Digital initiative has the ‘potential to create jobs’

Digital Surge, a £1million Digital Programme for businesses across Northern Ireland has officially launched with registrations now open for the first in the series of workshops.

Formerly known as The Digital Transformation Programme, Digital Surge is designed to support over 1000 businesses across Northern Ireland to improve their digital journeys and is being led by Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council with Mid and East Antrim Borough Council proud to be a key partner of this initiative.

The Programme is part funded by Invest Northern Ireland, the European Regional Development Fund under the Investment for Growth & Jobs Northern Ireland (2014-2020) Programme and all 11 Councils.

The Programme will be delivered by a consortium of Northern Ireland businesses.

Invest NI has offered £860,000 of support towards the Programme with councils contributing £216,000.

Gillian Colan-O’Leary, consortium project lead, explained: “We are really looking forward to helping small businesses across Northern Ireland, embark on their digital transformation journey.

“Businesses which recognise the role advanced transformative technology can play, at a strategic level, will certainly increase their growth potential, and we will provide the support they need to discover how to fundamentally change how they operate and deliver value.”

In an ever changing world, digital is at the forefront of all business and with many new technologies coming online, it can be a daunting world for any business.

Technological breakthroughs in areas from artificial intelligence to robotics are now shaping a Fourth Industrial Revolution, with the power to reshape almost every sector in every country.

The programme will assist businesses to ‘demystify’ the various enabling digital technologies/tools and inspire ‘active ideation’ through workshops, mentoring, masterclasses and network cluster events for small and medium sized businesses throughout Northern Ireland.

Businesses completing the programme will come away with an Innovation Roadmap and Digital Acceleration Plan and will be onward routed to more intensive supports in the ‘digital innovation ecosystem’.

The advanced digital technology areas being covered by this programme include:

Smart technologies / smart environments and the Internet of Things (IoT)

Process automation via robotics / cobotics

Big-data and analytics

Immersive technologies (AR/VR/MR/Haptics)

Artificial intelligence and machine learning

Distributed ledger systems / blockchain technologies

Jacqui Dixon chief executive of Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council on behalf of the 11 Council consortium, continued: “This Northern Ireland wide programme will support our businesses in the new reality of trading in a CovidD-19 recovery context.

“By shifting and pivoting their business models via adoption of advanced digital tools they will be able to drive forward the digital agenda for growth with the potential to create and sustain jobs.”

Mayor Councillor William McCaughey said: “This is an exciting programme and I very much welcome the opportunities it will bring to local businesses across Mid and East Antrim.

“Businesses completing the programme will receive the necessary tools to help drive forward their business in a digital manner and I would encourage you to register your interest for this programme.”

To express an interest in the programme and register for the workshops please visit antrimandnewtownabbey.gov.uk/digitalsurg

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