Matt Atkinson, Managing Director of FE Associates, reflects on the ETF ‘Thinking Differently, Thinking Digitally’ workshop for leaders that he led at the end of 2023. He considers the difference between developing a strategy and simply buying the latest kit, the importance of context in divining a way forward, and how well artificial intelligence is really understood. He is keen to point out that he himself is more curious explorer then digital expert.
Get ten sector leaders in the room and ask them to write down their current priorities for change, development and improvement, and it is highly likely that digital transformation, in some form or another, will appear on those lists. Digital technology is clearly on the minds of sector leaders, and everyone is talking about AI, VR, AR, XR and many other acronyms you can think of. This is all hugely exciting and the levels of investment in digital technology, largely funded through the Strategic Development Fund (SDF) and now the Local Skills Improvement Fund (LSIF), are impressive. However, do those making decisions really have the knowledge and understanding to make the right decisions and are those decisions grounded in vision and strategy?
To help sector leaders enhance their leadership confidence and capacity around digital innovation, the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) commissioned FE Associates to design and facilitate a one-day workshop, ‘Thinking Differently, Thinking Digitally’. Twenty-two individuals from across the sector joined the event, which took place at USP College’s Xtend Digital Campus on Canvey Island, Essex. It built on the work being done on the ETF’s highly popular Strategic Innovation for Skills programme and enabled delegates to spend a whole day learning from best practice and building their digital leadership capacity.
