DIGIS3 will participate in the 2nd webinar organised by the European Union and the United States on digital skills and strategy development for SMEs. The webinar will take place on 8 March, from 15:00 to 18:00, and will focus on the importance of digital tools that will help EU and US SMEs innovate, grow and do business.
DIGIS3 will be part of the seminar because of its involvement in the digital transformation of SMEs. This is because its main objective is to ensure a smart, sustainable and cohesive digitisation for SMEs and public administration entities in the region of Castilla y León.
In this 2nd webinar there will be different panels where the following topics will be addressed:
- A council representing women who run SMEs will discuss the challenges and opportunities of adopting digital tools to meet the needs of their business.
- Resource providers who work directly with SMEs will share their experiences on how SMEs use digital tools.
- Government representatives will describe the resources that are available to SMEs to help them adopt digital tools.
This will be the agenda for the webinar:
Opening by the Chairs of the Working Group:
- David De Falco, Assistant Secretary, US Department of Commerce, Office of Europe and Eurasia, International Trade Administration, US Department of Commerce.
- Lucilla Sioli, Director DG CNECT A, European Commission.
- Valentina Superti, Director DG GROW G, European Commission.
U.S. keynote address by Deputy Under Secretary Diane Farrell.
The 1st panel will be a discussion sharing the challenges and opportunities of adopting digital tools and how they meet the needs of businesses. This panel discussion will last approximately 45 minutes, is moderated by the United States, and will feature the following speakers:
- Saskia van Uffelen, Digital Champion from Belgium.
- ML Mackey from Beacon Interactive Systems in the USA.
- Lisa Lang founder of ThePowerHouse_Group and ElektroCouture in Germany.
The 2nd panel will share experiences and highlight the importance of working to connect SMEs with the digital tools they need. It will be moderated by Amaryllis Verhoeven, DG GROW, European Union, will last approximately 45 minutes, and will feature the following speakers:
- Simona Racek from SBDC
- Nicoletta Marchiandi, Head of the Innovation Unit of the Chamber of Commerce of Turin ALPS EEN, Italy
- Lorri Brown of Maine WBC, Coastal Enterprises Inc.
- Jana de Merlier, CEO of Star Research & Innovation Cluster and active member of DIH Brain4Industry, Czech Republic
Finally, the 3rd panel will focus on discussing the resources available to SMEs, with a special focus on ensuring that SMEs gain knowledge of how to access the necessary assistance, with a duration of around 45 minutes, from the following speakers:
- James Bledsoe, eCommerce Innovation Lab, USA.
- Birgit Weidel, Head of Unit, European Commission, DG GROW.
- Karina Angelieva, Deputy Minister for Innovation and Growth, Bulgaria.