First MCI & Carpenters’ Guild Practitioners' Forum

2019-04-23

Commencement of a new series of events - Future issues for carpentries - Comprehensive study with future prospects

First MCI & Carpenters’ Guild Practitioners' Forum, from left: Michaela Engl (Qualitätshandwerk Tirol), Antje Bierwisch (MCI), study author Thomas Auer, Anita Zehrer and Gabriela Leiß (both Zentrum Familienunternehmen),Oliver Som (hinten, SME Innovation Network), Klaus Buchacher and Kristina Fürhapter (both Carpenters' Guild of the Chamber of Commerce). Photo: MCI.

Recently, MCI, in cooperation with the Carpenters’ Guild of the Chamber of Commerce, presented the first practical forum for carpentry entrepreneurs. The kickoff of a new series of events took place with the participation of numerous carpentry entrepreneurs from all over Tyrol. Further comprehensive events are to follow.

With the Praktikerforum, the ZFU Zentrum Familienunternehmen and the Research Lab "SME.innovation.networks" of the MCI, in cooperation with the Tyrolean carpentry trade, are establishing a format that promotes the exclusive exchange between small and medium-sized, family-run carpentries, and offers them the opportunity to learn from each other thus strengthening their future and innovation capabilities. The aim of the series of events is to transfer scientific research into practice thus making it directly applicable for entrepreneurs.

As an introduction, a comprehensive study was presented under the motto "Tischler 2025" (Carpenters 2025) which deals with the future picture of the carpenter. The study is based on the master's thesis of Thomas Auer, a graduate of MCI's Business & Management program, and was sponsored by Festool and the state of Tyrol, among others. Based on quantitative and qualitative analyses carried out internationally, future scenarios were developed that allow possible future developments to be identified at an early stage and allow carpentry entrepreneurs to proactively shape the future.

In the style of a World Café, researchers from the MCI were then available to discuss issues of particular relevance to owner-managed carpentries with the entrepreneurs. Topics such as new technologies, structural change, scarcity of raw materials, shortage of skilled workers, increasing fragmentation of the value chain, lack of knowledge and innovation management as well as succession problems were discussed.

Follow-up events are planned in order to continue working on the particularly pressing issues of the future and to develop ideas and measures to strengthen competitiveness.