To celebrate today’s UN Day on Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day (MSME Day), as one of the 12 million SMEs in Europe, Trust-IT Services proudly highlights its significant contribution to the Digital Summit 2025, held in Gdańsk, Poland, from 16–18 June.
The summit, organised by the Polish Ministry of Digital Affairs and co-funded by the European Commission, marked a pivotal moment in Europe’s digital journey, coinciding with the conclusion of Poland’s EU Council Presidency.
A High-Level Contribution to the Digital Decade
As a recognised leader among European SMEs, Trust-IT was selected to exhibit and contribute to the ever relevant dialogue on Europe's digital future. The company’s CEO, Silvana Muscella, was invited to speak on the 18th June on a high-level panel discussing the 2025 State of the Digital Decade report, which was unveiled for the first time during this session.
Trust-IT was one of a select few chosen to represent the voice of European SMEs, joining representatives from the ICT sector, public authorities, and the academic community. Piotr Kobielski, one of the organisers, explained that the priority was to provide a voice to those digital SMEs contributing their services in Europe.
Moderated by Michał Boni, former Polish Minister of Digital Affairs, and Jakub Binkowski of the Union of Entrepreneurs and Employers, the session featured influential perspectives from across the European innovation landscape.
Kamila Kloc, Director at the European Commission’s DG CNECT, presented the 2025 report's findings, setting the stage for a robust discussion on Europe’s digital sovereignty, strategic investments, and technological resilience. Nina Nourafrouz, Chief Growth Officer of Billennium, shared the stage as well, offering a private-sector perspective on scaling innovation within European ecosystems.
The Strategic Agility of SMEs
As CEO of an SME with over two decades of experience in EU-funded projects, Silvana underscored the vital and evolving role of SMEs in driving research, innovation, and digital transformation.
The following question was posed to Silvana:
“How can research and innovation (R&I) projects serve as effective instruments for SMEs or start-ups like yours to deliver the objectives of the Digital Decade, and what unique contributions can SMEs bring to the innovation ecosystem?”
In a nutshell, we see that R&I projects are crucial because they lead to impact. Impact can be translated into developing a community or in delivering a set of assets or results that are then expected to be introduced into the market. All of the projects we are involved in are from policy-driven calls and are designed to respond to specific policy needs.
No Member State can achieve the digital transition alone. In Europe, we work in R&I. Our strength lies in working together, and this is a key aspect of the Digital Decade framework. This collaborative spirit closely mirrors the way we work in R&I projects.
It is especially meaningful to highlight the city of Gdańsk – a city where "together" has always been called Solidarity. Solidarity is one of the core European values that not only underpins EU policies but also forms the backbone of Europe's security and competitiveness. The fact that SMEs work together is a great opportunity for growth.
She added that “Solidarity calls for togetherness.”
Our CEO also highlighted a model Trust-IT helped develop nearly a decade ago, through an EU funded initiative pilot to help experts and SMEs contribute to ICT standardisation. This project is still active today and is called StandICT.eu. This model remains extremely popular and guarantees that European excellence is part of the global ICT standardisation dialogue.
Silvana and Gabriela Rogowska, Communication & Dissemination Specialists at Trust-IT, who set the scene, liaised with the programme organisers on our contribution and delivered the Trust-IT Services exhibition
SMEs are key catalysts in public-private partnerships, bringing focus and meaningful contributions to policy-aligned research. This is evidenced by the €6.6 billion they have already contributed in the first three years of Horizon Europe, representing 20% of the programme’s total funding.
“Agile is a methodology in SW development and we adopt agile as do many other organisations particularly in Open Source environments,” Silvana Muscella remarked.
“Agility is also a way of positioning ourselves in a competitive scenario and the uniqueness of SMEs is particular on that. We can be laser focused on their goal because they are lean and can concentrate on our goals. R&I funds can help you be focused. The R&I funds can unlock the possibility of bringing ideas to results.”
In conclusion, Trust-IT’s message was clear: achieving the Digital Decade requires SMEs to take greater risks, act with agility, and build bold collaborations across borders and sectors.
The “2025 State of the Digital Decade 2025” Report
The “2025 State of the Digital Decade” report evaluates the EU’s progress toward its 2030 digital transformation goals. While noting advancements in areas like basic 5G coverage, the report finds that the EU is still behind schedule on deploying foundational technologies such as AI, semiconductors, and stand-alone 5G, as well as in advancing digital skills.
For SMEs, the report identifies regulatory complexity and funding fragmentation as persistent hurdles. However, it also affirms their crucial role in overcoming these challenges. The report highlights tangible progress in SME digitalisation, with their digital intensity reaching 81% in 2024 – placing them on track to meet the 2030 target of 90%.
Furthermore, Member States are dedicating 16.8% of their national roadmap budgets to enhancing SME digital intensity, signalling a strong financial commitment.
Conclusion: SMEs as Accelerators of Change
As we observe MSME Day 2025, Trust-IT celebrates the tenacity and creativity of small businesses across Europe.
The company’s presence in Gdańsk was more than symbolic. It was a declaration that SMEs are not peripheral players in Europe’s digital future: they are the innovators, the connectors, and the essential accelerators of change.
