Presentation of the SPOT system - Slovenian Business Point

The SPOT system combines services on four levels:

• Slovenian Business Point portal,
• SPOT Registration,
• SPOT Consulting,
• SPOT Global,

and offers the following services:

• electronic services,
• business consulting services,
• business information and training services; and
• an enriched range of services in the field of internationalization and foreign investment.

The first level of the SPOT system and brand, Slovenian Business Point, is represented by the Slovenian Business Point portal.

The Slovenian Business Point portal is a national business portal and represents the official website of the SPOT system. It provides potential and existing entrepreneurs and other business entities with information on the entire SPOT system, on the conditions for doing business and enables electronic business with the state.

The Slovenian Business Point portal is a key portal for entrepreneurs and business entities and horizontally connects various institutions and competent bodies with which we build services for business entities. The goals of the portal are aimed at ensuring simple, fast and safe business of entrepreneurs and business entities with the state.

The second level of the SPOT system is represented by physical »registration« points to support business entities. These are points where the user, with the help of an officer, performs procedures within the Slovenian Business Point portal. Officers provide assistance with company registration, deletion, status changes, and other state-related procedures.

All services offered by SPOT Registration points are free of charge. SPOT Registration Point services are provided at:

• AJPES branches,
• Administrative Units,
• Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia (GZS),
• Chamber of Craft and Entrepreneurship of Slovenia (OZS) and
• other chambers that have the status of a SPOT Registration point.

The third level of the SPOT system is represented by 12 regional points of SPOT Consulting, which within the public agency SPIRIT Slovenia provide comprehensive free support services to potential entrepreneurs and companies in all phases of development.

SPOT Consulting points offer a wide range of content services that help potential entrepreneurs to increase competitiveness in the market. Regionally organized SPOT Consulting points, in addition to implementing registration, termination and status change procedures, offer a wide range of services:

• informing, in the sense of regular and up-to-date informing of clients about activities, tenders and events in the field of entrepreneurship promotion;
• trainings and workshops aimed at strengthening the knowledge, skills and competencies of participants in areas related to the promotion of entrepreneurial culture;
• basic consulting to clients in areas ranging from the preparation of business plans, marketing and business management, as well as to the internationalization of companies and government incentives, where such consulting can take place either by phone or e-mail, mostly by visiting the client at SPOT regions;
• animating and connecting the regional environment in order to create closer cooperation between all actors in the region, including the organization of cross-border integration events with related institutions in neighboring countries and enterpreteurs;
• exchange of good practices and opening of new business opportunities within Slovenia, as well as cross-border for potential entrepreneurs as for small and medium-sized enterprises.
• co-creation of a support environment for business entities, which includes reporting on perceived administrative barriers by consultants, meeting of the support environment in the region and presentation of products of regional companies at one exhibition site in the region.

SPOT Consulting points are co-financed with the help of the European Regional Development Fund, the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology and SPIRIT Slovenia, public agency.

The fourth level of the SPOT system is the national point SPOT - SPIRIT Slovenia, a public agency that provides an enriched range of services in the field of internationalization and foreign investment, intended primarily for exporting companies and investors.

The basic goal is the establishment and operation of the national Slovenian business point (SPOT Global) within Spirit Slovenia, a public agency that offers more comprehensive support to business entities and includes a 'One stop shop' system for domestic exporters and foreign investors, as defined by the Operational Program for implementation of European cohesion policy for the 2014-2020 programming period.

The aim is to increase the coordination and quality of support environment measures, improve the transparency of support environment services and communication to users, and enrich existing and introduce new programs to promote entrepreneurship, foreign investment, internationalization, and technological development. This will increase the efficiency of the support environment, encourage the creation and operation of companies, and increase the international competitiveness of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The general objectives are:

• Establishment of an information portal for business entities, which will gather information on support environment services in one place;
• Encourage the coordinated operation of support institutions;
• Design and implementation of new support services for exporters and investors;
• Building the visibility of the SPOT system and positioning SPIRIT Slovenia as a national SPOT point.

The specific objectives are:

• Improve the accessibility and quality of information to target user groups;
• Provide a better overview of support activities for busines entities;
• Achieve a greater scope and quality of support measures for target groups of users;
• Achieve a higher level of competences of SMEs in the field of international business;
• Achieve efficiency and quality of regional SPOT points.