Managing Opportunities - Achieving Smart Growth in a Digital Landscape

Globalization, automation, the process of reducing carbon emissions and the development of digital technology have a profound and immediate impact on the industrial sectors, jobs, profitable businesses and the way the economy and society operate and evolve. The digitization process has acquired multiple characteristics, becoming not only imperative but also universal and imminent for innovation and progress. However, Romania ranks 26th out of the 28 EU member states in the Digital Economy and Society Index for 2020. Connectivity has improved, but the available infrastructure is still insufficient of widespread to meet the rapidly growing needs in this area. In order to improve the situation, the EU has decided to redirect the funds available to support the digitalisation of its economies and societies by setting up a new funding program, called Digital Europe, for the period 2021-2027. Therefore, in the next financial period, the Romanian state has the premises for the increasing of digitalization by accessing and using specially dedicated funds. This scientific research aims to identify areas that require technological improvements, incorporating both public institutions and private entities. Following the obtained results, untapped opportunities for digitization will be analysed and proposals will be made for the extension of the technological sphere in Romania. The main hypothesis highlights the sustainability of the economy generated by the modernization of public services and the versatility of business. The present research can provide support for reforming public services and industrial sectors and is useful in supporting the adoption of legislative measures to digitally transform a state that has the necessary know-how, qualified human resources and wide availability of high and very high speed fixed broadband networks (especially in urban areas).