#IMPATTOTOSCANA: SANT’ANNA SCHOOL INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND CONFINDUSTRIA TOSCANA TAKE ACTIONS TO SUPPORT TUSCANY SMES – STUDY
To address the impact of the pandemic in Tuscany, Confindustria Toscana has announced measures and additional support for industrial SMEs. Approaches to support companies are evolving in accordance with the UN Agenda 2030 and the European Green Deal. On September 11, 2020, the Institute of Management at Sant’Anna School Pisa has issued a study on the expected impact of the crisis in Tuscany showing the need of firms for new business plans and policy responses to foster resilience.
Eight macro strategies for sustainable development are established: Circular Economy, Research and Innovation, Healthcare, Health and Welfare, Industry 4.0 and Digital Services, Energy Transition, Community Infrastructure, Mobility, Agriculture and Food, and Human Resources Development grouped into four main goals: digital development and communication technology, technical infrastructure, higher education, public service platforms and public procurement.
“Tuscany companies require a regional business plan. We need to monitor the impact of the crisis, address urgent challenges and support further growth. Economy stabilisation and an effective government response is of critical importance for restart and recovery, but there is still uncertainty about how political leadership is dealing with the post-crisis situation. Researchers highlighted the importance of having governments to take actions to increase existing support measures. We know the Next Generation EU will raise funds allowing countries to use this additional funding over the 2021-2027 period. However, direct financial support to companies is available already in 2020 so we need to facilitate institutional agreements where government measures are urgently needed”, said Alessio Marco Ranaldo, president of Confindustria Toscana
“We have discussed the most recent analysis on the impact of the pandemic in the meeting that took place in Florence on September 11. Representatives of the industry sector together with the candidates running for president in Tuscany provided an overview of the survey results. Our goal is to ease access to government support, enabling the ecosystem through building sustainability and resilience. New policies and new working methods will be implemented to contribute to strengthening the resilience of firms in the adoption of digital technologies. During the lockdown, businesses have gone digital and now they are required to accelerate their digital agenda for recovery. Tuscany authorities need to focus on SMEs with low level of digitalization, decreased production and higher obstacles in accessing capital”, said Sant’Anna School professor Marco Frey as the team coordinator.
The study presented at the Camera di Commercio in Florence as part of the #IMPATTOTOSCANA campaign commissioned by Confindustria Toscana reflects the need for more innovation and digitization to assure the SME survival at the regional level.
Social media has enabled researchers of the Institute of Management to share their data. From a higher education perspective, social media networks provided institutions the unique opportunity of sharing national and regional official statistics.
Click here to view the paper (available only in Italian language)
