… and why small and medium-sized industrial companies can only succeed in digitalisation together
On April 23, 2026, the industrial SME sector came together at LEAD 2026, hosted by the initiative Next Level Mittelstand at the DIGITAL HUB INDUSTRY Bremen. Specialists and executives rom medium-sized companies, startups, and partners from industry, consulting, and technology discussed the digital transformation of the SME sector. As the host, encoway officially opened the new HUB NORD together with Next Level Mittelstand during the event – establishing it as a new place for collaboration and digital transformation in northern Germany.
What is holding back digitalisation in the SME sector?
The pressure on industrial mid-sized companies is increasing: growing product complexity, international competition, price pressure, and ever-shorter innovation cycles define everyday business. In theory, a wide range of digital technologies is already available that could be used to make processes more efficient and strengthen the resilience of SMEs.
In practice, however, the expected impact of automation, data-driven services, or AI often fails to materialise. The reason is rarely a lack of suitable technologies or tools – but rather the challenge of implementing them successfully.
Digital initiatives often do not fail because of the idea itself, but because they are not sustainably embedded in organisations, processes, and day-to-day work. This is precisely where the Next Level Mittelstand initiative positions itself as an implementation-driven community.
Next Level Mittelstand: from exchange to implementation
The initiative Next Level Mittelstand sees itself as an answer to the gap between knowledge and action in the digital transformation of SMEs. Founded in 2024 on the initiative of Henrik Schunk, Chairman of SCHUNK SE & Co. KG and now Managing Director of Next Level Mittelstand GmbH, NLM aims to connect companies regionally in order to advance digitalisation together – true to the motto: “From SMEs for SMEs.”
By 2030, Germany’s SME sector must become a digital champion.
A clear need for action in the digitalisation of complex products
In a live poll conducted at LEAD 2026, more than half of the participants named the communication of complex products as one of their biggest IT challenges. This assessment is also reflected in the results of our encoway study on B2B sales of highly configurable products. Based on 150 responses from the market, the study shows how manufacturers of complex, variant-rich products are adapting to the digital age.
A hub for the North – and why Bremen is the right place
LEAD is one of several networking and information events organised by Next Level Mittelstand, bringing together community members with technology providers, experts, and other interested parties. In Bremen, however, the event went beyond discussion: with the opening of HUB NORD a concrete new step was taken. Until now, Next Level Mittelstand lacked a regional base in northern Germany – despite the fact that many industrial companies in the region face similar transformation challenges.
The DIGITAL HUB INDUSTRY Bremen offers ideal conditions for this. As a place of transfer between business, academia, and technology, the DHI embodies exactly the spirit that Next Level Mittelstand stands for: sharing knowledge, learning together, and rapidly testing solutions. As an NLM member and active part of the DHI, encoway played a key role in shaping this connection and bringing LEAD 2026 to the North.
We cannot cope with every market change on our own. The DIGITAL HUB INDUSTRY is encoway’s ‘concrete’ learning about how companies can successfully drive joint innovation and build resilience together.
With HUB NORD a nucleus for exchange among peers is emerging – a meeting place for companies, startups, and academia, and a space where digital capabilities can be developed more quickly.
Dialogue at eye level instead of one-way lectures
What made LEAD special as an event was the dialogue at eye level – something that is often lacking in traditional conference formats. The NLM community places great value on open exchange and the sharing of real-world experiences. This atmosphere was clearly felt by participants at LEAD 2026:
Today, no learnings were held back. Challenges were discussed openly and in a solution-oriented way: ‘This is how we tackle our issues – how do you do it?'
Compared to other, heavily input-driven formats, I felt that participants at LEAD were much more eager to engage in real conversations. I had discussions today that I could only have had here at LEAD.
The atmosphere here is clearly one of give and take. It’s not about briefly getting to know each other – it’s really about having open and honest conversations on equal footing.
Keynotes, workshops, and open innovation with real-world relevance
The program of LEAD 2026 followed the NLM philosophy of practical implementation. The technological tools are available – what matters now is how companies apply and scale them effectively.
High-profile keynote speeches in the morning addressed topics such as industrial digitalisation from the perspective of global technology leaders, digital transformation within corporate groups, and the successful integration of generative AI into everyday business.
We need AI just to stay in business.
© encoway
In the afternoon, the focus shifted even more toward hands-on exchange. Workshops, interactive sessions, and the Open Innovation Show showcased concrete use cases – ranging from innovation processes and AI in sales to new approaches in software development.
HUB NORD is gaining momentum
With the opening of HUB NORD, the exchange is far from over – quite the opposite. The new location will support companies in tackling digital challenges together, offering access to expertise, peer-to-peer formats, and space for co-innovation.
Next Level Mittelstand invites companies to become part of this implementation-driven community – to learn from one another and actively shape digital transformation.
Join in and take your company to the next digital level together with like-minded peers!
You can find more information on NLM membership here.
Click here for upcoming events at the DIGITAL HUB INDUSTRY.
Image credits:
Header image: © DIGITAL HUB INDUSTRY Bremen