Digitalization, Decarbonization, Demography. The Management of Change. Report on the Development of the Thuringian Economy

As part of their SME Report Thuringia, the authors note that Thuringia's gross domestic product has developed less favorably than GDP in Germany as a whole since 2015, while the unemployment rate in Thuringia has fallen sharply and was below the national average in 2021. In their view, the low start-up momentum is a cause for concern. They see the decline in the workforce and the shortage of skilled workers, the digital transformation, the need for decarbonization and coping with the Corona pandemic as the main challenges facing SMEs. To address the shortage of skilled workers, they recommend increasing the attractiveness of Thuringia as a business location for skilled workers and the highly qualified. The authors also believe that there is a need for greater prioritization in funding policy. Priority should be given to investments that promote structural change and contribute to a sustainable increase in the productivity of companies, for example through labor-saving (digital) technologies.