Start-ups secure 1.6 million jobs

A Roland Berger study shows how important start-up jobs are for the economy. By 2030, the importance could even increase significantly.

In Germany, around 415,000 people work for start-ups or scale-ups. Overall, the industry has created or indirectly secures 1.6 million jobs. This is shown in a new study by management consultants Roland Berger, which they conducted together with the Internet Economy Foundation, the German Startups Association and Deutsche Börse. "Now we have in black and white the role that the startup and scaleup ecosystem plays in our labor market, our competitiveness and the preservation of our prosperity as a whole," says Friedbert Pflüger, chairman of the Internet Economy Foundation. "We need to support this job engine so that Germany can fully develop its enormous potential." Pflüger sees France as a role model, where startups are the top priority of the economy.

Particularly in the years since 2018, the number of employees in the sector has increased at an above-average rate. The job potential is huge, he says: in the authors' view, a direct employment increase from 415,000 to 974,000 by 2030 is within the realm of possibility. For that to happen, the share of start-up and scale-up employees in total employment would have to rise to a level similar to that currently seen in the UK. "This must be an incentive for a new federal government to make Germany a startup nation," says Christian Miele, head of the German Startups Association. "Startups have to be at the top of the political agenda and become a boss* thing. It must already become clear in the first 100 days that strengthening startups is a top priority."