Good practice:

Digital Innovation Hub (DIH)

DIH is managed in order to help local companies to acquire digital skills, new technology, innovation and business solutions, as well as to improve overall digitization level of Latvian SMEs
In DIH framework there are several support concepts implemented:
Corporate Hackathons – several-days or several-weeks event to solve the business challenges of sectoral companies, to get closer to know and understand the different business sectors, to look for ways in which technology can address the various challenges of industry producers, to build sustainable teams that continue to work after hackathon, thereby ensuring future cooperation between IT and other industries.
Digital Workshops –helps to carry out an analysis of the existing business by filling out business canvases and creating a high-quality roadmap for digitisation of business processes with the help of innovation and emerging technology and solutions experts, so that the business can grow and grow effectively in the future.
Digi-meetups - a two-sector information exchange and networking event where the industry outlines the current situation and major challenges, and IT companies present their solutions, followed by the exchange of contacts and networking.
Sofa Experts – visiting a specific industry company, where the company presents business models, production facilities, processes and current challenges, and a public discussion of of potential solutions for this company by representatives of several IT companies.

Hackathon costs ~€10,000 - depending on duration & intensity, covered 100% by projects funding &/or sponsored by the Nordic Council and the Ministry of Economy.
Digital workshops: costs ~ €1500
Sofa experts visits: ~ €300
DIH staff consists of 5 members (inhouse) & 40 IT Cluster's members (EE).

Hackathons: 2 - 130 participants (2018) & 2 - 91 p. (2019)
40 sectors and IT SMEs applied, incl. both on-site and remote work, where 20% of the cooperation projects initiated are successfully implemented.
DigiMeetups: 3 - 87 p. (2018) & 2 - 77 p. (2019)
Expert visits: 5 companies (2018-2019)
Workshops: 2 - 50 p. (2019) different sectors of 18 regions
Conference: Rasing awareness of the importance of digitalization and data among citizens and enterprices - 600 p. (2019)

These types of measures will contribute positively to entrepreneurs and citizens of national regions, mainly by changing the way of thinking and encouraging business innovation and technological transformation processes to be launched.
As a result of the implemented support measures, it is concluded that there is a low degree of digitalization in Latvia's regional small and medium-sized enterprises, limited use of available information, insufficient understanding of the nature of innovation and technological solutions, lack of confidence in IT service providers and lack of motivation to implement changes related to technology and innovation.