KING ICT – Day of Open Integrations: Embed a Digital Element in Every Product

The digitalization of industry is crucial for economic growth, and retaining young people with STEM education is key to the success of digitalization. This is the main message of the 13th Day of Open Integrations, where KING ICT also presented its top technological solutions.

The digitalization of the Croatian industry is a critical component for the further growth of the Croatian economy, concluded the 13th ‘Day of Open Integrations’, a business-technology conference organized by KING ICT held last Thursday in Zagreb.

Analyses, statistics, and experiences presented by prominent representatives of the private and public sectors indicated some guidelines that should be followed if we want digitalization to succeed in its entirety, and it is crucial to retain young people with STEM education.

>>>KING ICT: We have employed a large number of young engineers, achieving progress in every segment

The popular conference, attended by just over 500 guests, was opened, as in previous years, by Plamenko Barišić, CEO of KING ICT.

– In the past year, our unconsolidated revenues amounted to more than 700 million kuna, but what is much more important is that we have employed 164 young engineers in the last two years. We have made progress in every segment. All our business segments have recorded positive shifts. Today, we are an active provider of solutions for airport security, smart buildings, digital and automated electrical engineering installations, industrial plants, and the use of drones and robots for economic purposes. Our task is to ensure that every product on the market receives a digital element, said Barišić.

The End of Customer Loyalty

He identified the main problems of the Croatian IT sector as the relocation of centers for making strategically important decisions outside the borders of Croatia, referring to a column by Lider’s editor-in-chief Miodrag Šajatović and his question ‘how much domestic entrepreneurship do we want in the future: 50 percent, 30 percent, zero percent?’.

>>>Day of Open Integrations KING ICT

– We live in times when customer loyalty can no longer be relied upon. Digital transformation is necessary not only to achieve progress but also to survive in a constantly changing market. Digital strategies and action plans are needed for the Croatian economy, concluded Plamenko Barišić.

Barišić has already mentioned several times, as a warning signal, the European Commission’s DESI index (Digital Economy and Society Index). This is a complex index that measures the digital progress of EU member states based on five main indicators (connectivity, human capital, internet usage, integration of digital technology, and digital public services e-government).

Where exactly is Croatia in terms of digitalization, according to DESI, was explained to those gathered at the ‘Day of Open Integrations’ by Irina Orssich, representative of DG Connect of the European Commission. The index shows that Croatia has made slight progress compared to last year and is no longer at the bottom of the EU. The progress is slow but steady.

Croatia Must Join the Digital Coalition

We lag the most in terms of ‘digital connectivity’, where we are last in the EU. It is paradoxical that despite poor connectivity, Croatia remains at the top of Europe in terms of the time its residents spend online. They mainly read news from portals and entertain themselves with online games or video calls. We are far above the EU average when using the internet for entertainment. On the other hand, in aspects such as e-commerce and online banking, we are below average.

– The European Commission has established a Coalition for Digital Skills and Jobs. This is an organization that will help companies find a workforce with developed ICT skills and further encourage their development. Currently, there are 19 countries in the Coalition, and we expect Croatia soon, was Irina Orssich’s response to the question of how to retain and find adequate ICT professionals.

– The EU needs to continue investing in digitalization and promote the development of ultra-fast internet so that we can keep pace with China, South Korea, and Japan, Orssich concluded, announcing the official presentation of the DESI index for this year on May 15.

How important this index is is best demonstrated by a large survey conducted by the Croatian Chamber of Commerce on 770 Croatian companies regarding their level of digitalization. The sample is based on the structure of the Croatian economy, and then the results were compared with DESI. The survey was presented at the conference by Tomislav Radoš, Vice President of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce for Industry and IT, Energy, and Environmental Protection.

– An increase in the DESI index of just one point brings an increase in productivity of 1000 euros per worker. In the case of a potential increase in the index by two points, productivity would increase multiple times, elaborated Radoš.

The survey also showed that 50 percent of Croatian companies have a website, 15 percent of surveyed companies have internet faster than 50 MBps, and it is positive that as many as 42 percent of companies use some form of digital marketing.

Retaining young people and equipping them with knowledge for the challenges posed by the digitalization of industry should start in educational institutions. Therefore, the pilot project e-Schools conducted by CARNET, using technological solutions from KING ICT, is extremely important.

Introducing e-Schools

The presentation on the introduction of e-Schools into the Croatian educational system and the current phase and future prospects was presented by Andrijana Prskalo Maček, Deputy Director of CARNET and project manager of e-Schools.

The pilot project includes 101 primary schools and 50 secondary schools, which means 7000 teachers and 23,000 students. The main goals of the project are to computerize teaching to raise the digital maturity of schools and to direct 10 percent of schools from digital beginners towards digital maturity.

As examples of successful application of software and hardware solutions, she mentioned the Maritime School in Zadar and the Frane Krežma Primary School in Osijek:

– Now follows the second phase of the project worth one billion kuna. We have decided to include all secondary and primary schools in this project. We want to adapt learning to new generations raised on digital technologies, said Andrijana Prskalo Maček.

Panel discussions at conferences usually attract great interest from the audience. This is especially true when some of the leading figures in the Croatian economy sit at the same table, and the discussion is moderated by Lider’s editor-in-chief Miodrag Šajatović. At the round table titled ‘Digitalization: Strategy of Reality’, Damir Vanđelić, CEO of Croatia osiguranje, Draženko Kopljar, member of the Management Board of Privredna banka Zagreb, Nedeljko Štefanić, professor at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture in Zagreb and member of the Working Group for Strengthening the Competitiveness of the European Industry in Digital Technologies and Platforms established by the European Commission, and Andrej Šimatić, senior manager at the consulting agency Horwath HT, discussed.

Too Few Software Solutions

– The most important demand from users has become the speed of services. Today, no one has time anymore. Therefore, we all have to adapt to digitalization, which drastically accelerates processes. Our employees are rational. Although they have old work habits, they are aware that digitalization will ultimately free them from hard work, emphasized Vanđelić, announcing that Croatia osiguranje will invest between 70 and 100 million kuna in digital development by 2022.

Kopljar, a proponent of artificial intelligence, believes that machines generally make fewer mistakes than humans and stated that PBZ is pushing the entire sector forward by introducing digitalization. He highlighted the lack of quality software solutions available on the Croatian market as the biggest problem. Štefanić is confident that if Croatia adapts to the digitalization standards set by the Union and starts utilizing EU funds in a timely manner, it can become one of the ten strongest economies in Europe by 2030.

>>>King ICT expects 10 percent higher revenues

Šimatić also stated that every future strategy for digital industrialization must respect tourism, a sector that brings billions of euros in revenue to Croatia annually. He cited the possibility of online check-in at hotels and robots carrying luggage for hotel guests as the main digital trends in tourism.

Rostuhar: Dare to Dream!

All panel participants agreed that Croatian strategies related to the economy are generally excellent on paper, but when it comes time for their implementation, all components fail.

The ‘Day of Open Integrations’ was closed with a motivational speech by Davor Rostuhar, a travel writer, photographer, and adventurer – the first Croatian to walk from the shores of Antarctica to the South Pole. His performance was designed to inspire young people and leaders of domestic companies to overcome the obstacles posed by the challenges of the digital business world.

– Dare to dream, but know your limits. To achieve dreams, you also need the necessary resources. Overcome obstacles one by one, but on your journey, believe in miracles, Rostuhar advised.

Finally, it is worth mentioning the technological workshops of KING ICT partners held as part of the conference. Representatives from Cisco, SAP, Bosch, Lenovo, Oracle, Fujitsu, and Fortinet shared their skills and knowledge with the workshop participants.