Entrepreneurship
Smartup
Screening for business health (Erasmus Plus)
SmartUp offers support to vocational education, trainers and SME advisors and help and advice for the self-employed and SMEs. The goal of SmartUp is to identify and interpret the signals of corporate crisis.
Based in research, measure instruments have been developed to identify which phase an entrepreneur is in and what the entrepreneur can do in that phase to overcome any problems. This is mapped out with the help of an online course and training activities. This offers the opportunity to take timely measures, increasing the chance of growth or survival.
The Smartup project was carried out within an international consortium*, in dialogue with starting entrepreneurs and established SME owners and/or managers.
SmartUp is a project from an Erasmus+ Program subsidized by the European Union under the scheme 'Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices' that supports cooperation in education and training.
Impact
We aim to increase the number of advisors including business crisis warning signs and intervention strategies in their training programs to reduce risks for entrepreneurs. Consultants develop knowledge about how to better identify and deal with warning signs of a crisis. By improving the skills and attitudes of business advisors, SmartUp impacts the effectiveness of entrepreneurship training.
Entrepreneurship Education
We invite educators to integrate SmartUp's products into their curriculum. Via the framework (product 1), students gain knowledge of early identification of problems within entrepreneurship. Integrating early detection into the curriculum (product 2) provides added value to lessons on management or corporate consultancy and provides teachers with knowledge and tools about timely intervention in the event of business failure or crisis. Through the online course (product 3), aspiring entrepreneurs can become acquainted with both sides of entrepreneurship and in the future recognize early signals and intervene in time. A questionnaire (product 4) provides insight into the current status of a company and bring up early signs.
Project Output
Project 1: SmartUp Framework
Up-to-date knowledge is presented via an extensive but accessible digital document so that entrepreneurs and advisers can learn about financial and non-financial early detection in the event of a business crisis. We show effective options to improve perception of failure and interventions to improve companies.
This Framework ensures that organizations, trainers and policy makers become acquainted with failure in companies, understand how early detection can take place and how measures can be taken for improvement.
Check the Intervention Framework
Product 2: SmartUp Curriculum
With the SmartUp Curriculum, trainers, business advisors, educators and business educators can access a new teaching model that they can use to introduce the topic of early intervention in business failure or crisis in their modules.
Product 3: SmartUp Online Cursus
An online course offers a personal learning path within a flexible training module. The course can be taken on a computer, tablet or smartphone, allowing users to learn at their own pace regardless of the time available or geographic location. The course facilitates peer-to-peer learning through guided and spontaneous interaction on the course platform.
Product 4 SmartUp Business Health Check
The curriculum and course are linked to a Business Health Check; this is a questionnaire that entrepreneurs can use to see in which aspects there are early signs of a crisis so that they can act in time to strengthen their weaknesses.
There are versions in Dutch, Spanish, German and English. To be able to complete the questionnaire in English, receive the report. Go to: https://www.smartupproject.eu/business-health-check/
Internationaal consortium
- The Netherlands: AUAS Professorship of Entrepreneurship
- Ireland: Momentum
- Ireland: National Association of Community Enterprise Centres
- Germany: tvw The Vision Works
- UK: National Enterprise Network
- Spain: ATA Federación de Asociaciones de Trabajadores Autónomos
- Denmark: European E-Learning Institute