Vienna – world-class business location and metropolis

Vienna – metropolis and world-class business location

The Austrian capital excels in quality of life, stability, safety and infrastructure. It also carries the title ‘Greenest City’ – quite rightly so.

Vienna is the world champion when it comes to quality of life, wether it’s the Mercer-Study, “The Economist” or the UN – Vienna is Number 1. In addition, Vienna reached the top spot in the worldwide “Greenest City” ranking and “Best Startup Hub in the world” ranking. The city has a world-class infrastructure, for example Vienna Airport and its numerous train connections, and a global internet node with the Vienna Internet Exchange VIX. According to the “Guardian”, Vienna as the best-connected city by rail in Europe. With its high productivity, Vienna is one of the top regions in the European Union, states the Vienna Business Agency. Austria’s capital is also highly valued by many companies thanks to its geographic location as a hub to markets in the CEE region.

Research and development in Vienna

1,560 research centers and 848 R&D companies make Vienna the research centre of Austria, and with a research ratio of 3.6 percent, Vienna is also one of the top EU regions in this ranking. With 5.3 percent of all Viennese employees, Austria’s capital is also Central Europe’s centre for basic research and applied research. 3.5 billion euros or 1,800 euros per inhabitant are spent on research and development every year according to the Vienna Business Agency. Alongside universities, universities of applied science and private universities, other non-university research institutes such as the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the Austrian Institute of Technology, the Christian Doppler Laboratories and the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute play an important role. Siemens, Böhringer-Ingelheim, Bosch and Kapsch have the highest research and development expenditures.

Around 125,000 businesses are located in Vienna, including many world market leaders in their respective fields. More than 200 international corporations use Vienna for their regional headquarters, often responsible for the entire CEE area. Peter Hanke, City Councillor for Finance, Economy, Digitisation and International Affairs, knows more about the business location.

What is the current focus for Vienna as a business location? Our current focus is on finding the best possible ways to cushion the effects of the Covid crisis. Alongside measures for companies in Vienna to help tide them over during the crisis related eco-

Photo: Jungwirth/PID

The public transport system in Vienna is without a doubt world-class; every day, Wiener Linien transports 2.6 million people quickly and safely throughout the city.

Universities

c University of Vienna c Vienna University of Technology c Vienna University of Economics and Business c University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna c Medical University of Vienna c The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna c University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna c University of Applied Arts Vienna c Sigmund Freud University Vienna c Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna c Modul University Vienna c Webster Vienna Private University c JML Jam Music Lab Private University

Universities of applied science

c Fachhochschule Technikum Vienna c FH Vienna of the Vienna Economic Chamber c University of Applied Sciences BFI Vienna c Lauder Business School

Job market and economic structure

c Total number of jobs c Apprentices 864,116

17,153

c Jobseekers (annual average)2

c Unemployment rate2 114,869

11.7%

c Members at the Economic Chamber 141,219 c Business formations3 9,221 c Gross value added in mln euros (2018) 86,155 c Gross regional product in mln euros (2018) 96,417 c Share in the Austrian GDP (2018) 25.0% c Gross regional product per capita in euros (2018) 51,000 c Foreign trade in mln euros (Q1+Q2) c Imports 19,115 c Exports 10,357 c Tourism overnight stays (x 1,000) 17,605 c Patent issuances nationally (2018) 206

1 2019 data, 2 national calculation 3 preliminary figures Source: Statistics Austria, Association of Social Security Institutions, Austrian Economic Chamber, City of Vienna, AMS

nomic shortfalls, we are setting funding priorities for projects that are developing solutions to help companies and institutions operate as fully as possible despite the Covid-related restrictions. Economic policies also have to readjust to ‘developing’ rather than just to ‘safeguarding’ as soon as possible.

Vienna urgently needs stimuli that aim to reboot the economy sustainably. As a city government we are therefore planning extensive measures on all levels with the hope of stimulating consumer demand and as a result returning economic activity to local companies.

And in the long term? What is the City of Vienna planning for the business location? In the long-term we are orientating ourselves on six topics in particular, which are laid out in the business strategy “VIENNA 2030 - Economy & Innovation”. It was drawn up in 2019 with stakeholders from civil society, business and politics. It builds upon topics where Vienna has already particular expertise and strengths. These topics are particularly suited to finding solutions for the urban challenges of the coming decades.

‘Viennese solutions’ aim for innovative approaches that can measure up to international comparison. We have defined topics such as “Vienna, metropolis of health” and “Viennese digitalisation“, for example. You can find out more at stolzaufwien.at

Vienna has the most R&D companies in Austria. What is the City doing in this area exactly? Research creates innovation and innovation creates jobs. As a city we are setting out initiatives to make sure Vienna remains part of the top regions in Europe. And we are successful: the number of research companies has increased by 300 percent in 15 years. Among other things, Vienna offers its own laboratories for small research facilities and real estate for big players. In addition, the City also has a very research-friendly focus where networking and collaborations work really well.

As the largest German-speaking university city, Vienna has a powerful talent pool: Companies really value this and this in turn creates attractive jobs. In research alone there are around 1,000 companies and around 46,000 employees. To keep it this way, we are implementing a series of specific measures for budding researchers and also for research institutions.

For the future there are many open questions such as digitisation, climate protection and climate targets. How does the City of Vienna tackle them? Digitisation and climate protection are topics which have been of high importance for quite some time. With the Digital Agenda 2025, the City of Vienna has set out a clear schedule for how we want to become the digitalisation capital of Europe. The concerted expansion of 5G, the latest mobile technology standard, will bring a decisive advantage to the competitiveness of Vienna as a business location.

The Smart City Framework Strategy specifies ambitious targets in CO2 emissions as well as in many other areas, which are important to us as a model climate city. In addition, the City also offers a range of measures via the Vienna Business Agency, which supports businesses and research facilities in finding solutions to the challenges of climate change. For example, large companies are linked with small and medium-sized enterprises as well as start-ups and researchers. Together, they can work on solutions.

A great example is the Rain Water Challenge. The City, researchers and companies worked together to combat the accumulating heavy rainfalls and their effects while at the same time trying to find ways to use these large amounts of rainwater to cool down the city.

Photo: Siemens

City Councillor Peter Hanke (centre) speaks to Siemens CEO Wolfgang Hesoun (right)

Why should companies settle especially in Vienna? Vienna is a metropolis. That’s why more and more international companies are choosing to settle in Vienna. In 2019, 266 new international companies settled in Vienna, breaking the record for the number of annual settlements for the eighth times in a row. Stability and security are major factors which Vienna are associated with all around the world despite the current economic challenges posed by the Covid crisis. In addition, the excellent infrastructure, the transport hub both in terms of rail and air travel, skilled employees and Vienna’s geographic proximity to CEE markets are all advantages of Vienna.

International companies can confirm that Vienna as a business location has done an excellent job over the past months. The high quality of life in Vienna has once again been confirmed particularly for expats working in Vienna, who often come from regions badly affected by the Covid crisis. Vienna is not only attractive for companies but also for the employees who settle here as it is affordable. For child care and living costs alone, a family of four can expect to pay four times as much in New York as in Vienna. In Zurich, it is about three times as much. This difference is very rarely compensated for by a higher income. In Vienna, the disposable income available for families is higher than in comparable cities. In a nutshell: In Vienna, high quality and a high standard of life are affordable. ◆

For entrepreneurs, the economy and the business location

The Vienna Business Agency supports local and international companies in all phases of their business development, providing advice on all corporate issues and helping expats get up and running in Vienna. Businesses from all sectors can get help and advice when looking for funding, business premises, an office, free advice, workshops and wanting to establish new partnerships.

Vienna Business Agency. www.wirtschaftsagentur.at