28.08.26

Social Economy Organisations: Your Time Should Go to Your Mission — Not Paperwork

Manual admin, disconnected systems, data privacy worries — none of it is why you do this work.
A new EU study wants to know how digital tools and AI are really being used across the social economy — and where they’re falling short.
Your answers will shape the policies and support that reach organisations like yours.
Takes 20 minutes. Your voice, your reality!

Taking the Pulse of Digital Change in the Social Economy

Every day, cooperatives, associations, foundations, mutuals and social enterprises keep communities fed, housed, cared for and included – often with fewer resources than the job deserves. Digitalisation, used well, can give you back time for that work instead of taking it. But only if the tools are built around your values, your governance, not the other way round.

Who’s asking, and why

Eurofound, the EU agency for the improvement of living and working conditions, is running a Europe-wide study on digitalisation and AI in the social economy. Findings will feed into EU policy, including the Social Economy Action Plan – so what you tell us shapes what policymakers understand about organisations like yours. A cooperative is not a foundation, and an association is not a mutual:;this study is designed to capture those differences, not flatten them

What we are asking about

  • Digital tools and AI in practice – what you use, for what, and your challenges
  • What’s changed – how digitalisation has shaped how you deliver your mission
  • Work and processes – everyday impact and pain points
  • Having a say – who decides on new tools
  • What it’s delivering – outcomes for your organisation, your people, and what policy support you need

There are no “right” answers – we want your honest experience, whatever stage you’re at.

Before you start

  • It takes about 20 minutes
  • Your responses are confidential, used only at aggregate (EU)level
  • Open to cooperatives, associations, foundations, mutuals and social enterprises across the EU
  • Deadline: 30 September 2026

Take the survey → EU-wide study on Digitalisation in the Social Economy

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