The study ‘An Effective Future for Social Welfare’ by the Steinbeis School of International Business and Entrepreneurship (SIBE) in Herrenberg, commissioned by the Paritätischer Wohlfahrtsverband Baden-Württemberg (Parity Welfare Association of Baden-Württemberg), was presented to over 900 member organisations in February 2024. The study highlights possible solutions against the backdrop of current developments and challenges in the field of social welfare, particularly with regard to demographic change, increasing digitalisation and the shortage of skilled workers. To this end, 284 microtrends from a total of 29 countries, input from 12 experts and 30 pages of in-depth analysis on selected topics were evaluated.