First in new business webinar series to address growing digital skills gap (8 June)

Sam Wood
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How can the UK address its skills gap, before it is too late?

Kent Business School (KBS) will launch a free Zoom webinar series for business leaders, with expert insights from a range of disciplines discussing the leading trends at the forefront of the business world, on Tuesday 8 June (12:00 BST).

Featuring roundtable expert discussions with KBS academics, current and former students and guests from the world of enterprise, the ‘Unfinished Business’ webinar series will launch with the inaugural episode: ‘Are we Minding the Gap and Digitally Proofing the Future?’.

The UK is on the verge of a shortage of digital skills, with reports suggesting only half of employers are able to provide the necessary training for employees to bridge this gap. The number of young people studying IT subjects at GCSE has dropped 15% since 2015, yet professional networking site LinkedIn reports 150 million new technology jobs will be created in the next five years. How can the UK address this skills gap before it is too late?

Open to all and hosted by KBS student and podcast presenter Syed Mahmood, this webinar’s panel of experts includes:

  • Dr Catherine Robinson – Deputy Dean at KBS and leading researcher on the digital skills shortages in Kent
  • Dr Hirbod Assa – Senior Lecturer in Finance and Fintech at KBS
  • Lance Younger – Guest Speaker from Procure Tech
  • Lewis Squire – KBS student and CEO of Reality Rooms

Dr Robinson said: ‘Digital skills are the key to unlocking productive potential, which has never been more important as we emerge from Covid-19 and a decade of low growth.  This webinar’s insights provide food for thought on leading topics such as digital skills, addressing the shortage and where the responsibility lays. The Unfinished Business webinar series will enable academic and professional experts to discuss vitally important topics such as this, for businesses and scholars alike.’

You can register for this and future Unfinished Business webinars here.