EU top brass to join work experience scheme

Brussels bureaucrats are to undertake on-the-job training to ‘better understand’ the needs of Europe’s small businesses.

All 350 senior staff in the European commission’s enterprise and industry directorate will, over the next three years, work for one week at a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME) under a new “enterprise experience” scheme launched on Monday.

“Enterprise experience will give my staff and me hands-on, on-the-job experience about the life in and of an SME,” said commission vice-president for enterprise and industry, Günter Verheugen.

“In return, companies will not only get highly motivated trainees to assist in their day-to-day work, but also EU ambassadors who will be able to present and explain EU policies relevant to them.”

Verheugen said he believed the hands-on approach would help Brussels officials to better understand the needs and business-specific problems of SMEs.

“I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand,” said Verheugen, quoting Confucius.  “It’s understanding that we are interested in here,” he added.

The German commissioner said there would be no exceptions from the new scheme that saw one commission volunteer start work at 4am in a German bakery during an earlier pilot programme.

“This will demonstrate that Brussels doesn’t operate an ivory tower policy,” he said.

However, Verheugen himself will not serve a full week-long placement.  “I can’t afford to take a whole week out of Brussels,” he told reporters at the press launch.

Europe’s chambers of commerce backed the initiative, saying it would help Brussels understand the needs of Europe’s SMEs.

“It has been voiced from many sides – including ours – that Europe suffers from a lack of communication with its people,” said Eurochambres president Pierre Simon.

“This programme will not only be a communication exercise for the commission, but also a unique opportunity for SMEs to raise awareness about their concerns among the relevant decision-makers.”

UEAPME, the European SME employers’ association also welcomed the commission initiative.

“A direct, hands-on experience within an SME is the best way for EU officials to get to grips with the way we work and the issues we face every day”, said Secretary General Hans-Werner Müller.

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