Good to know!

With the entry into force of the new BSI Act on 6 December 2025, the European NIS 2 Directive was transposed into German law. The aim is to significantly strengthen cyber security – particularly for organisations of critical importance to the economy, essential services and society. Affected organisations must register with the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI).

The original deadline for registration was 6 March 2026. However, according to the BSI’s assessment, a significant proportion of the organisations concerned have not yet registered. Registration must therefore be completed by 31 July 2026 at the latest.

You can check here whether your company is affected by the scheme.

Further information can be found on the website of the North Westphalia Chamber of Industry and Commerce

Der AI Act verpflichtet Unternehme ab August 2026. wenn Unternehmen Inhalte mit KI erstellen oder verändern sowie Nutzer mit einer KI interagieren, dieses offenzulegen. Ein einfacher, verständlicher Hinweis reicht für die meisten KMUs in der Regel aus.

Weitere Informationen zu diesem Thema finden Sie auf der Website der IHK Köln

Seit dem 1. Februar 2026 steht die neue Förderung, finanziert aus Mitteln des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen sowie des Europäischen Sozialfonds, zur Verfügung. Mit dieser Förderung unterstützt die Landesregierung Nordrhein-Westfalens die berufliche Weiterbildung von Personen mit Wohnsitz in Nordrhein-Westfalen. Der Bildungsscheck 2.0 kann pro Person einmal im Kalenderjahr beantragt werden, wenn sie die entsprechenden Voraussetzungen dafür erfüllen. Hierdurch können 50 % der Kursgebühren (max. 500 Euro) gefördert werden.

Click here to carry out a quick check to see if you meet the eligibility criteria for an application and to find information on how to apply via the ESF online portal.

With the Warendorf holiday internship week from 20.07. to 01.09.2026, you as a company can get to know interested pupils during the summer holidays. You can present your company with each short internship and inspire them with exciting insights.

The uncomplicated offer of internship days is used voluntarily by talented people for professional orientation. The brief insights are particularly attractive for young people to gain a first impression of their working environment and profession.

Further information and the possibility to register can be found here

The Young Economy Festival brings together young companies, start-ups and people interested in founding and succession planning. It emphasises the topic of young entrepreneurship in the region and offers a relaxed setting for exchanging experiences, imparting knowledge, getting to know each other and networking. As part of the festival, six young companies pitch for the €5,000 audience prize from the North Westphalia Junior Chamber of Commerce.
The festival is organised by the North Westphalia Chamber of Commerce with the support of the North Westphalia Junior Chamber of Commerce (WJ) and the Venture Club Münster (VCM), the student initiative for entrepreneurship in Münster.

Das 6. Festival der jungen Wirtschaft ist in Planung und findet am 9. September 2026 statt. Wer Interesse am Pitch-Wettbewerb oder an der Festivalteilnahme hat, kann sich hier eintragen und erhält nach Abschluss der Planungen eine Einladung mit Anmeldemöglichkeit.

The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy has authorised ten additional research institutions for the Industrial Collective Research Programme (IGF), thereby expanding the network to include further future-relevant fields of technology such as AI, photonics and quantum technologies, extended reality and energy technologies. The IGF is a Europe-wide and open-topic pre-competitive funding programme that provides SMEs with easy access to practice-oriented research.

Further information can be found here

On 19 December 2025, the Federal Council approved the active pension to counteract the shortage of skilled workers. This allows pensioners to earn up to €2,000 per month tax-free if they continue to work beyond the statutory retirement age. Any amounts above this must be taxed as normal. Irrespective of the tax exemption, the social security obligation remains in place and employers benefit from the active pension from experienced specialists.

However, the active pension does not entitle the employee to continued employment.

If the existing employment contract contains an age limit provision, the contract expires and a new contract must be concluded for the active pension.

The active pension applies to both existing and new employment relationships. Employers must clearly recognise the active pension via a separate wage type. It must be tax-free and fully subject to social security contributions in the payroll tax deduction procedure and must also be shown separately from the normal salary.

Do you know the maturity level of your company? If not, you have the opportunity to obtain a systematic assessment of your company's digitalisation status with the Mittelstand Digital Check from the Mittelstand-Digital Zentrum Berlin (consisting of the project partners BVMW, ifii and HPI). The measurement enables you to take a holistic view and covers the following aspects: Strategy, customers, products & services, processes, organisation, IT infrastructure & technology and environment. You will then receive a free comprehensive results report with recommendations for action.

Here you get to the check

The KI_Campus is a joint initiative for educational innovation and is divided into various products that strengthen AI and data skills through innovative digital learning opportunities. These are coordinated by the KI_Campus office at the Stifterverband.

Artificial intelligence is changing work processes in almost all sectors. In order to remain competitive, companies must identify suitable AI application fields in their operations and provide their employees with targeted training.

The AI Campus supports you with innovative learning programmes to strategically anchor AI skills in your company and implement legal requirements such as the EU AI Act. The free online courses provide targeted, practical knowledge for everyday working life based on industry-specific use cases for employees and managers.

Click here to go to the AI Campus for companies

Companies that dispense with the "master knowledge" of individuals and instead give staff access to valuable knowledge resources increase efficiency and effectiveness in equal measure. With an appropriate organisation, a concept and digital tools, employees receive the information that is relevant to their field of work.

The 15-minute seminar with speaker Thomas Flauger provides a practical example of a real-life company that has successfully introduced knowledge management.

Click here for the video

You can find further self-learning offers from the SME Digital Centre Lingen.Münster.Osnabrück here

Workplace health promotion (WHP) is becoming increasingly important in times of a shortage of skilled workers and labour. Do you know the status of your workplace health promotion programme? The BGF Coordination Centre offers companies a short questionnaire free of charge, which they can use to determine the status of their workplace health promotion.

The Euregio Association would like to draw attention to its information programme for citizens and companies in the border region. There is the opportunity to have individual discussions with representatives of various institutions such as health insurance companies, pension insurance institutions, employment services, tax authorities from Germany and the Netherlands or the family benefits office. EURES counsellors (employment agency) also take part in some of the counselling days. The information sessions are held on an individual basis and provide information on topics such as starting work in a neighbouring country, moving across the border or specific issues such as pension applications, unemployment or health insurance issues.

Dates and further information can be found on the Euregio website.

Seit dem Ende des Kohleabbaus in Deutschland muss auch Steinkohle importiert werden – etwa aus Vietnam.

Companies in Germany that rely on the import of mineral raw materials and intermediate products are finding it increasingly difficult to procure them. The "Raw Materials Contact Centre" coordinated by the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) is now offering support.

The DIHK is working closely with the German Mineral Resources Agency (DERA) and Germany Trade and Invest (GTAI) on the new position.

"Our new contact point channels enquiries from companies with a need for raw materials and enquiries from suppliers of raw materials," reports Volker Treier, Head of Foreign Trade at the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK). "The DERA at the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources and the GTAI are the ideal partners for our global chamber network with its raw materials competence centres in resource-rich countries."

Treier said he was delighted that three institutions had succeeded in pooling their strengths and setting up a contact point for companies that utilised the entire network of partners.

Founded in response to changes in the global rules of the game

The idea of the contact point goes back to a discussion between the three institutions and the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK). Franziska Brantner, the responsible Parliamentary State Secretary at the BMWK, explains: "While the supply and safeguarding of raw materials was realised by companies when the markets were functioning, the rules of the game have changed significantly worldwide. States are increasingly intervening in securing raw materials for their economies. It is difficult for German companies to establish an 'equal level playing field' here."

"With an active raw materials policy and new financing instruments, we are creating a framework to support the extraction, processing and recycling of raw materials," says Brantner. It is crucial that companies know who they can contact on this topic. The channelling of enquiries in the joint contact point is therefore an important building block for a secure supply of raw materials.

The contact point has been integrated into the German Mining & Resources Network - an association of the AHK raw materials competence centres, DERA and GTAI. The BMWK supports the activities of the network financially and flanks them. This network is also coordinated by the DIHK.

You can find the "Raw Materials Contact Point" at www.ahk.de.

The employee-oriented consulting programme for SMEs

For many companies, it is a challenge to keep up with the pace of change in the world of work. INQA coaching helps companies with fewer than 250 employees to find customised measures. Up to 80 per cent of the consultancy costs can be covered.

Who can use INQA coaching?

Check the following checklist to see if your company is eligible:

• Type of company: Your company is legally independent, belongs to the liberal professions or is a non-profit organisation.
• Registered office and place of work: Both are located in Germany (in the federal state of the INQA advice centre or in a neighbouring federal state).
• Number of employees: Your company has at least one full-time position subject to social security contributions (measured in annual units, FTE) in the last completed financial year before the start of the counselling and at least one full-time position subject to social security contributions (measured in full-time equivalents, FTE) at the time of the initial counselling and at the start of the coaching.
• Turnover: Your company has an annual turnover of no more than 50 million euros or an annual balance sheet total of no more than 43 million euros.
• Year of foundation: Your company has been on the market for at least 2 years or, in the case of a change of legal form, was founded more than 5 years ago (in the case of cheques).

In addition, further conditions must be met, which are clarified in discussion with the INQA advice centre (IBS).

If you are interested in INQA coaching, you can now take advantage of an INQA initial consultation at a regional INQA advice centre (IBS). During this counselling session, you will jointly clarify the eligibility requirements and the specific support needs of your company. If the conditions are met, the IBS will issue you with an INQA coaching cheque.

The Berlin School of Economics and Law, together with the EMF Institute for Entrepreneurship, SMEs and Family Businesses at HWR Berlin and with financial support from the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection, has developed a digital support tool on the topic of company succession. The so-called Succession-O-Mat is a scientifically based analysis tool for self-assessment of one's own level of knowledge on the topic of company succession for different user groups.

The tool is accessible, free of charge and does not store any personal data that could be used to identify users.

Information and practical examples of company succession can be found on the nexxt-change website, where you will find both takeover offers and requests.

Three developments are necessary for circularity: Narrow (save products/materials), Slow (increase product life) and Close (reuse materials). These can be applied to the well-known R-strategies, which show approaches to resource efficiency and circularity and can be understood as tools for practice.

Take the first step into the circular future!

To improve the recycling of resources, innovative business models, procedures, processes and products must be developed.

The Effizienz-Agentur NRW supports manufacturing companies in North Rhine-Westphalia on this path with its advisory services in the field of resource efficiency.

For this purpose

• a free initial consultation
  
• Free workshops on potential
• Participation in the workshop series Circular Design (CIRCO)
  
• Support from the EFA's Resource Efficiency Advisory Service and Financing Advisory Service

Interested parties can contact the EFA via the contact form .