Empowering SMEs for Circularity: A Competency-Based Learning Approach

To achieve true sustainability, manufacturing companies must transition from a linear to a circular economy. This requires well-trained professionals, particularly in product design, where crucial decisions about a product’s circularity are made. New or adapted circular competencies are therefore essential. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), however, often lack the resources to systematically develop and implement training strategies for such socio-ecological transformations. The research project SustainAble addresses this challenge by proposing a competency catalog that enables SMEs to identify the circular economy competencies relevant to their workforce, with an additional focus on circular product design. This paper outlines the development of the catalog. The methodology combines a systematic literature review of circular economy competency models with AI-assisted profiling using JobCraftAI, a generative AI tool developed by the project IT partner. The identified competencies were systematically synthesized, categorized, validated in expert workshops and compiled in the SustainAble Competency Catalog. The result comprises 81 general circular economy competencies and 53 product design-specific competencies grouped into 20 competency categories. This research shows a practical framework for competency development and supports future applications such as adaptive learning and targeted training strategies.