An overview for colleges
Our program
The Digital Technology Adoption Pilot Program (DTAPP) is a component of the Government of Canada’s overall strategy to boost the productivity of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and improve Canada’s digital economy. Delivered by the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP), DTAPP is designed to speed up the rate at which SMEs in Canada adopt digital technology and build digital skills. From October 2011 to March 31, 2014, with the participation of colleges, we expect to support some 630 SMEs with advisory services and funding to help them adopt digital technology.
Our collaborators
Although DTAPP depends on the interplay of SMEs, colleges, organizations and NRC-IRAP Industrial Technology Advisors (ITAs), colleges play a key role in the program. Colleges deliver DTAPP services to groups of SMEs, offering workshops and training, and increasing awareness of digital technology adoption. They also deliver DTAPP services to individual SMEs in the form of short-term advisory services and diagnostics. Finally, colleges generate awareness of their own digital technologies adoption expertise among SMEs, and encourage capacity-building among their own staff and students.
Eligibility
To be considered for DTAPP eligibility, a college must demonstrate it can:
- catalyze community engagement/awareness with a specific purpose to enable SMEs to adopt digital technologies to increase their productivity;
- or provide an expert technical, information, or business service to SMEs to assist them in adopting digital technologies to increase their productivity.
Our approach
DTAPP has three main components:
1. Advisory services and financial assistance
To support and accelerate the adoption of digital technologies by SMEs in Canada, the DTAPP ITAs provide advisory services and financial assistance. They also engage with colleges and not-for-profit organizations to deliver services to SMEs and provide additional linkages to other sources of expertise.
2. Assessment and learning
To better understand the link between digital technologies and productivity, we conduct ongoing assessments of the operational and strategic results and outcomes of each engagement. From this, we will derive lessons learned and best practices in overcoming barriers to adoption.
3. Awareness
To promote the benefits of digital technologies adoption, we will raise awareness of DTAPP among SMEs, colleges and partners during the first year of the pilot program. In the following years, we will share the lessons learned and best practices with appropriate firms that could benefit from this information and learning.
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