Catalysing European innovation : EASME's report of the first two years of implementation of the SME Instrument 2014-2015

When the SME Instrument officially took off in January 2014, the first task was to set up from scratch a mechanism able to select, contract and coach the most innovative SMEs in Europe. After two years, more than 1200 SMEs have been selected to receive grants and 513 million euros have been invested in their success. These companies are as diverse as Europe; they are early stage start-ups with disruptive ideas and great potential to scale up fast, scale-ups with confirmed customers ready to move to new markets, family businesses wanting to diversify their business offer and to innovate, service companies with a confirmed business offer looking to get their first innovative product on the market, research oriented SMEs ready to deploy a new technology... These companies are all out there, working in all domains. What they have in common is high potential for innovation and avid ambitions to grow. The goal of the SME Instrument is to create a business ecosystem that stimulates the most creative SMEs in creating smart growth and jobs, while contributing to solving the societal challenges of Europe. It all started in 2014 when the selection and granting machinery was put in place. 2015 saw streamlined processes and the launch of exclusive coaching services to grant-holding SMEs. At present, our aim is to deliver fully-fledged support to market launch, build a real community between the funded SMEs and link them with investors and potential clients. This report analyses what has been achieved so far with the SME Instrument. It outlines the profile of funded SMEs, presents their innovations and outlines first emerging results.