EU lobbying for Austrian companies
In Brussels the loudest voice rarely wins. The most robust figure does.
Interest representation at the European institutions, listed in the transparency register and coordinated with Vienna.
What it is about
The European administration is small measured against what it regulates. That is exactly why well prepared evidence is scarce there, and a real lever.
A directorate general drafting a regulation for 27 member states has little capacity for the individual case. Anyone presenting a clean calculation of what a proposed threshold does to a specific industry supplies a working basis, not just a demand. That is the difference between being heard and being received.
Then there is the logic of coalitions. A position carried by several member states and several industries survives trilogue. A single demand from a small member state rarely does. A large part of our work therefore consists of finding allies before a position is fixed.
The points that decide
Evidence
Figures on cost, employment and feasibility beat arguments from principle.
Alliances
Several member states and industries behind one wording is the goal.
Timing
Consultation and committee work are open, trilogue no longer is.
Transparency
Register entry, disclosed meetings, traceable material.
How we work on it
High-Level Strategy & Campaigning
A business strategy becomes a communications programme that reaches its goals faster.
Stakeholder & Network
Simply "knowing" people adds nothing. Robust relationships of trust with decision-makers do.
Professional Analysis & Monitoring
Curated monitoring of initiatives, draft legislation and public debate - assessed against your business goals.
Frequently asked
How do you get a meeting at the Commission?
Through the transparency register and through an issue that is currently on the unit’s desk. Meetings with Commissioners, cabinets and directors general are published. For technical work the units matter more anyway, and there substance counts for more than rank.
What belongs in a European position paper?
A concrete text proposal rather than a general stance. That means which article, which wording, which justification, which impact. Two pages with a precise amendment carry more weight than twenty pages of industry position.
Related focus areas
Public affairs Brussels
Advice at the Commission, Parliament and Council from an office on Avenue Louise, coordinated with the national work in Vienna.
Open pageEU public affairs
Support on European files from consultation through trilogue to national transposition.
Open pageAlliances and association management
Building, leading and professionalising platforms, initiatives and associations, including running them.
Open page
Facing an issue in this sector?
A first conversation usually settles quickly whether and how we can help.