This workshop is organized as part of Meeting Standards 2026, an SBS initiative taking place from 22 to 30 June 2026, bringing together organizations from across Europe to place SMEs and standardization in the spotlight.
Developed in collaboration with CEN TC 389 Innovation Management and UNE, the Spanish Standardization Body, the workshop supports a New Work Item Proposal (NWIP) aimed at providing start-ups and SMEs with practical guidance on innovation management, based on the ISO 56000 series.
Start-ups and SMEs represent over 99% of businesses in Europe and play a vital role in economic growth, competitiveness, and technological progress. However, many of these organizations face significant barriers to adopting formal innovation management practices, including limited resources, lack of internal expertise, short-term business pressures, and insufficient awareness of the benefits of a structured approach. As a result, their innovation activities often remain informal and fragmented.
The workshop will bring together 14 experts in innovation management, start-ups, and SME representation for a full-day event to discuss the content o
a future international standard on Innovation Management for Start-ups and SMEs, to be developed within ISO/TC 279 Innovation Management and led by UNE.
The initiative ultimately seeks to translate the principles of the ISO 56000 series into a simplified, scalable, and practical framework tailored to the realities of smaller organisations — strengthening their innovation capabilities, enhancing their participation in innovation ecosystems, and supporting broader economic resilience at both European and global level.