Fujitsu held its world tour event in 25 countries where they showcased how they are collaborating to bring digital solutions into industries and to educational establishments. The event was a chance to see real-life examples of this work.

We were invited to attend the London event and came away inspired by the stories we heard and wanted to highlight some of the things we learnt.

The event began with a keynote introduction by BBC reporter Steph McGovern who focussed on the challenges of delivering digital transformations. There are many industries that are being disrupted. Uber and Airbnb were used as examples. It was said that companies who ‘embrace industry disruptors will succeed’. So companies are encouraged to learn from disruptors in their markets to ensure they stay relevant for the future.

We’re in the fourth industrial revolution and the pace of change is rapid.

Joseph Reger, a technology thought-leader and the CTO at Fujitsu, continued the opening keynote by talking about advances in technology and problems that are currently hard to solve but possible to solve in the future.

All things digital was the main focus of the day but so was the relationship with technology, education, diversity and inclusion.

Diversity presents an opportunity. In fact, inclusive teams come up with better solutions to innovation.

“With diversity comes opportunity”

“When it comes to inclusion then technology is the enabler”

– Ash Merchant, Director of Education at Fujitsu

When you consider that 83% of people acquire their disability whilst in work, then being an inclusive employer is not just about recruiting from a diverse pool. It’s about supporting existing employees too.

It was great to hear from New College Worcester, South Devon College and North East Futures UTC, all of which gave examples of young people with disabilities making a real contribution, overcoming disadvantages with the support of digital solutions from Fujitsu.

Summary

Although, the focus was around the technology its the culture and the people in an organisation that will drive the change and secure successful outcomes.

At the moment there are conversations around who should be responsible for providing skills for the future job market. There is one potential problem highlighted which is the pace of change in education. If a curriculum is updated or changed then it takes between five and seven years before you see the impact. In the fourth industrial revolution, the pace of change for business is far quicker.

So in our view, there needs to be a close partnership between education and business with both parties taking responsibility to provide the skills. We commend Fujitsu for already taking this approach.