Basic Information Brief Information About the Project
Within
the European Union there are huge differences between the prosperous regions
which are predominantly metropolitan areas and the „whole rest“
of the EU in terms of economic and technological development.
An essential aspect of the disadvantages is the access of rural and semi-rural
regions to technological innovations. The possibilities to obtain information
about technological innovations and to get support adopting them are better
in metropolitan regions than in the rural and semi-rural regions. This
effect leads to a growing separation in the development of the agglomerations
and the remaining areas.
The present situation of the areas involved in this project can be
described by the following points:
Increasing disadvantages of enterprises, especially SMEs in the rural
and semi-rural sub-areas (lack of skilled employees, lack of or bad
access to innovations, bad access to infrastructures etc.).
Disadvantages of the location turn into disadvantages in competition,
especially for technology-oriented enterprises in future branches. Missing
investments into extension of enterprises at the location, exodus of
skilled labour and direct effects on the settlement of new technologically
interested enterprises are the result.
Decreasing income out of the taxes which the enterprises pay increase
this effect by reducing the possibilities of the municipalities to invest
into promotion of the economy and infrastructure.
A brain–drain by the exodus of skilled-workers, especially
young people with a good professional training is a further effect which
accelerates this negative development in the long term.
SMEs are forced by economic and market pressure to concentrate on
their core competence (what they do best) and to cooperate with partners
in order to outsource and produce integrated products and services.
The formation of Virtual Enterprises can be a method to reduce economic
problems and promote business. In order to achieve this, existing barriers
for entrepreneurs to engage in virtual activities have to be tackled:
resistance towards ICTs enabling control and monitoring possibilities
by third parties; investing in an ICT infrastructure for communication,
coordination and cooperation; lack of appropriate technical skills and
investing in the creation of a concerted business understanding incorporating
common organizational and managerial strategies, attitudes, guidelines
and behavioural patterns.
The reasons for doing this project can be summarised as follows: As in
the participating regions the backbone of the economy and the main job
provider are small and medium-sized enterprises, a further strengthening
of those enterprises will have positive effects on the overall development
and the social cohesion of the regions. The enterprises need to become
better qualified and more competitive in order to secure business and
jobs. A further enhancement of new economic activities may compensate
to a certain degree the job loss in the agricultural sector.
This will have positive effects on spatial problems in rural regions
like net-out migration, a thin-out of existing structures and services
as well as a further decline of locational qualities for the SMEs.
Having this in mind the information and communication technologies can
be seen as an essential tool to promote spatial develoment and to increase
the locational quality of rural regions and their regional centres:
They may offer especially to the small enterprises a cost-efficient
access to supra-regional trade markets. This fosters growth and profits
of the enterprises and by tax-payments the financial possibilities of
the region for investment and further development.
On the other hand it is possible that ICT forms a backbone of regional
co-operation networks as well as a better access towards R&D structures
and results.
Furthermore there are options to use more business related services
and to qualify employees in e-learning (e-learning comprises CBT (Computer-based
training), WBT (Web-based training) and blended learning (a mixture
of CBT/WBT and conventional learning).
Obstacles to use the technologies sometimes already available within
the enterprises have to be removed with the effect that business and
communication among SMEs and their partners / customers become better,
quicker and cheaper.
The transfer and usage of knowledge is enhanced by providing the technical
means for access and diffusion.
Summarised, there are many reasons for efforts to improve the quality
of the rural and semi-rural regions.
This project is meant as an exemplarily investigation in the participating
regions resulting in detailed recommendations that can be transferred
to other regions which don't take part in the project. In the following
chapters we describe the aims, strategies, measures and tasks that will
be performed by the partners of this project.
The project is aimed to meet the vision of a sustainable and polycentric
development as described in the ESDP and the NORVISION. Especially the
approach Information technology and innovation support the development
of peripheral regions is met by the project, providing new possibilities
to balance urban-rural disparities, to improve the competitiveness of
SMEs and to enhance innovation thus contributing to a higher economic
and social quality of the regions.
Main Aims of the Project Main aim of the project is the strenghtening of the region by spatial
and structural changes. The tools to reach this aim are IC-technologies.
Their implementation and usage in SMEs shall be enhanced and bring positive
results. In particular there can be deducted the following sub-goals:
Reducing the urban-rural-disparities with respect to the supply of
qualified manpower and workplaces by supporting SMEs to innovate, using
modern ICT and providing means for e-learning and qualification. By
these means function of the rural and semi-rural areas of being a motor
of economic development is supported and new business-fields can be
opened.
Based on the knowledge about the present structure and problems of
each region ("baseline") analyzing available research and
solutions for SMEs that can be implemented to to improve their economic
situation.
Providing strategies and measures by which the competitiveness and
economic and technological developmentof SMEs is improved: Investigation
in and reduction of (entrepreneurial) restraints to implement and use
modern IC-technologies. Promoting the adoption of available new technologies
thus creating new entrepreneurial possibilities.
Formation of a SME support-structure in the shape of a sustainable,
vertically integrated, sector-spanning network between SMEs, local authorities,
providers of education and transnational partners. The network shall
be a physical/technical as well as a logical and help to reduce and
compensate spatial and infrastructural disadvantages of SMEs especially
in the rural regions. To help enterprises to engage in virtual networks
a "Virtual Enterprise" pilot will be integrated.
Durable usage of the network-partnership and its technical installations
for all entrepreneurial concerns.
Improving the ability of SMEs to gain access to available knowledge
and experiences as well as to results of research and development in
order to innovate and increase the competences of enterprises and staff.
The technical basis for this are the Internet and modern IC-technologies
used for access to regional support structures. The improvement in the
abilities of enterprises to innovate will lead to technological change
within the regions and by this to spatial and social changes.
Investigation into the needs of SMEs with respect to the ability to
innovate, qualification, organisational structures and procedures incl.
development of methods for improvement.
Awareness-raising: Improving the knowledge about the possibilities
of modern IC-technologies and creation of incentives to use them with
the aim to reduce restraints to use the technology; by that bringing
new technology into use in the whole region.
Presentation of available ‘best-practice’-solutions for
SMEs and their effects on them on a transnational level.
Development and implementation of measures for transfer and integration
of these solutions at all partner-regions.
Improvement of the competence of enterprises and employees in using
modern IC-technologies with the aim of an intensified, more aimed usage
of these technologies for all entrepreneurial concerns.
Fostering the creation of new jobs (resp. securing jobs) by supporting
new enterprises (Start-Ups) in using modern IC-technologies.
Finding concrete answers and solutions to avoid and to reduce traffic
by using ICT, i.e. by e-learning.
Working out and presenting models to reduce the costs of the information
society on the local level.
Presentation and usage of the other advantages of the formed network.
Within
the European Union there are huge differences between the prosperous regions
which are predominantly metropolitan areas and the „whole rest“
of the EU in terms of economic and technological development.