Innovatia

“ QUOTES “Every once in a while, a new technology, an old problem and a big idea turn into an innovation.” - Dean Kamen - Engineer, Inventor and Businessman “The advance of technology is based on making it fit in so that you don’t really even notice it, so it’s part of everyday life.” - Bill Gates, Co-founder of Microsoft “When you build technology it’s not just a matter of “what.” In most cases the success ends up determined by “how” you build it—which foundations you used, how simple and scalable it is.” - Tobi Lütke, founder and CEO of Shopify N ot content with being an expression of innovation itself, technology also forces us to innovate in many other areas of our lives, changing the way we live, work and play. There’s no question that technological inventions such as the internet, the personal computer and the smartphone have irrevocably changed the world, in many ways for the better. The real challenge of innovating is anticipating new problems that may arise amidst the moving pieces, and developing new solutions, rather than shying away from opportunities to innovate.

A RESILIENT DIGITAL AUSTRALIA Digital readiness is a defining characteristic of successful 21st century societies, and where we choose to invest is key. By Ken Boal

Digital readiness is defined as how well-posi- tioned a country, state or territory is to benefit from the digital economy across seven compo- nents: basic needs, human capital, business and government investment, ease of doing business, startup environment, technology adoption and technology infrastructure. Understanding our digital readiness supports decision-making in key areas where further investment or accelera- tion of capabilities may be required. Cisco released its second Australian Digital Readiness Index in 2020, providing a snapshot of Australia’s evolving digital capability at the state and territory level, and acting as a guide for where investments are needed. Australia remains among the forefront of dig- itally transformed nations, ranking 12th across the globe in terms of digital readiness (according to Cisco’s 2019 Global Digital Readiness Index). It follows Iceland and Luxembourg, and stands among Singapore, the US and European nations. Little did we know that two years later the value of those investments would be repaid many times over by providing Australia with a robust and comprehensive digital capability

that has played a critical role in our response to the COVID-19 crisis. While the pandemic has exacted a high economic and social toll, its consequences would have been much greater had Australia not already made significant in- vestments in digital readiness. “The usefulness of even the most targeted, well-developed infrastructure is limited only by the investment we make in the people who use, create and defend digital services.” For example, the deployment of high-speed national network infrastructure has meant many organisations can keep their staff both safe and productive by enabling them to work from home. That same infrastructure provides a vital connection for thousands of students who participate in remote learning and has become the backbone for remote health con- sultations, keeping many frontline responders

INNOVATIA

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INNOVATIA

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