The NBG partners aim to collectively develop solutions to safeguard business successions. This is achieved through the exchange of information and sharing of experience gathered on the promotion of business successions, identifying good practice examples, developing appropriate support and setting up an effective network to disseminate this information. Achievements: Achievements so far The NBG operation started in April 2005, main activities have been: I.) Cycle of Events: to reach the main regional stakeholders that are concerned with business succession support, to have interregional knowledge exchange & to disseminate information II.) Benchmarking process to identify good practice in the partner regions. I.) Events: 23 interregional events with more than 1,700 participants took place: 1. MBO/MBI - Transfer of Businesses outside the Family, Stuttgart, 06.07.05, 137 part. / 2. The Problem of Taxation in Business Succession, Zurich, 29.09.05, 40 part. / 3. Problem Awareness, Volos, 6.-7.10.05, 12 part. / 4. Public Support Programmes, Milan, 21.10.05, 50 part. / 5. Transfer of Businesses to Women, Stuttgart, 26.10.05, 137 part. / 6. Realise the Value of Your Business, Coventry, 01.12.05, 57 part. / 7. Financing Business Successions, Krems, 1.-2.12.05, 20 part. / 8. Business Succession: Qualification, Cantù and Mantova, 9.-10.03.06, 20 part. 9. Joint conference of with the TRANSREGIO project on Business Transfer in Europe, Brussels, 30.03.06, 113 part. / 10. Female Business Succession, Zurich, 03.03.06, 25 part. / 11. Business Succession-Abort or Seek Support, Volos, 08.06.06, 12 part. / 12. Business Succession in Lower Austria, Wiener Neustadt, 11.09.06, 148 part. / 13./14. Financing Business Succession, Stuttgart, 13.07.06 and 25.10.06, 147 and 132 part. / 15. Addressing Strategic Issues in Business Succession, Coventry, 07.11.06, 36 part. / 16. International Forum Business Succession, Glattbrugg, 10.11.06, 196 part. /17. Support of Business Succession in the Region of Heilbronn-Franken, 29. and 30.11.06, 19 part. / 18. Business Succession in Europe-Financing Business Succession Applied and Interregional Perspectives, Karlsruhe, 08.03.07, 102 part. / 19. Business Succession - How does that concern businesswomen?, Zurich, 31.05.07, 30 part. / 20. The Matching Process in Business Succession, Stuttgart, 23.07.07, 109 part. 21. Business Succession: Good Practices, Criticalities and Policies, Milan, 05.10.07, 40 part. / 22. Business Succession in Europe (Final Conference, presentation of identified good practice), Brussels, 16.10.07, 54 part. / 23. Final Conference of the NBG Project, Business Succession in the Region of Thessaly Volos 19-20 Dec. 2007, Volos, 19.-20.12.07, 77 part. II.) Benchmarking: the partners identified 24 critical success factors & 28 instruments. These instruments have been categorised in 3 sections: 14 good practice cases which have been specially highlighted by the partners / 4 umbrella programmes including more than two instruments, thus tend to have an overall approach / 10 short index cases that are standard instruments but are good practice for regions at the very beginning of setting up a business succession programme. A brochure on the benchmarking activity has been published and disseminated: 'Business Succession in Europe - a report by the next business generation project'.