Fipav takes the field with Digital Signature
Thanks to the collaboration with InfoCert, Fipav digitalized the registration of athletes, coaches and managers, speeding up and streamlining processes.
FIPAV, the Italian reference for volleyball
The Italian Volleyball Federation (FIPAV) brings together clubs and sports associations based in Italy and practicing the various specialties of volleyball. The widespread territorial organization is one of the major strengths of the Federation that – with 21 Regional Committees, 67 Territorial Committees – coordinates the activity of over 4321 companies and affiliated associations and 407,896 members.
Digitising processes for a simpler and faster membership
To speed up and streamline the practices of affiliation and membership the Federation, as early as 2005, chose pioneeringly to start a path of digitization, as says Luca Eusepi, Head of Membership FIPAV: “I am proud that, among Italian sports federations, we were the first to believe that, in order to solve the many problems connected in the first place to the management of sport cards, the only solution was not only to ‘switch’ online, but to provide the Presidents of affiliated companies with the tools necessary to operate in a completely digital and legal value, starting from the subscription of electronic documents with digital signatures.
Remote Digital Signature: the easiest way to win the game
“In 2005 we chose the solution that guaranteed us the real-time activation of the signing certificate, at that time on InfoCamere smart cards. A short time later, the company sold its business unit of digital certification services to the just constituted InfoCert: Thus began the fruitful collaboration with InfoCert that still lasts with mutual satisfaction today” explains Eusepi.
Since then, all the legal representatives of the affiliated companies have digital signatures to subscribe numerous documents such as athletes, technicians and executives’ memberships, renewals, coaches’ corporate constraints, registration fees payments.
“I well remember how, before digitization, the procedures with autograph signature were not only slow but expensive in terms of staff commitment and paper expenses: every day it took an average of at least three hours and about ten people to sort the requests received by mail, prepare the response documents, sign them, bag and send registered mails. Not to mention the large amount of renewal forms to be delivered every beginning of the year…” Eusepi declares.
Over the years, FIPAV’s collaboration with InfoCert has continued under the banner of constant innovation. The traditional smart cards, which required the use of a special reader to be connected to a PC, have been replaced with the most functional Business Key: they are the practical USB signature tokens of InfoCert that – thanks to the pre-installed software GoSign – are immediately usable on the PC without further downloads and, in addition, allow with a single PIN to store all passwords access to different web services.
“The presidents of the affiliated companies benefit from quick and easy registration and membership processes: after registration on the FIPAV website, they receive personal credentials via e-mail and can immediately access the membership system – illustrates Eusepi – Once connected to the platform, they enter the data of the athlete they want to register, upload the scan of his medical certificate and set the payment of the registration fee. After credit card payment the procedure ends with their signature, affixed through a simple PIN. That’s it!” .
A membership practically in real time, as evidenced by the facts: “It happened that a company wanted to line up a new athlete for a match, adding him to the team just two hours before the start of the match. And they did it easily! The request and the subsequent operation of online membership are completed in few minutes. A truly excellent quality service“.
Over the last period, the Business Key is gradually being replaced with Digital Remote Signatures, also by InfoCert. With them there will be no need for any physical device: the signatures can be affixed using the free GoSign application – from PC, tablet or smartphone – and typing the OTP sent to the associated phone number.
“We will provide the Presidents with the new remote digital signature as the certificates of the current Business Key will reach a natural expiry date – confirms Eusepi – We have already provided to give all the provisions to the RAO (ie the so-called Registration Authority Officers, authorized by InfoCert to recognize the users to be registered) already present on the field. The signature service will be even safer and, above all, convenient, as it will be accessible wherever you are!”
