Circular Economy Manager for SMEs active in the Agri-food sector (CEMforSME’s)

The Cem for SMEs project aims to assist SMEs managers in their professional development so that they can help their companies make the transition from the linear to the circular economy. It will contribute to CE skills and competencies development, through the design of an innovative, contemporary, and flexible hybrid vet training course. also, it will contribute to the development of the circular economy manager (ciem) job profile and role, with the goal of improving the quality and quantity of circular economy job opportunities, creating a unique program that incorporates gamification for competency development, establishing the circular economy manager certification process.

The project aims not only to develop skills and competencies of smes managers, focusing on the food and agricultural sector but also to address the needs of the vet institutions, through the promotion of innovation and establishing contemporary and innovative training curricula and courses, with will raise the attractiveness and quality of their providing education, while promoting the interrelation with the labor market needs and trends. the efficiency and relevance of vet training to strengthen the worker’s transversal skills is critical in pursuing a transition where skills replace job titles as the yardstick of the labor market and labor mobility and resilience are prioritized.

International and EU legislative and policy instruments have long underlined the need for the transition from the linear to the circular economy via VET upskilling opportunities, such as the eu green deal, SDGs, eu recovery plan, and eu skills agenda. moreover, based on the findings of the “closing the skills gap” report by the circle economy’s circular jobs initiative, up to 18 million workers in the EU will need reskilling due to a shift to a low-carbon economy, while 87% of companies globally were experiencing skills gaps (2020) and the demand for high-skilled workers has increased by 40 % in recent years. Due to the capability of the vet institutions to ensure a skilled workforce for driving the circular economy transition.

The cem for smes project aims to promote the quality and innovation of its educational opportunities, while in parallel offering quality job opportunities to the smes managers of the future through ceskills and knowledge development.

Our objectives are:

- Support the professional development of SMEs managers to help their companies with the transition from a linear to a circular economy

- Contribute to skills development of VET learners and to the integration of circular economy needed skills

- Develop the job profile of the circular economy manager (CEM) and set the role of CEM, aiming to increase the quality of circular economy job opportunities

- Develop an innovative curriculum, employing gamification for competence development

- Establish the certification process of the Circular Economy Manager.