Shackled By Technology
High-tech Leadership Skills Triangle
Strategic Leadership
People Centred
Technology Insight
High-tech Savvy
Gerard Walker, Senior Economist, Future Jobs, Skills, Work Insights
www.gerardwalker.ie
Nurturing high-tech skills.
A surprising paradox is that despite the rapid advance of new technologies, aggregate productivity growth across OECD countries has slowed over the past decade (Productivity Growth in the Digital Age, OECD, Feb 2019). Furthermore, this productivity growth is being driven by more advanced firms in a number of sectors.
In the case of Ireland, most productivity gains have been driven by large firms especially within Pharma and ICT. Meanwhile, there have been declines in productivity growth within small indigenous firms. The Irish Government is currently developing a major new policy on SMEs and entrepreneurship under Future Jobs Ireland. One of the emerging recommendations is to encourage the development of management capabilities in Irish SMEs, with a particular focus on technology skills.
Examples of how these skills may be applied are: - a hotel introducing a new reservation system - a builder utilising new eco-friendly and energy efficient materials
- a small retailer planning to engage in e-commerce - a manufacturer automating their production processes - a fresh food producer introducing just-in-time supply chain delivery
What are high-tech leadership skills?
High-tech leadership skills are a combination of the following cross-disciplinary skillsets: • Strategic Leadership skills - to lead inter-disciplinary staff, and influence stakeholders across functions.
• Business Savviness - to innovate business and operating models, delivering value to organisations.
• High-tech Savviness - to envision and exploit the innovation opportunities in high-tech trends.
• People Centred Technology Insight - to prepare the workforce for the adoption of new technology and for the design of useful consumer products and services.
17 Who are high-tech Leaders?
High-tech leaders consists of entrepreneurs, managers and professionals including leaders of business divisions, departments, and project teams. In the case of SMEs, they may be one of a small number of staff often the owner or senior manager. High-tech leaders are key to the successful execution of business strategy and ongoing organisational transformation. The high-tech leadership role lends itself to roles for women in industry.
Demand for high-tech leadership skills
There is a powerful innovative push arising from a range of converging new technolgies which is creating a demand for complementary interdisciplinary skillsets. Their transformational impact on the economy and society is significantly increasing the demand for high-tech leadership skills.
Implications for Irish education and training policy
High-tech leadership skills can be developed through blended online, on-the-job learning, and short-duration programmes. Executive and professional technical training programmes and business schools could offer module(s) to familiarise technical students with complementary management and entrepreneurship insights to improve a student’s knowledge of the adoption of technology and the opportunities attached. Other initiatives include mixing technical and non-technical students in joint-project teams. Two-way exchanges between industry will generate greater insights into the latest technological developments. These initiatives could be co- funded by Government through programmes such as Skillnet Ireland.
Key take-away A lack of technology savvy leaders who can assess and implement technological innovation relevant to their business are a key reason for low technology adoption. Increasing the high-tech leadership talent pool within Irish SMEs across all sectors can significantly increase the rate of development of a digital transformation strategy, and will drive productivity and employment growth.
Business Savvy
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