PROFILE
benefits for entrepreneurs. I know there
are a number of initiatives in countries
like the UK and Germany designed to
address this, and London and Berlin
seem to be increasing their profile as
great destinations for startups, which
should help.
Undoubtedly, the uncertainty around
Brexit will have an impact too – I think
that until there is clarity on the effects of
Britain’s transition, it will create anxiety for
professionals and the organisations they
work for.
The most suitable approach
to tackling the IT skills shortage
in Europe
This is definitely an issue and there are
three approaches which could help bridge
the skills gap:
testing (MVT) using a number of tools, and
ultimately through personalisation based on
content our consumers engage with.
The biggest technology challenge in
Europe currently
One of the big challenges facing Europe is
the brain-drain of talented technologists
that are lured to the US, especially to work at
the big technology companies on the West
Coast and startups across America.
On many occasions during my travels
I’ve met European talent that left Europe
because it’s much easier to raise finance
and build businesses in the United States,
which has both cultural and structural
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• Deepening the focus on STEM in
Education is critical; introducing children
to computing, robotics and software
engineering will help to inspire them to
build careers in technology in the way
that it did for me, and ensuring there
is a steady pipeline of people entering
the field
• Widening the net by increasing diversity
in IT professions is essential too; even 25
years after I started my career, I go to
too many events that are still dominated
by men from traditional middle-class
backgrounds. Bring new people into
the profession by looking beyond the
traditional university educations and the
typical demographic. Some of the
best engineers that I’ve worked with
never went to university and come
from radically different backgrounds
from myself
• Creating a visa regime that is more
conducive to people with valuable skills
being able to come to Europe will help;
all too often I hear excellent candidates
from places like China and India say
they are most interested in going to
North America because they believe
it will be more receptive to them, and
that belief has to change. Some of
this is connected to the way they are
interpreting Brexit in the UK, which I
think will have a profound impact on
the European tech landscape in the
coming years
The future of the
technology landscape
There is no doubt we will see an acceleration
of the rate at which technology developments
are coming to market and there are several
key trends that will influence this. These
include Artificial Intelligence (AI), Quantum
Computing and Blockchain.
However, I believe that the continued
evolution of cloud computing will impact
businesses the most. This technology
gives organisations small and large
the opportunity to get access to vast
computing resources and power in a cost-
effective way.
I think this will democratise IT and help
businesses unlock competitive advantage
without having to build large internal teams
or deep technology skills.
I think the tools available from providers
like Amazon Web Services and Google will
enable organisations to innovate in
a way that wasn’t previously possible –
for example, they can now start using
Machine Learning without having to
develop their own internal engineering
capabilities, thanks to the offerings
available in the cloud.
Advice to aspiring CIOs/CTOs
It’s never been more important for
technology leaders to have a deep
understanding of business so they can play
an active role in shaping their organisation
and to help drive innovation by harnessing
the power of technology.
That said, as technology offerings
continue to become more diverse and
more complex, leaders must develop a
broad understanding across the varying
technology fields – they can’t afford to
focus solely on one aspect of IT.
I would encourage them to frame their
approach to think about how technology
can solve business problems and deliver
value instead of seeking to develop deep
expertise in one specific area.
Balancing technology and business
understanding will be essential for the
technology leader of the future. n
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