Case in Austria - Italy – Slovenia

Tuesday, June 5, 2007, Hotel Golf Concordia, 11.00 – 12.30

Chair
Kristina Bogataj, Senior Researcher
eCenter, Faculty of Organizational Sciences, University of Maribor, Slovenia

Austria representative
Christian Kittl, Head, Head, International Programs
evolaris eBusiness Competence Center, Austria
Italy representative
Flavio Bonfatti, Professor
University of Modena, Italy
Slovenia representative
Mateja Podlogar, Assistant Professor
University of Maribor, Slovenia
IT provider’s representative
Usva Kuusiholma
Webmerca Ltd., Finland
Viktor Zidenšek
SAPPHIR D.O.O., SAP Partner, Slovenia
Klemen Živkovič, Project Manager
ADACTA, Microsoft Partner, Slovenia


Outline
Use of modern ICT enables simplified and more effective and efficient way of executing business processes. Large organizations usually adopt modern ICT and new business models much faster than SMEs. Due to the lack of resources (human, knowledge and financial), SMEs more often stay behind. However, ICT offers many opportunities also to the SMEs. As in EU more than 99% of companies are SMEs, there are many opportunities and challenges to involve them into new ways of doing business. SMEs also create 50% of GBP at EU level. For that reason it is important also for SMEs not to overlook the opportunities (higher productivity, acceleration of innovations) of modern ICT usage.

EU supports research and development programs in this field. There are many directives accepted at EU level in order to simplify and modernize regulations tackling eBusiness field. One of the directives is Directive 2001/115/EC, specially focusing on eInvoicing. The Directive was adopted in all EU member states in 2004. eBSN network also suggests acceleration of eInvoicing usage in all EU member states. However, eInvoicing remains a great challenge for organizations in EU; especially for SMEs.
In order to accelerate eInvoicing adoption and discuss eInvoicing opportunities and issues; workshops, panels have been organized with the participation of partners from Austria, Italy and Slovenia   http://www.elivinglab.org/invoicing/RelatedActivities.htm
Furthermore, launched are eInvoicing initiatives and related projects at their national level of the neighbouring countries.

Slovenia
Initiative: eInvoicing eRegion - Slovenia Project Initiative, November 2005 (in Slovene language only)
Project: “Train the trainers: educating independent e-business instructors for SMEs
http://www.e-racun.si/

Austria
Initiative: The Austrian Initiative for Standardizing a Common e-Billing Interface and European Perspectives
Project: ebCrossBorder

Italy
Initiative: to be indicated
Project: to be indicated

The next step in accelerating cross-border eInvoicing adoption is experimenting phase. Expected results of the experiment are to identify possibilities for simplification of an cross-border business processes and procedures, and indicating main directions towards needed supporting eGovernment services.

The workshop objective is to present first cross-border experimenting results (possibilities for simplification of cross-border business processes and procedures) and related future plans by presenters from Austria, Italy and Slovenia.
The Workshop is also to encourage and moderate the exchange of experience and perspectives between the workshop members and the audience.