Over the past twenty years, the GDP of the Bel Paese has recorded an annual growth rate more than 1.2 percentage points less compared to the European average. According to the report made by The European House – Ambrosetti for Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Italy’s lack of growth is due to the low productivity of what have been defined as the “energy of the system”: in particular, the management of companies, talents and the synergy between public and private.
The impact of the XaaS cloud model on Italy’s digitization
In such a context, it becomes increasingly important for companies to put in place digital transformation processes that allow them to manage and exploit data. The strategic studyThe next generation of cloud based on XaaS – Everything-as-a-Service – New sustainable cloud model for Italy’s competitiveness and growth” created by The European House – Ambrosetti in collaboration with HPE Italia attempted to analyze the possible benefits regarding the adoption of a next-generation cloud based on the “Everything-as-a-Service” model, in which each tool, system or it must be usable as a service.
Valerio DeMolliCEO & Managing Partner of The European House – Ambrosetti, said: “It is essential to invest in digital technologies to boost the competitiveness and growth of the country system. Indeed, investments in new technologies play a key role in the creation of intangible assets, fundamental for the revival of the national economic system in the era of the Data Economy. In this context, it is necessary to identify a new digital development model that effectively and efficiently accompanies the transformation process of companies and public administration. To this end, the new cloud model based on “Everything as a service” is able to promote greater adoption of advanced technological solutions that allow an increase in the productivity of companies and the national system as a whole. , public administration will also be able to benefit from the dissemination of the new cloud model based on Everything-as-a-Service, obtaining savings of more than 650 million euros in ICT expenses and reducing data requests by 90% and business information”.
Towards a growing future dTo-led, the digitization of companies, public administrations and citizens plays a fundamental role in the competitiveness of the country. To assess the digitization of a State, an indicator has been selected which takes into consideration a series of digital tools (connectivity, cloud, artificial intelligence and industrial robots). Italy finds itself in ninth place in Europe but in first place among the so-called reference countries (Spain is in eleventh place, Germany in fifteenth and France in seventeenth). A definitely positive result, even if the study highlighted a series of critical problems in the Italian entrepreneurial system: in particular, we are talking about skills considered unsuitable to govern the digital transition, the adoption of basic digital tools in most companies (especially small and medium-sized ones) and managerial difficulties in managing the whole process.
There is still a long way to go, even for public administration: only 21.8% of offices have already hired a digital transition manager, while only 16.2% have activated a skills update program for their employees. Additionally, 62% of all computing devices are used is more than 5 years old and only 27.8% of all public administrations have access to high-speed Internet (fiber optic network). Finally, 33.8% of the public administration have already set up a cloud service while 51.7% do not offer any service via an online form.
The public administration will be able to save more than 650 million euros
The diffusion of the next-generation cloud, based on Everything-as-a-Service, will instead allow an increase in productivity of up to 2.3% for companies. The GDP will experience an increase that will reach up to 222 billion euros in the next 5 yearswith a cumulative direct impact for the ICT chain of 1.3 billion euros in new revenues.
For the PA, the use of cloud solutions based on Everything-as-a-Service could generate savings of more than 650 million euros, i.e. the equivalent of a 25% reduction in ICT costs. The European House – Ambrosetti and Hewlett Packard Enterprise believe that it is necessary for public administrations to adopt a new sourcing model based on “as-a-Service” logics, in addition to the creation of collaboration mechanisms between several Public Bodies. To promote the adoption of the most advanced cloud solutions within Italian companies, it would be important for companies to train their employees in digital technologies and use, create data ecosystems (data spaces) at national level that allow greater interoperability at the supply chain level is possible.