services for the IT sector in Santa Catarina
The Santa Catarina Association of Technology Companies (ACATE) closes 2013 with an increase in the number of members, new services and the consolidation of the Vertical Business model. Created in 2009, the association's verticals gained two new groups this year, in the areas of Cloud Computing and manufacturing🇧🇷 A survey carried out by the entity with 55 vertical companies recorded growth of 32.9% in revenue (which added up to R$ 542.9 million) in 2012 compared to the previous year. The result is above the average for the IT sector in Santa Catarina, which grows 20% a year. Verticals also recorded growth of 40% in the number of employees and 23% in private investment in research, development and innovation (RD&I).
For the president of ACATE, Guilherme Bernard, the model also contributed to the increase in the number of associates. “We are closing the year with more than 370 companies, which reflects the strength of the technology sector and also the importance of having an entity that not only represents, but also supports the development and synergy between companies”. In addition to the creation of two new groups, the entity launched at the end of the year the online portfolio of products and services offered by companies linked to Verticals, to assist in the search for IT solutions and by companies in the sector in Santa Catarina, in a project made possible through the Foundation for Research and Innovation in the State of Santa Catarina (FAPESC).
In 2013, the entity also created the Market Board, with the aim of supporting management and strengthening the relationship with associates. Along with the Board of Directors, the Deliberative Council was elected to assist in decision-making and provide greater transparency and representativeness to the Association's actions. Another achievement for the sector was the launch of the TecPrevi, a pension plan aimed at technology companies, which brings benefits to both the employer and the employee, reducing turnover, offering tax incentives, in addition to establishing a good image with the public and promoting the appreciation of the workforce.
Support for courses and virtual incubation – The strengthening of the technology sector in Santa Catarina was also due to the actions of the incubator managed by ACATE with the support of Sebrae, MIDI Tecnológico. Seven nascent companies were selected to join the incubator through the virtual modality and another five were graduated, totaling 71. Thus, MIDI ends 2013 with 21 incubated companies, 15 of which are virtual and six are resident. In addition, the incubator's “Program to strengthen the creative economy in ICT in Santa Catarina” was approved in the 1st Call for Fostering Incubators for Creative Economy Enterprises, by the Ministry of Culture (MinC).
With the support of the State Secretariat for Sustainable Economic Development of Santa Catarina (SDS) and Fapesc, ACATE offered its members management courses at Geração TEC, to train professionals in complementary areas in the management of technology-based businesses. The Association also established a partnership with the Academia Brasileira de Coaching (Abracoaching), for the training course in Professional Coaching with International Certification by the Behavioral Coaching Institute (BCI), held in Florianopolis is on blumenau🇧🇷 To expand the qualification of software development companies, ACATE held courses in Introduction to MPS.BR, evaluated three groups with 11 companies in the program and already has a new group formed for evaluation.
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