Promoting the adoption of High-Performance Computing amongst SMEs

Objective: 

To systematically identify SMEs most likely to benefit from HPC resources and prioritize outreach accordingly.

Scope:

For HPC centres, HPC competence centers, innovation hubs, and the like, performing mostly early-stage SME engagement.

Overview

This Guide describes the structured and repeatable approach employed by EuroCC@Greece, the Greek NCC for High-Performance Computing, when it comes to identifying and engaging SMEs that stand to benefit most from HPC resources. Its purpose is to record the method followed for early-stage SME engagement in order to streamline outreach efforts and ensure that they are targeted, efficient, and consistently effective.

The method focuses on four complementary procedures. First, continuous large-scale dissemination expands awareness of HPC capabilities across broad SME communities, ensuring that potential beneficiaries are exposed to relevant information. Second, knowledge gaps—particularly the lack of HPC-related technical skills and understanding within SMEs—to ensure they have the foundation needed for effective use of the available technology. Third, a systematic process for finding high-value leads enables the identification and prioritization of SMEs with strong innovation potential, computational needs, or readiness for HPC adoption. Finally, through effective consultations, the NCC team can identify SME needs and guide companies toward appropriate next steps.

Procedures of the Greek NCC

Engage in continuous large-scale dissemination

Although more and more widely acknowledged in the realm of Greek SMEs, HPC and related technologies still remain a novel concept among potential users. The Greek NCC has found that engaging in continuous dissemination on a broad scale, has helped raise awareness of the nature and application of HPC as well as the potential for access to the European HPC infrastructures.

Tech Transfer Communications

• Media press kit
• HPC-for-Business kit
• Case Studies and Success Stories portfolio
• Available HPC Services portfolio

Digital Outreach

• Engage social media with posts on platforms such as Linked In
• Establish a regular newsletter
• Curate mailing lists

Facilitate access to funding

• Disseminate Open Calls and funding opportunities

Fill in the knowledge gaps

Lack of expertise or even simply familiarity with HPC and the technologies and application frameworks that it involves, is an important inhibiting factor to the adoption of HPC. To counter this, the Greek NCC has successfully established a regular training series, which introduces both HPC application domains as well as technical topics to the general public. The methodology for creating and disseminating courses is as follows:

Select a relevant topic

Avoid limiting your scope: The topic can be chosen among up-and-coming technologies or trends, but it can also be chosen because it is a tried-and-true technology or platform that is necessary background knowledge for effectively using HPC. 

Curate a speakers list using the list of experts

• As the aim is to foster participant interaction, consider curating a speaker list that consists of experts in the relevant subdomain, even for introductory presentations. Course participants should be encouraged to interact and ask questions and for this reason, the speaker should be as best equipped as possible to sufficiently address them. 
• At the same time, consider engaging expert speakers from other entities and organizations. Not only do these speakers bring their broad expertise and particular point of view to the talk, but the dissemination of their participation in a training event may attract participants – and therefore, potential prospective HPC users…– of the experts’ extended network, which might not have been available to the NCC’s outreach channels. 

Design a ~four hour program

Four hours are enough to explore a topic in sufficient depth for an effective introduction and at the same time, a brief enough time-frame so that office employees can justify following it as a half-day during their working hours. The design of the program should follow the indicative structure:

1. NCC introduction: Introduce the NCC, its scope and purpose, available services
2. Introduction to available infrastructure: Include this talk early on so that the awareness is created even among participants which will not stay during the entirety of the course. 
3. Introductory presentations to the chosen topic: These talks provide the necessary background knowledge that is required to understand the topic and follow the course. It is an attempt at “leveling” the background knowledge of the diverse participants. 
4. Include tutorials or demonstrations. The aim of the course is not merely to inform participants, but instead, to help them use the available technology. Hands-on sections in the course encourage participant engagement and help them get a first look at a tool or technology in a safe and supported environment where they can ask questions and receive feedback.

Record the material

Recorded material can be sent as follow-up to participants in order to foster continued contact with interested parties. 

Exploit digital platforms as knowledge repository

At the same time, recorded material can be made available on the NCC’s digital platforms and can be used to create a repository of knowledge for future reference and for future, “offline” prospective learners.

Find high-value leads

The above two steps, i.e. Continuous Large Scale Dissemination and Filling in Knowledge Gaps, aid in creating an audience of entities interested in HPC. However, the type of interest, as well as the type of entity, may be very varied. Parties that have contacted EuroCC@Greece directly in the past, have included academic groups, other tech and digital innovation hubs, individual SMEs, individual academics or students, etc. Each of these represents a different type of stakeholder. Moreover, each type of stakeholder has different needs and different perspectives on the depth they wish to engage in with HPC. While EuroCC@Greece’s mission is to support each type of stakeholder, it is also important to detect and keep close contact with those that show a high probability of using HPC infrastructure for PoC or even production. Those are referred to as “High-value Leads”. In order to detect such leads among all stakeholders the NCC comes in contact, the following steps are used.

Offer avenues for targeted contact

A generic contact form or e-mail address provided is sometimes not enough. Apart from the above, the Greek NCC provides a more detailed contact form which allows the user to specify their needs and the particular reason for contacting the NCC. This strategy both encourages users to come in contact with the NCC, and helps the NCC to gauge the industry needs and to do background research on the prospective customer.

Approach already interested parties

The Greek NCC has successfully leveraged the regular training series in order to extract high-value leads. Specifically, the NCC follows up with any audience member of our training series which indicates that they belong to an SME when registering for events. The reasoning is that  such member or even the organization they belong to, must have some further interest in HPC other than simply staying informed of current technology trends. The follow-up outreach aims at leveraging the situation by providing the contact with a personalized communication, so as to open up the avenue for further interaction and so as to clarify the services that are available within the NCC and offer perspective on the options that HPC has to offer.

Exploit collaborations with other entities, such as innovation hubs and business incubators. 

Innovation hubs, incubators, and related structures, are by design an accumulation of start-ups and SMEs, the prime target of the NCC. Furthermore, they are entities that are known and trusted by their members. In establishing collaborations with such entities, the NCC can leverage the existing trust and confidence that the SMEs place on the hub and be introduced to them more favorably, as a trustworthy organization that can offer them a service of value. Collaborations can be as simple as the exchange of leads or as elaborate as the creation of workshops and related material.

Establish presence in sectorial business forums.

While online presence and digital outreach is an important factor in staying relevant in a sector, the physical presence offers an added boost to credibility and stakeholder confidence. Presence can be something as simple as a booth in a relevant exhibition or something as elaborate as offering an HPC-themed workshop in a sectorial conference.

Provide effective consultations

Once high-value leads have been detected and an initial contact has been established, it is important to be effective and impactful in any following communications in order to ensure continuous, successful engagement. For this purpose, NCC Greece has employed the following practices when consulting with SMEs.

Before the consultation

• Familiarize yourself with the company beforehand
• Prepare material
• Be prepared to showcase procedures step-by-step
• If the consultation is online, opt for a teleconference platform such as Microsoft Teams or Google Meet, which have a chat feature that is persistent. 

During the consultation

• Don’t hesitate to use screen sharing
• Let the SME do most of the speaking, initially.
• Offer specific and targeted services first, depending on the company’s needs that you have identified.

After the consultation

• Follow-up with an e-mail that provides a summary of the consultation
• Include links that were exchanged during the consultation.
• Re-iterate available service options.
• Design and include a call to action which will invite the continuation of the established communication.