Future of medium-sized businesses: highlight of the SME Summer Lounge 2025 in Vienna!

Future of medium-sized businesses: highlight of the SME Summer Lounge 2025 in Vienna!

On June 22, 2025, around 200 entrepreneurs from a wide variety of industries gathered for theSME Summer Lounge 2025, which from the Raiffeisenlandesbank Lower Austria-Vienna (RLB NÖ-Wien) was organized in the picturesque Am Reisenberg. With a view of Vienna, the exchange about the future of medium-sized businesses played a central role. The event was opened by Martin Hauer, board member of RLB NÖ-Wien, and Martin Rapf, head of medium-sized businesses.

The event was notable not only for its impressive backdrop, but also for the presence of prominent participants. These included Michael Berlin from blühn GmbH, Florian Angeloff from Florian Angeloff Flowers and many other entrepreneurs, all of whom served the goal of promoting dialogue between banks and business.

The challenges of SMEs

But what drives entrepreneurs? Like a study by the Society for Innovative Market Research (GIM) shows that the biggest challenges for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are bureaucracy, rising raw material prices and the shortage of skilled workers. 82% of the SMEs surveyed see bureaucracy as the biggest obstacle, followed by increased prices, which are particularly putting a heavy burden on manufacturing and construction-related companies.

Not to be forgotten is the shortage of skilled workers, which around 50% of SMEs find to be a serious problem. This makes it clear that the scope of action of many companies is limited by regulatory and energy policy burdens. At the same time, digitalization requires investment efforts that many companies are unable to adequately implement.

Digitalization in medium-sized businesses

This provides an exciting perspective on the situation of SMEs Digitalization study 2024, which shows that digitalization is vital for the success of medium-sized businesses. 78% of SMEs say they have difficulty building digital skills. Surprisingly, only 38% have a developed digitalization strategy.

There is a need for action here: important success factors for digital transformation are a clear vision and the development of digital skills at management level. The key to success is the implementation of a digital strategy that combines analog and digital worlds. Best practices from the industry show how companies can increase their efficiency and open up new customer groups by using modern technologies such as cloud computing and IoT.

Looking to the future and the dialogue adopted at the SME Summer Lounge, it is clear: entrepreneurs in Vienna and beyond are facing complex challenges that require creative solutions and innovative approaches. Collaboration and exchange in such an inspiring setting can form an important basis for this.