times of labor and skilled-worker shortages: Women play a crucial role in small and medium-sized enterprises for the success of future business succession. Our collective future!
By establishing the “Commission on Business Succession” in October 2023, the Association of Small and Medium-Sized Businesses (BVMW e.V.) has given this issue the prominence it deserves for the success of business succession and, thereby, for a stable future for all of us.
As chair of the commission, I am very pleased to tackle this task—which is central to Germany’s economic strength—with the combined expertise of our members.
Jeannette Peters
