The need for supporting innovation-driven entrepreneurship in Europe as a vehicle for boosting its competitiveness and growth has been evidenced and adopted as one of the key targets and priorities of EU policy and initiatives (The Global Competitiveness Report 2013-2014, 2014, WEF). Empirical analysis shows that innovation, can account for a substantial share of economic growth – often around 50% of total GDP growth – depending on various factors (OECD STI Policy 2015). Innovative SMEs have been already identified as one of the groups which EU funding tools should support, however the majority of EU SMEs still lag behind in innovation capacity and innovation management capacity skills. As expected, the above hold true for Greek SMEs. The 2017 SBA Fact Sheet clearly shows Greek SMEs score below the EU28 average in their capacity to convert new-to-market and new-to-firm innovations into sales. At the same time, Greek SMEs introducing product or process innovations score higher than the EU average. Under this frame, the Enterprise Europe Network-Hellas (FPA 649598), a well-placed and experienced network of experts and organisations, working in close proximity to Greek SMEs, will advance its support to the innovative companies by providing complementary services for the enhancement of their innovation management capacity. The proposed action aims to: • Identify SMEs with the capacity to innovate and internationalise, provide them with the tailored services to improve their capacity to manage innovation processes • Support SMEs to utilize the opportunities offered under the SME Instrument, Fast Track to Innovation and Future Emerging Technologies OPEN programmes • Support business innovators with international ambitions to translate their ideas into market success • Foster the innovation potential of SMEs that, compared to large companies, have limited capacity for risky/costly R&D activities and consulting services • Offer targeted assistance on innovation managemen

By enabling a structured cooperation among higher education, VET organization and companies, the main goal of SIM is to create a hybrid and multifaceted profile (the Social Impact Manager) with different competences which are all functional to make a company growing in terms of CSR, especially on its link with community development.SIM is developed through 4 main phases1.Engage (M1-12), putting in place a research activity aimed to assess needs of companies and local communities and an engagement strategy, creating local SIM networks2.Design (M12-19), listing skills, methods and learning outcomes of the SIM CV and co-designing the education programmes to be launched in 5 target countries (Austria,Croatia,Greece,France,Italy)3.Empower (M20-31) where partners will deliver the SIM Educational programme targeting young and adult professionals and aimed to build their capacities to work with companies in generating community engagement initiatives at local level4.Evaluate&Exploit (M1-36),assessing the impact of SIM at different scales, and nurturing partnerships and alliances with local and EU stakeholders to ensure up-scalingThe SIM Education programme is piloted in 5 countries, with the aim of reaching about 150 learners and at least 50 European companies. Other major project outputs are a Report on the link between CSR & Community Development;5 Local Hackathons;1 International SIM School;15 Social Impact Initiatives.The Social Impact Manager will be an emerging profession endowed with the relevant skills to include companies in cooperation schemes with their local communities, thus encouraging resilience at community level.The project ambition is that European companies can play a greater role in the future in solving the main societal challenges of our times, also thanks to the support of internal staff (the SIMs), trained and fully equipped to nurture alliances in local communities, and design and launch sustainable solutions addressing local challenges.

The project aims to support the innovation management capacity of Greek SMEs as a mean for advancing competitiveness and ensuring growth. Four partners of the Enterprise Europe Network-Hellas will provide mentoring and coaching services on all stages of the innovation management system, including the innovation process from idea generation to innovation results, leadership, management skills and other enabling factors, such as collaboration with R&D partners, clients and suppliers. The service is of particular significance for Greek SMEs that have been seriously affected by the lasting financial recession and need support activities directly aiming at boosting their competitiveness and growth. The proposal addresses the specific objectives of the work programme, namely: a) Identification of bottlenecks in the innovation management process of SMEs benefitting from grants by Horizon 2020’s SME instrument and address these bottlenecks with the help of capable coaches, b) Increase the efficiency and effectiveness of innovation processes in SMEs with significant innovation activities that could potentially become beneficiaries of European support to research and innovation. The service will be delivered by nominated experts of the Enterprise Europe Network-Hellas consortium. 176 service packages (7-days each) are foreseen to be delivered by the end of December 2016, to: a) Beneficiaries of the SME Instrument, b) SMEs with significant be selected based on a multi-parametric process, incorporating both geographical and sectorial criteria. National priorities for research and innovation in Greece and priorities of the Smart Specialization Strategy of each region will be taken into consideration. Common high level quality standards and predefined procedures will be developed for all partners to maximize the efficiency of the service.

The need for supporting innovation-driven entrepreneurship in Europe as a vehicle for boosting its competitiveness and growth has been evidenced and adopted as one of the key targets and priorities of EU policy and initiatives for the coming years (The Global Competitiveness Report 2013-2014, 2014, WEF). Statistics show that only 50% of EU SMEs innovate and that only a fraction of those export, whereas one of the reasons identified in this respect is constraints relating to innovation management capacity (Regional policy for smart growth of SMEs, 2013, EC). Innovative SMEs have been already identified as one of the groups which EU funding tools should support, however the majority of EU SMEs still lag behind in innovation capacity and innovation management capacity skills. As expected, the above are applicable at a superlative degree to Greek SMEs, for which the 2013 SBA Fact Sheet clearly shows relevant bottlenecks such as e.g. deterioration in their capacity to convert new-to-market and new-to-firm innovations into sales. Under this frame, the Enterprise Europe Network-Hellas (FPA 671771), a well-placed and experienced network of experts and organisations, working in close proximity to Greek SMEs, will advance its support to the innovative companies by providing complementary services for the enhancement of their innovation management capacity. The proposed action aims to: •Identify SMEs with the capacity to innovate and internationalise, provide them with the tailored services to improve their capacity to manage innovation processes •Support SMEs to utilize the opportunities offered under the SME Instrument programme •Support business innovators with international ambitions to translate their ideas into market success •Foster the innovation potential of SMEs that, compared to large companies, have limited capacity for risky/costly R&D activities and consulting services •Offer targeted assistance on innovation management that is not available to Greek SMEs.