Developing SME personnel competence in strategic business sustainability

Abstract

The importance of social and economic responsibility for SMEs' strategic business has increased since the EU CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive) entered into force in 2023. Due to the stakeholders´ demand, SMEs are forced to react and strengthen personnel sustainability competence as a part of their strategic and economic management. This paper aims to grasp how Universities of Applied Sciences can support SMEs' need to increase their personnel sustainability competence to apply stakeholders’ demands by distance learning ability. This paper is based on findings in the project Green Responsibility and response to the conclusions of the project Strengthening Responsibility and Business Competence for the Personnel of SMEs and Startups. Consequently, we present the importance of strategic business responsibility for SME personnel, which can be strengthened by distance learning and, e.g., gaining a competitive advantage.