Digital update

FIDIC reaps the benefits of going digital

Even before the global pandemic hit, FIDIC had made significant investment in its digital infrastructure to ensure that it was able to organise its activites and communicate and engage effectively with key global stakeholders from across the engineering and construction industry. That investment has certainly paid off over recent years as business has become ever-more digital with technological innovations to the fore.

As well as undertaking a ramping up of its social media output, FIDIC has also invested heavily in digital platforms like the Docebo learning management system which is driving the FIDIC Academy, its Infrastructure Global news and information website, enhanced survey and analysis technology to improve its industry intelligence gathering and also a brand-new online events system powered by the Swoogo event management platform.

The Swoogo investment is enabling FIDIC to take the organisation and delivery of its events, conferences and webinars onto a whole new level, providing enhanced information and functionality for attendees and speakers alike. The Swoogo platform was used for the first time during the three Official FIDIC Contract Users’ Conferences earlier this year and it is also driving the organisation of FIDIC’s Global Infrastructure Conference taking place in Geneva in September.

The past 12 months has seen an increase in engagement across all FIDIC’s social media platforms, with all key news and announcements, including committee outputs, being shared on LinkedIn, Twitter and where appropriate Facebook. In the past year, FIDIC Credentialing has also significantly increased its social media presence on LinkedIn and Facebook, leading to many candidates applying to be certified as a result of these postings. In China, FCS (Beijing) is also making good use of the WeChat platform to promote its activities and events.

FIDIC’s Infrastructure Global platform has come on in leaps and bounds over the past year and now averages around 30 articles per month which include news, views and feature articles from across the industry, giving a powerful voice to the companies, organisations, people and personalities that work in the engineering, construction and infrastructure industry.

Using a coordinated and joined up approach across all its activities, FIDIC has seen an increase in its global website portfolio traffic of 2% with organic search being the main driver of website traffic and an increase in referrals from social media of 3%. It’s clear that the use of digital and online platforms will only increase in the new normal that the industry is entering as it navigates a post-Covid environment. The investment that FIDIC has already made in technology – and will make in the future – can only stand the organisation in good stead to take advantage of the opportunities that will come its way.

With more innovation and new digital initiatives planned which will further improve the effectiveness of FIDIC’s communications, it promises to be an exciting and interesting period ahead over the coming months and indeed years.