The ways in which we do business and communicate are changing – ultrafast.
From how we send and receive information to the ways in which we service our customers is already unrecognisable from 10 years ago and the pace of change will only continue to increase.
In a survey, 86% of chamber members said digital is either very important or critical to their business. The power of digital cannot be denied yet we still have a need for in-person connection and this remains at the core of what the chamber seeks to enable.
Technology sits at the heart of the sector diversification strategy being led by Opportunity North East.
The aim is to create the right environment and eco system to encourage new digital companies, support growth of the existing company base and to look at how digital transformation can assist our ambitions in tourism, life sciences, food, drink, agriculture and energy.
Good progress is being made in providing high speed connectivity. Countesswells was the first community in Scotland to have access to 1Gbps – up to 35 times faster than the average UK download speed; over £40m is being invested in providing the infrastructure to allow nearly every home and business in the city access to replicate this and companies in the north-east can now benefit from grants of up to £3,000 to get gigabit broadband installed as part of a £2million trial taking place in four areas across the UK.
However, across the region, this remains patchy. The Scottish Affairs Select Committee met in Aberdeen taking evidence on the impact slow speeds and poor mobile coverage have on rural communities, and Scottish businesses. Reports following the session concluded poor connectivity was making it more difficult to attract people to live and work in the region and 4G signal coverage is much poorer here than in other parts of the UK.
We need to ensure this does not limit our ability to attract the next Skyscanner to locate and grow in this region and to provide all our businesses with a competitive advantage.
Of course, it’s not all about speed. It’s about having the knowledge to harness it to improve our businesses and the experience of our customers so the need to upskill businesses, with a focus on the visitor economy, has to be of equal priority.
All of this is why the chamber has, at the top of its list of policy plans, the objective of working with partners to have north-east Scotland designated as a pilot area for the roll out of full 5G coverage.
By Russell Borthwick, chief executive of Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce.