SMEs lack tech awareness

EU Commissioner for telecoms and media, Viviane Reding, has urged technology firms to concentrate growth in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in order to boost Europe's digital economy, reports V3.

While tech giants such as SAP and IBM have intensified their mid-market sales strategies in past months, because of the segment's large growth potential, vendors warn that SME sales strategies are often difficult because of their lack of technical awareness.

Reding spoke at the Lisbon Council in Brussels and pointed to the 23 million SMEs in Europe, which account for over 100 million jobs, saying they could be the “mainstream of Europe's economic resurgence”.

Axigen, a professional messaging solution vendor, has unveiled its messaging solution range in Hong Kong through its first distribution partnership signed with iDesign, a player in the domestic IT&C solutions and services field, according to PR-USA.net.

iDesign IT Consulting has been providing IT solutions and consulting services for over nine years, with a strong focus on SMEs.

Its complex range of solutions and products helps automate critical business processes, providing enterprises with the competitive edge they need to succeed.

A top Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) official says the organisation is willing to transfer technology related to nuclear, biological and chemical (NBC) warfare to SMEs, opening up business potential worth Rs 20 billion (R3.4 billion), reports The Economic Times.

“We will spend Rs 3 billion (R507 million) on the NBC sector and around 60% of the work will be outsourced to SMEs,” DRDO chief controller for research and development, W Selvamurthy says.

“We have identified 30 industries in the SME sector and will issue request for proposals to them,” he adds.