What to expect in 2023?
The end of any year is traditionally a time of reflection. It’s a chance to take stock and look back on the past 12 months: the successes, the lessons, and the opportunities for improvement. It has been an unprecedented year but, 2022 was the end of the epidemic and the beginning of the economic recovery. A lot of opportunities will be available for entrepreneurs like you, who want to do Softlanding in Portugal and scaling up in Europe.
Businesses have faced huge challenges and have undergone an incredible amount of change over the past few years, and this won’t slow down in 2023. They will have to deal with the after effects of the global pandemic and now with the war reaching Europe with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Here are some trends, I believe, will have the greatest day-to-day impact on the way we work and will do business in 2023, in Portugal.
1 .European Funds
The good news is that 2023 looks like a year to break all records in terms of European funds. Regardless of the delays for the new “Portugal 2030” or the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), it is hoped that Portugal 2030 will be fully operational in the first quarter of 2023. But, thanks to the anticipation mechanism, several grants will be launched sooner rather than later. The unprecedented fact of benefiting from three large envelopes (including “Portugal 2020”) simultaneously, can lead Portugal to capture an average of more than one million euros per hour.
2. Economic Challenges
Despite the fact that the economic outlook for most of the world doesn’t look great in 2023, Portugal has the expectations to surf the tide well. We were told by economists to expect Hard landing instead of Soft landing. To stay afloat, startups need to improve their resilience in any way that they can. This means reducing not only exposure to overheads but also diversifying to growing markets like Portugal.
3. Digital-ready
In 2023, we see the continuation of innovations in disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), the internet of things (IoT), virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR), cloud computing, blockchain, and 5G. To get ready for this, startups can provide a launching pad for other companies, by getting involved in Open Innovation projects. They can also contribute to speed up the implementation of AI and the other technologies mentioned above, by ensuring, for instance, they embed the right technology in every area of their operations.
4 . Sustainability
In 2023, companies and startups need to make sure that their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) processes are moved to the center of their strategy. This should start with measuring the impact any business is having on the environment and then upgrade it to greater reporting and accountability. Every business needs a plan with clear goals and clear roadmaps of how to reduce those negative impacts.
Digital-ready and Sustainability are the key drivers for the Startup Vouchers Call just released. The Venture Builder will guide you through all the stages of the Call. Part of our services is to prepare all the paperwork and act on your behalf.
Interested or still have questions? Get to know more in our next Webinar here.