Digital Transformation - Q2 2023

Lord Tim Clement-Jones, Chair, APPG on AI Alainah Amer, Project Co-ordinator, Policy Connect Page 06

To transform industries for the future, the UK needs to embrace digital revolution

In a digital revolution, the ability to harness technology has become integral to business success. Organisations that embrace data-driven processes and invest in technologies will be more efficient and profitable.

The benefits of digital transformation extend to businesses of all sizes across every sector of the economy. From global corporations to SMEs, organisations are harnessing the power of technology to streamline processes, make faster decisions and deliver new products and services.

Why is digital transformation important for the UK?

According to research by AWS and Public First, boosting technology adoption and strengthening our digital skills could add £413 billion to the UK economy by 2030.

For a business, this means applying innovation to real-world problems, turning scientific breakthroughs into new products and services and making better use of data to work more efficiently. This has a clear correlation with increased productivity — a challenge that has uniquely affected UK businesses since the late 1980s, according to the University of Sheffield.

Data can enable sustainability

Data is the lifeblood of modern businesses, and digital transformation provides the tools to harness its value and unlock both productivity and profits. The opportunities of cloud and edge computing, artificial intelligence, the internet of things and 5G extend far beyond modernising administrative software or selling on an e-commerce platform, although these can be a great place to start your

digital journey. Applying AI, IoT and data analytics can help a manufacturing business optimise processes, reduce costs, accelerate time-to-market and be more sustainable.

Benefits

of digital across industries

In agriculture, digital solutions provide farmers with insights into weather patterns, soil conditions and crop health. Real-time tracking and automation are revolutionising the way goods are moved in the logistics industry, increasing safety, reducing congestion and cutting costs. There is also untapped potential in the NHS, local government and education — to deliver better and more efficient public services to local communities across the UK.

Addressing barriers to successful implementation

Securing the full economic potential of digital transformation is not without barriers, including an urgent digital skills gap and access to investment for scale-ups and SMEs. If we can solve some of these challenges, we can boost productivity and economic growth.

Accelerating the pace of digital transformation is imperative for UK competitiveness and emphasis has been placed on science and technology by the UK Government. However, we will only see the full benefits of cutting-edge science when that innovation is applied in businesses across the UK.

techUK is working with government and industry to consider how we turn this rhetoric into reality. If you are interested in how technology is transforming your industry, contact us today.

Data is the lifeblood of modern businesses.

Accelerating the pace of digital transformation is imperative for UK competitiveness and emphasis has been placed on science and technology by the UK Government.

WRITTEN BY Nick Johnson Head, UKTIN

Tele c oms takes a village: get support for your business

Leading a telecoms startup has striking similarities to raising a family. From a baby’s first steps to your first customer, there are many parallels.

It takes a village to raise a child, and any sensible business leader would tell you the same: without collaboration, taking a product to market is incredibly difficult — and almost impossible. Product companies such as Apple may design their chips, but they invariably partner when it comes to manufacturing. It’s just too hard to do everything well.

Friction in relationships damages

UK telecoms

Partnerships themselves can be tricky. Like families, everyone thinks they can do what you do — and naturally, this can cause friction in relationships: every link in the chain is fraught with the danger that the chain will be remade without you in it.

Delivering telecom innovation is a huge task. The sector is known for being complex; and customers, understandably, only expect the best. Indeed, the need for organisations to embrace advanced connectivity and digital solutions has never been greater — to operate more efficiently, deliver more effective services, become more agile, reduce risk, ensure worker safety and manage energy consumption.

When partnerships misfire in the world of telecoms, everyone suffers: an unstable or fractious supply chain can throttle the extent to which organisations can realise their digital transformation ambitions.

How to transform your UK telecoms business

Thankfully, the UK Telecoms Innovation Network is here to help. Publicly launched in April 2023, we aim to support an effective pipeline of innovation and capability. We’re bringing together the whole of the UK telecoms sector in a way that hasn’t been done before — enabling new partnerships, helping to smooth frictions and ensuring companies can access funds to conduct research and develop new solutions.

We believe a thriving telecoms ecosystem will put UK organisations in the strongest position to embrace the power of digital, benefiting our economy and our society.

We need to expand tech talent if we want the UK economy to thrive

According to a report from the recruitment agency Hays, almost 95% of employers looking for tech talent struggled to find staff last year. That’s up from 89% the previous year.

BY

We are all increasingly reliant on the digital world, whether for work, play or accessing services such as healthcare or bank accounts. Since the Covid-19 pandemic, the digital transformation of our world has sped up — and led to massive growth in demand for experts in specialist IT roles such as software development, data analysis, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity. However, the digital skills gap is considerable and must be bridged if society and the collective UK economy are to thrive.

Barriers to tech talent access

A digital divide further complicates the shortage of tech talent in the UK. According to the Lloyds Bank Consumer Digital Index 2022, 99% of UK citizens are now online, but 14 million people (27% of the population) still have the ‘lowest digital capability.’ The report says they will likely ‘struggle to interact with online services and are at risk of being left behind and left out from society.’

Most people will experience the impact of digitisation over the next few years, and we need to address the systemic social inequalities in the UK today. We also need to prioritise digital solutions that increase the competitiveness of UK businesses to boost productivity and performance, with greater use of data to predict business outcomes. To do that, we need more competent, ethical, accountable and inclusive IT professionals.

Opportunities to gain and access digital skills

The government has increased digital skills training through schemes such as coding boot camps and reforms to lifelong learning. Computer science is the fastest growing subject at A Level and has seen a surge in undergraduate applications. Businesses are also upskilling their workers — as an end-pointassessor for digital apprenticeships, we have seen a rise in candidates coming through us at the Chartered Institute for IT.

However, more needs to be done so that everyone has the digital skills they — and the economy — need. The BCS mission to make IT good for society is more relevant now than ever.

WRITTEN

Rashik Parmar CEO, BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT

We’re bringing together the whole of the UK telecoms sector in a way that hasn’t been done before.

Learn more about the network, explore key trends in telecoms and navigate the sector via our Supplier Directory at uktin.net

Most people will experience the impact of digitisation over the next few years.

Patients can find the best doctor that can meet their needs online

By using advanced screening methods, finding the ‘perfect match’ is now possible for patients and doctors — saving time along the way.

Finding an expert based on your medical needs is now made easier. Patients can consult the best doctor for them without leaving the comfort of their homes. Mar Fuentes, UK Sales Director at Top Doctors, explains: “What’s different at Top Doctors is everything we do is based on quality. We want to optimise the patient journey and patient experience.”

WRITTEN BY Mar Fuentes

UK Sales Director, Top Doctors

WRITTEN BY James Martin

Finding the best doctor for each patient’s needs

The healthcare company has identified, audited, and selected 3,834 leading specialists, clinics, psychologists and dentists in the UK.

“Health providers need to be screened in order to distinguish who is the best consultant or the best hospital for each patient. We then give this information to the patient,” explains Fuentes.

“The average patient in the UK needs to consult 2.5 doctors before finding the right one. According to our data, 94% of our patients say they found the right doctor — and the correct diagnosis — in the first appointment.” In the past year, 31,000 unique patient appointments in the UK have been booked using the online platform.

A selection of only the best doctors in their speciality

The rigorous selection process means only one in five doctors is selected. They select the best clinics or specialists in each medical speciality by using a nomination process by other specialists. Their careers are thoroughly audited, before being presented to a panel of clinical leaders. They then face a gruelling interview.

“On the one hand, we have the patient who has a particular need for a hyper-expert to give them treatment optimisation. But we also have very specialised doctors who want to be put in touch with the correct patients,” explains Fuentes. “For example, a knee surgeon isn’t looking to treat a broken leg.

“The doctor reduces the number of patients they cannot help because they are outside their expertise and increases the time spent with a patient. The match optimisation is therefore win-win. It also benefits insurers because when you get care right early on, patients are less likely to need a second surgery and are less likely to get complications from delay in treatment.”

Artificial intelligence narrows down the best doctors

The secret to creating the perfect matches lies in the use of specialist artificial intelligence: “Patients can struggle to get objective data on doctors because, ultimately, there is not one authoritative source,” says Fuentes.

“We use artificial intelligence to help patients screen the doctors. We gather information on the internet and, using AI, can measure if it is coming from a reliable source. Our AI is programmed to try and think for itself. It collects data from doctors’ websites, LinkedIn, hospitals, BUPA and journal entries to assess their level of expertise. In the end, we can accurately tell patients they are a leading expert in a particular area.”

Doctors moving to customer-centric service

Before Covid-19, doctors were only focused on the medical care, giving less importance to the other steps of the patient journey. “For example, a lot of doctors didn’t like e-consultations. However, this was demanded by the patient. In the end, doctors implemented it because they had to.”

Now, doctors increasingly understand that they need to grow in the digital era. With the internet and technology, patients have easy access to more information — and they can get it quicker.

“If you lived in a small village, you might have struggled to find a provider. Now, you can get information beyond your locality. Our survey tells us 80% of our patients would travel for care. Our overriding message is that the health system needs to produce value-based healthcare, and it’s only right that patients’ expectations are met,” concludes Fuentes.

WRITTEN BY Jos Creese Associate Director, Socitm

Digital transformation usually means access, automation and new technologies such as AI — but what about the user? Where do people fit in this evolution?

Say digital transformation, and you might think ‘self-service access,’ ‘automation’ or using new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) or the Internet of Things (IoT). Whether it’s the public or private sector, there’s often a focus on driving internal productivity and increasing digital inclusion by improving customer access using smartphones.

All this is important, but it is too narrow a concept and missing the real point of digital transformation. It also creates ‘blind spots’ and uncontrolled business risks.

‘Digital’ is fundamentally about people, not ‘IT’ We are beginning to see changes in the way digital planning is being undertaken, but it is often too hard in practice because it requires cross-boundary integration. This challenges budget holders, traditional lines of responsibility, ‘vertical’ policy development and a desire for centralisation.

Today, we can use digital data analytics to demonstrate the interconnectedness of many environmental, social and economic challenges that cause major headaches for politicians in decision-making — but only with a new construct in power bases.

For example, how investment in environmental improvements can benefit health and wellbeing and business

opportunities. It can show where investment in social care would deliver much greater value in hospital services and the UK workforce. It can also support moving from our traditional Victorian hospital models to ‘virtual’ hospitals that interconnect with a whole variety of social, employment and educational support services.

Focusing on the human aspects of digitalisation

In most organisations, business cases for digital investment tend to be constructed on a narrow vertical hierarchy of measurable benefits — such as the cost/benefits that a new system could bring.

A limiting focus on short-term and narrow benefits disguises both risk and opportunity, underestimating value or missing cross-service cost benefits. We need to be better at constructing proposals with tangible and intangible benefits that cross traditional boundaries.

A joined-up government is not a new concept but remains elusive. Even within central government, it is hard to join basic things such as corporate services across departmental boundaries — let alone unite resources, policies and digital investments all focused on the special circumstances of regional populations. A stronger focus on the human aspects of digitalisation is where the real value can be found — and the risks contained.

Ada offers students the opportunity to learn relevant digital skills to pursue their dream job in tech.

Why no digital transformation will be successful without putting people first

Ethical AI is guided by regulation, delivers innovation and fosters growth

Daily, we are hit with news on the advancements of AI; where it might lead; the benefits and risks. As these discussions become more regular, policymakers must adapt policies to reflect these nuances and introduce measures which support an ethical AI future.

Artificial intelligence (AI) provides opportunities to improve lives, such as through faster cancer diagnosis and treatment. It also helps us tackle global challenges like the climate emergency. However, it also brings about real risks to people’s lives. For example, through deepened discrimination towards marginalised individuals and infringement of human rights when facial recognition used in policing has a built-in bias. To mitigate risks and enable an environment where AI technologies can flourish, strong government regulation is essential.

Ethical AI through government developments

The UK is potentially on a path to becoming a catalyst for AI innovation. With the release of the AI White Paper in March 2023, the Government has introduced proposals for AI governance that are intended to drive growth, increase public trust in AI and position the UK as a global leader in AI. However, the Government’s light-touch approach to regulation presents a barrier to achieving this ambition. No one could argue with the principles set out in the White Paper, but what do they mean in practice for an IT professional or AI startup? The application of these principles relies on voluntary efforts by everyone concerned and ignores the issue of certain sectors lacking a regulator, or those sectors which have multiple regulators, making it difficult to coordinate.

Regulation that promotes trust and enables innovation

The gaps in the framework highlight the need to fine-tune the regulatory framework to one which provides certainty to businesses and provides citizens with trust and clear lines of accountability.

To unlock the true potential of AI through regulation, any central support function must have statutory footing. This is why The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Data Analytics, supported by Policy Connect, will publish a report in June, setting out a practical set of proposals for regulation and governance needed to encourage investment in innovation, manage risk, promote cross-jurisdictional alignment and build public trust. If regulation progress can keep up with AI advancements, then we can all enjoy a future with ethical AI.

WRITTEN BY Alainah Amer Project Co-ordinator, Policy Connect

WRITTEN BY Lord Tim Clement-Jones Vice-chair, APPG on Data Analytics

To mitigate risks and enable an environment where AI technologies can flourish, strong government regulation is essential.

The UK is potentially on a path to becoming a catalyst for AI innovation.

The Government has increased digital skills training through schemes such as coding boot camps and reforms to lifelong learning.

~Rashik Parmar CEO, BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT