"We do not grow absolutely, chronologically. We grow sometimes in one dimension, and not in another.
We do not grow evenly." Anaïs Nin
Back in May this year, I wrote about The Responsible Business Transition, powered by Responsible Business Intelligence. I had just attended a presentation at 42 London by Daniel Susskind on his book “Growth: A Reckoning” where he describes a society that must not only find a path back to global growth, but also a society that must find a new path to growth that is far more aligned to resolving environmental decline, economic inequality, social inequality, health inequality, and local community decline - for current generations and all future generations that follow.
Since then, I have been thinking about what the fundamental differences are between what I should do day-to-day to support sustainable economic growth, and what I should do day-to-day, as an individual, to support sustainable personal growth.
My conclusion is there is no fundamental difference. Sustainable economic growth is the result of society's combined sustainable personal growth goals.
As Rajeeb Dey MBE said in a recent post,
"Growth isn't optional, it's essential [...] Fail fast, learn faster [...] Surround yourself with change-makers [...] Question everything"
Also as Anaïs Nin said last century,
"We do not grow absolutely, chronologically. We grow sometimes in one dimension, and not in another, unevenly. We grow partially. We are relative. We are mature in one realm, childish in another."
So I conclude sustainable personal growth is about the journey not the destination - it's about always questioning and learning, making today the best day we can - and holding the tension as not every day can be that good or that clear.
The same may well be true of sustainable economic growth. As Peter Drucker said regarding setting business growth goals, "what gets measured, gets managed", but when setting goals, we can create a premature artificial sense that we have, in some way, achieved the goals.
Personal, business and economic growth goals need to be lived, not just set. Responsible Business Intelligence supports the process of understanding how things are going today, this week, this month - not just at the end of the quarter or financial year.
Why is Responsible Business Intelligence important?
As I engage on my own personal journey of why Responsible Business Intelligence is important and why it might be important to others, I continue to seek feedback and learn from the LinkedIn community, helping me to build clarity on the goals of Responsible Business Intelligence and this newsletter.
Responsible Business Intelligence is about:
How, as Responsible Businesses, we apply Human Intelligence, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Business Intelligence (BI)
Ethics and how the use of AI and BI play out in society
How AI and technology impact sustainable economic growth
All of us behind all of the above and all of society affected by it
It's about the bubbles of technology innovation, productivity and growth we want to be part of
It's about the echo chambers of stagnant thought processes, polarisation and inertia that we want to escape
TechLift: A classic American economic story, grown in Europe, now Global
With such a broad aim for Responsible Business Intelligence, the amazing examples of technology innovation, productivity and growth are equally broad, varied and numerous. One such example that I am currently living and breathing with the 42 London team is TechLift.
42 London is a UK Charity that forms part of the global 42 Network that delivers free technology and AI reskilling to those that have the enthusiasm to build new tech careers, irrespective of background, skills or experience. Underpinned by an unrivaled peer learning pedagogy and gamified module-based assessment process, 42 London offers a unique TechLift programme which is dedicated to transforming people's lives, delivering against the increasing demand for UK digital economy jobs and tech innovation, enriching communities, and driving sustainable economic growth.
According to James Pethokoukis, Policy Analyst at the American Enterprise Institute, there are lots of good things happening in the American economy right now, including strong gains in labour productivity. According to recent IMF analysis, the surge in productivity distinguishes the recovery in the US relative to other advanced economies, most notably the euro area, where flagging productivity has been identified as a drag on growth potential.
The driving forces for this current surge in US productivity are:
High-skill and IT-intensive industries
Other industries with high levels of investment in digital technologies, not least AI
Increased labour market dynamism—workers reskilling and switching jobs more frequently. This matters because job churn can boost productivity by allowing for better matching between workers and jobs.
Last month, I wrote about Growing the UK Economy by £250bn through Tech Innovation with PwC’s Framework for Growth presenting an opportunity to grow UK GDP by almost £1tn by 2035. Of this, £230bn of growth would come from developing the skills and knowledge of the UK’s population – and of this, around £20bn per year is apportioned directly to the Information and Communication sector. The PwC Framework also presents an opportunity to grow the UK’s Technology Innovation Ecosystem by £85bn by 2035, with a further £65bn of growth from Digital Transformation.
In order for this to happen, the imperative for the UK is to re-tool its workforce with broad skills and expertise in the digital economy - 94% of the UK workforce will need to reskill by 2030. Furthermore, the upside of reskilling some of the UK's nearly 10 million unemployed is clear.
As summarised by James Pethokoukis:
“Tech progress and entrepreneurs are the key to our productivity future – a classic American economic story”
TechLift Discovery Week: Gamified, peer-to-peer, learning & innovation
Tech progress and entrepreneurs are indeed, at least in part, key to our productivity future, as demonstrated in the US, and also globally with 42 The Network.
Through a week of gamified, peer-to-peer, learning and innovation, 42 London are able to lift the tech and AI skills of all participants on a TechLift Discovery Week, as well as identifying which participants have the aptitude for further tech & AI training for a career in the UK tech industry.
As highlighted by Louise Vidal (Nobes), CEO at 42 London:
"42 London have demonstrated that, without any prior qualifications or experience in technology, >50% of all participants on a TechLift Discovery Week will have the aptitude to engage on further technology training from 42 London. Students who go on to further study with 42 London have a 100% success rate gaining a job in the Tech Sector."
With millions of new AI & tech roles required in the UK, over the coming years, 42 London are significantly de-risking the identification of tech talent in a matter of days, whilst also bringing new tech and AI skills to all TechLift Discovery Week participants.
TechLift is Responsible Business Intelligence (RBI) in action:
It's about how, as Responsible Businesses, we apply Human Intelligence (HI), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Business Intelligence (BI)
It's about discovering the diversity required to ensure the ethical use of AI and technology in society
It's about advancing AI and technology to drive sustainable economic growth
It's about investing in the people behind all of the above for the benefit of all of society
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