Good practice:

4PDIH – Public, Private, People, Partnership Digital Innovation Hub

In 2018 according to OECD, Slovenia had the second highest share of jobs at high risk among the 32 OECD members surveyed. These numbers suggest that re-qualification and upskilling will play a key role in mitigating these difficult transition, resulting from technological progress.
To grow digital competencies, share digital experience and case studies locally, regionally and internationally, and to support policy makers to adapt regulation and open its data to foster entrepreneurship, 4PDIH provides, connects and supports knowledge, business and technology expertise, technologies, experimental and pilot environments, best practices, methodologies and other activities necessary to fully enable Slovene industry, public administration and communities in building digital competencies, innovation models and processes and support their digital transformation.
4PDIH organizes trainings for acquiring digital skills and competencies according to the identified needs of a particular stakeholder, creates supportive environment for testing before investing, provides guidance in fundraising and investment, acts as a promoter of networking and all and all, encourages to address digital transformation.
Due to 4PDIH's versatility, its framework of activities are available to local communities, i.e. municipalities or consortia, start-ups, economic operators, scientific research institutions, educational institutions, public administrations, NGOs and individuals.

4PDIH operates within University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, in a partnership with Association of Municipalities and towns of Slovenia and Ministry of Public Administration. Funded by different sources, the amount required to run the practice takes 3 employees per year.

4PDIH was awarded the WSIS Prize 2021 and has attained the status of the national contender for the EDIH. It is also a member of more than dozen international initiatives, to name a few: DIHNET, ERNACT Network, Pact for Skills, Rural DIH Network etc. Since 2019, a focus has been given to entire 4PDIH’s ecosystem: from provision of needs analysis and development of digital tools to organizing trainings in collaboration with Grow with Google Slovenia, Ministry of Public Administration etc.

Two main challenges:
• Lack of digital skills, especially in rural territories
• Ensuring more communication locally in order to change people’s behavior towards digital transformation (driving in the demand for innovative ICT-based solutions)

This is a good practice of human-centered digital transformation with potential to be transferred to other regions, interested in the establishment of DIHs, which are in particular focused on tackling digitalization in the widest sense possible–4PDIH covers all areas of science and technology including social sciences and the humanities, addressing digital transformation by deploying transdisciplinary expertise.
The key successful factors are involvement of key stakeholders with specific role in digital transformation and complementary target groups, the effective management of existing resources (human and capital) as well as an active participation to local and national policy makers, and to other EU projects and initiatives.
Since November 2019, 4PDIH has got the acknowledgment from Ministry of Public Administration and Association of Municipalities and towns of Slovenia as an efficient model to be followed when addressing efficient digital transformation of public administration.