Circular Economy Accelerator (CEA) to promote the application of digital technologies

Based on the PCM methodology provided by RV, the CEA will develop a capacity and training program consisting of a tailored-made business support model for SMEs and entrepreneurs to identify the challenges they need to address, providing personalized advisory services, mentoring, and knowledge transfer to help companies to better integrate digital technologies into their circular economy operative procedures.
The pilot action will select 2-3 companies in specific sectors, that can generate a significant impact, allowing not just the proper development of the accelerator pilot, and using them as tractors for the CEA implementation. By participating in the acceleration program, their progress will be monitored and evaluated, to identify elements for improving it. The program will also include collective training in digital technologies, funding sources, communication, and marketing tools, among others. Contributing to foster entrepreneurship, to enhance their digital transformation and to help them integrating circular economy principles in the participants productive processes for their long-term sustainability.
The CEA will include activities to enhance ecosystem collaboration, to better respond to the networking needs of local agents facilitating their connection with European peers. A list of key ecosystem activities will be collected, to analyse them and select those with higher impact in the ecosystem collaboration enhancement. Two of them will be selected to be tested during the pilot, or on later stages. Examples of activities to be analysed: meetups, workshops, identification of key mentors and digital technology experts talks, investors rounds, or expert advice.
Monitoring and evaluating the impact of CEA’s activities will be a key activity throughout the test to provide evidence on how SMEs and entrepreneurs responds to the twin transition, measuring how the business sector reacts to a public intervention.