Context

The "Associazione degli Industriali della Provincia di Bari" is a territorial organization affiliated with Confindustria, that has the mission to support the growth and the improvement of local industrial enterprises. It represents more than 700 firms with almost 30.000 employees: about the 80% of industrial firms operating in the province of Bari.

The industrialisation process in the Bari area is quite recent. Beginning in the 1970s and continuing through the 1980s, a network of small and medium private industrial enterprises grew up; the phenomenon was so marked that a number of economists have referred to "an Adriatic development path", a reminder of the industrial development model that had previously built up along the coasts of the regions Marche and Abruzzi.

Within the metropolitan area of Bari, there has been a gradual strengthening of the tertiary sector, both in banking and in financial services, as well as in computer-based industry and in modern distribution firms.

Manufacturing industry in Bari province shows great diversity in terms of production. Despite this, there are a number of highly specialised production nodes concentrated in single areas, with footwear (Barletta-Trani), marble and related products (Trani), furnishings (Santeramo), underwear (North Bari) wedding dresses and formal wear (Putignano) and knitwear (Cassano -Acquaviva).

Other flourishing industries in Bari province include construction, metalworking and foodstuffs, all of which are widely distributed throughout the province.

About 40% of Bari companies export a part of their produce, varying between 10 and 70%. During 1995, the province of Bari recorded an increase of 38% in exports, some 8 points higher than the national average.

Unemployment levels are running at 11%, the lowest in the whole region and below the average for Southern Italy.

Therefore, the industrial environment of our province is very interesting for the experimentation and the application of electronic commerce tools for the SMEs.

Promoter: history, objectives and results

The pilot project PROMOTER was drawn up in September 1995 by "Associazione degli Industriali della Provincia di Bari", and was one of the first european steps for a modern information society. The project idea was influenced by the start of G7 general program (G7 Conference - Brussels - February 1995) and specifically by the theme 10 : "A Global MarketPlace for SMEs". The first project’s steps located the need of experimentation of telematics services able "to introduce innovation into" and "to increase the efficiency of" the business processes for the SMEs, in particular for the critical stage of product’s distribution and commercialization. This strategy was consistent with experimentation aim of "Information Society" idea for the territorial manufacturing systems. Moreover, it agreed with selection criteria proposed in a limited call (for tender) by DGIII in autumn 1995. So, the "Associazione degli Industriali della Provincia di Bari" received a grant to realize a pilot project during 1996.

The pilot phase ended in February 1997 and involved a SMEs’ representative sample (about 40 SMEs of mature industrial sectors as: textile, footwear, mechanical and food).

It was aimed to experiment simple electronic commerce tools and methods. The main goals of the project were:

• the dissemination of simple electronic commerce methods and the learning of new organizational models, both for each SME and for association, in order to improve innovation into management processes;
• the marketing and commercial promotion for the territorial manufacturing system, in order to plan and to get economies of scale in the access to electronic global marketplace;
• the experimentation of technical services for electronic commerce, as WEB, e-mail, EDI, electronic financial transaction, and so on … in order to investigate, on field, the feasibility and the diffusibility of "quick response" innovative behaviour in production area as feedback to new electronic demand.

The Project has allowed to realize:

• a prototypal services system on Internet to support electronic commerce for SMEs (see http://www.ec-promoter.com ), placed at "Associazione degli Industriali della Provincia di Bari" and developed with the SME’s contribution and the support of local suppliers.
• the demonstration and experimentation of specific commercial services, (that were) consistent with the available technologies
• a global trade fair (Shopping and Business tour);
• EDI transaction, both web-edi and classic interface;
• order management and secure transaction (involving a local bank - Banca del Salento);
• a wide and effective cultural sensitization inside the local manufacturing system for a practical use and development of electronic commerce, through a permanent promotion on local area and to national level;
• the incitement to realize new initiatives for using the telematic and information technologies in proprietary development’s strategies for electronic commerce (multimedia advertising, INTRANET, pre/post sales services).

Strengths

• S.1 Common organization of services on associative basis
• S.2 Simplification of technological problems to access to on-line services on internet
• S.3 Customized consulting support to define electronic commerce strategies
• S.4 Common approach to legal and regulatory issues

The user services developed in Promoter are based on 4 classes of services as:

• WEB services which allow to access via commercial browser to user services as:
• the global trade fair with firm presentation, product catalog and special offer;
• offer and order management (with payment instruction);
• information services;
• exhibitor services;
• Bank’s payment management.
• E-mail services the more simplex tools for electronic commerce. We can register a significant commercial traffic Via E-mail involving business partners.
• EDI services. It is possible using the same infrastructure to exchange structured messages(for us order) with partners linked in different way:
• internet without EDI SW (using WEB EDI services). It is typical for small partner;
• internet with EDI SW (we have a pure EDI transaction on internet). It is typical for close partnership;
• EDI VAN (value added network). It is typical for large-scale retail trade.
• Video Communication services to realize commercial meetings with international partners

Weaknesses

• W.1 Only partial experimentation : The wait to realize quickly sale proceeds isn’t gratified , because there are persistent management and technological difficulties (you think SET availability, resistance of traditional business partner - e.g. large-scale retail trade - to use internet as communications infrastructure, idea to use new media and tools in traditional ways)
• W.2 Poor self-using of additional services useful for innovation process: There aren’t self-implementations of own WEB server and the consumptions aren’t considerable increased for additional on-line services out of the pilot project finalities
• W.3 Difficulty in changing traditional business process; persistent obstacle to internal training on new technologies: The Promoter experience teaches that, actually, to obtain a good response and a real transformation of SMEs’ organization , and to meet electronic commerce opportunities, we need a long "exposition" to new practices of interaction with the global market
• W.4 Persistent position of "prudent wait" towards the new services: The general position of the sample has fluctuated between strong interest stages and stages characterized from a lot of doubts on additional investment and unstableness of solution.

Remarks

It is interesting to observe the behaviour of SMEs during our project’s development.

The DREAM

In the first stage (spring 1996) everything looks easy:

• the success is within reach;
• we can live a DREAM;
• we have a high level of expectation;
• every problem can be solved by technological tools.
• The SMEs are passive: they think it is too easy to win.
• The drivers are the suppliers (and their marketing).

The DISAPPOINTMENT

In the second stage (summer 1996) we realize that several technical questions (e.g. SET availability …) are far from solution:

• there are also various problems related to organizational aspects;
• everything is very complex;
• we discover that maybe technical problems are only a little part of our actual problems.

The mirage is disappeared.

The AWARENESS

In the final stage (winter 1996-97) we are more realistic and pragmatic:

• we are aware of having some technical solutions for specific classes of problems;
• we have more expertise;
• we know what is feasibility for us.
• The SMEs are active: we work together because it is very hard to win.
• The drivers are the SMEs.

Also, in consideration of our experience, we think that, to allow true utilization of EC opportunities for SMEs, it is important to have elements like:

• MKTG services: to bring the products near the market (the electronic marketplace)
• Payment and Financial services: to allow the secure money exchange on the network
• Logistic services: to manage and to optimize the goods transfer

These basis services can be true available only with the maturation of appropriate:

• Technological Framework;
• Normative Framework.

Then, the whole of EC services will produce results for SMEs only thanks to:

• Awareness;
• Know-how;
• Integration.

"Associazione degli Industriali di Bari" is still working in this direction.

To improve SMEs know how and expertise on practical use of EC tools, the "Associazione degli Industriali di Bari" has realized:

• the extension of the PROMOTER experience to other local firms (now we have about 60 firms on PROMOTER web site);
• the involvement of apulian firms in the initiative E-Christmas: an EC project spearheaded by MICROSOFT, HP, UPS, VISA and EUROCARD-MASTERDCARD.
  These partners have involved a large pool of participants, including european internet services providers, software developers, banks and merchants to bring european products on sale to an international audience.
  We have built the "Oleificio Ferrara" Shop, to sale a typical apulian product as extra-virgin Olive Oil, using a secure payment system supplied by SSB and Banca del Salento.
• the introduction of a specific section oriented to Electronic Commerce in "MASTER for Business Administration" (the most important Master for B.A. in South Italy) held by SPEGEA (our management school).
• the starting of an ADAPT project named WEB (World Exchange Business). This initiative is aimed at favouring the application from SMEs of innovative technical and organisational methods that makes the internationalisation process easier, by exploiting the opportunities given by electronic commerce.
  The target groups are identified in: entrepreneurs, managers and executives of the 80 Apulian SMEs representing the most important local productive sectors.
  Also we have planned a Transnational cooperation with both a French partner and a German partner.

Conclusion

From SMEs point of view it is very important to improve and to propagate the knowledge on EC opportunities. The rule of organizations like UE and local governments is still to promote initiative to train firms to live the new era of information society. We think that this kind of initiatives must involve "expert" actors strongly interested in commercial exploitation of the obtained results. MEs have to do training but suppliers have to built a serious offer of products and services (design, assistance, training, …) for e-business. Often SMEs need an e-business "coach" to realize the DREAM.

Contact:

Vito Santacesaria
Associazione degli Industriali della Provincia di Bari – 70126 Bari - Italy
santacesaria@ec-promoter.com