Digital Innovation in SMEs

The Digital Innovation in SMEs Observatory was established in 2020 to meet the growing interest of business organizations, trade associations, and policymakers in the digitalization of Italian SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) and the role of the ecosystem backing them up in this journey. Though numerically they represent only 5% of active Italian companies, the weight of SMEs in terms of employment (34% of private company total), revenue (41% total income in Italy), and of added value generated (38%) is significant. However, in the past three years the business world has experienced situations that have put considerable stress on its organizational and business models, to which the most digitally mature small and medium-sized enterprises have been able to respond with increased promptness and flexibility. For this reason, the objective of the Observatory is to create a sharing Community with which to study and investigate actual opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises resulting from the Digital Transformation.

Digital Innovation in SMEs, Observatory Research

Within its annual edition the Digital Innovation in SMEs Observatory conducts much research regarding the digitalization of SMEs. Specifically, it aims to:

• collect solid empirical evidence, provide models to interpret events and instruments to aid business decision-makers in the SME Digital Transformation;
• illustrate the maturity of Italian SMEs as regards some digital innovation topics (such as Big Data Analytics, Cloud Computing, Cybersecurity, Smart Working, IoT, et), also compared with large companies and European counterparts;
• survey, analyze and examine in depth public policies and instruments available to SMEs for the Digital Transition and Innovation, focusing in particular on the projects eligible for funding and on possible future developments;
• understand the role of Digital Innovation in supporting the green transition, following up on public policies in support of the twin transition and the level of adoption by SMEs of related technologies;
• map and analyze available connectivity for small and medium enterprises across the domestic territory, also as regards supply chain and production sector geography;
• investigate and give visibility to SME's Digital Transformation and Innovation best practices.