Growing pressure on public budgets demands that support schemes become more innovative, effective, efficient, and evidence-based and that scarce resources are allocated to schemes with the greatest impact. This project aims to assess what level of support to SMEs is optimal for promoting the digitisation of their processes, products and assets. The aim of the project was to improve efficiency for the Digital Innovation Hubs (DIHs) and improve value for client SMEs while managing risk and helping businesses discover new opportunities for generating income.
A key focus of the project is whether businesses need to ‘test before they invest’. Practical use of technologies may help businesses make a more informed decision about whether to invest in specific technologies. Providing support at the testing stage is more costly, but this could prove cost-effective if businesses thereby become more likely to adopt technologies that will boost their productivity.
The project was developed by the Institute for Business Competitiveness, the regional agency in charge of innovation activities in the Spanish region of Castilla y León. The intervention was supported by Digital Innovation Hubs in the area: centres that support companies to become more competitive by enhancing their digital transformation process. The Institute tested how much support is needed to ensure that businesses adopt new technologies to improve business productivity. Sometimes, adding an extra layer of support based on trying and testing the technology is necessary. The agency was interested in exploring whether the effect size is large enough to be cost-effective.