Location:
Objective of the practice:
Enhance the innovative and digital fabric of the Alpine region
Subtopics of the practice:
Design and test initiatives aimed at developing an Alpine living lab that stimulates traditional SMEs to launch a “second life” through the creation of value chains extended at the interregional level
Geographical scope of the practice:
Alpine Regions
Short summary of the practice:
BE-READI ALPS enhances the innovative and digital setting of the Alpine space by designing and testing initiatives to develop an Alpine living lab that stimulates traditional SMEs to discover innovative development paths.
Detailed information on the practice:
The project idea arises from a concrete need observed in many regions: the Alpine innovation ecosystem indeed hosts numerous traditional SMEs that tend to be characterised by a mindset often resistant to change. In addition to these, there are many start-ups with high innovation potential but often lacking experience and limited access to established channels. Lastly, there are various public and private actors involved in assisting businesses with a support service offering that is often fragmented, redundant, subject to territorial restrictions, and limited to specific fields. BE-READI ALPS aims to address these imbalances by first strengthening the network of business support organisations and simultaneously mobilising key stakeholders to redefine a common agenda to support the transnational development of the Alpine economic ecosystem. Since its implementation, the project’s outcomes include: (i) the BE-READI Points Toolkit, that enabled every Point to support companies using a comprehensive, modern, and transnational approach, effectively overcoming the fragmentation of the current Alpine Space innovation ecosystem; (ii) the establishment of the BE-READI Network, a collaborative framework at the regional level, comprising 25 host organisations in the Alpine Space that are dedicated to sustaining mature companies willing to develop second-life projects; (iii) a Strategic Roadmap for Alpine Space Competitiveness, containing a set of proposals for macroregional implementation based on discussions with decision makers and stakeholders during the BE-READI Open Tables.
Resources needed:
Total eligible costs:1.963.004€; ERDF grants: 1.565.697€
Results achieved:
Development of new audit tools to assess the financial and digital situation of businesses, organisation of numerous interactive networking events, including 11 “Ideas Factory,” 3 transnational “Digithons,” and an international event aimed at investors, involvement of approximately 500 companies in pilot actions, promotion of around 50 new projects initiated by local businesses with the support of BE-READI ALPS, release of an accreditation methodology to better qualify business support organisations and enhance their transnational cooperation, creation of a mentoring service package for businesses, development of a White Paper suggesting strategic and concrete actions to improve the innovative development of enterprises.
Potential for learning:
Many other regions may be interested in the results of this project. In fact, many countries may find themselves in the same situation for which the project practices were proposed, as they have traditional SMEs with a resistant mindset to change, as well as various startups with significant innovation potential.
Further information:
Keywords:
Innovation Capacity and Awareness-Raising, Institutional Cooperation and Cooperation Networks, Knowledge and Technology Transfer, New Products and Services, SME and Entrepreneurship

