Focusing on digital disruption and transformation in the Middle East, the latest Strathclyde Dialogue was held at In5 Innovation Centre in Dubai Knowledge Park and attracted an audience of Strathclyde Executive MBA students and alumni along with members of the wider business community.
With three guest speakers representing three key industries for the region - construction, health, and banking - the dialogue highlighted three different industry perspectives on the drivers and the impact of disruptive innovations on their sectors and the ways in which they are being transformed in terms of business models processes, and leadership.
Resident academic Dr Katerina Nicolopoulou, Senior Lecturer, Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship, and host of The Strathclyde Dialogues opened the evening by outlining the theme and setting key questions before inviting each of the three guest speakers to present their unique angle on the topic.
The first speaker, Nic Jacobs, Regional Director for Business Systems Lead at the integrated project and programme management consultancy, Faithful+Gould, outlined how the leading edge technology that his firm employs is revolutionising the planning and project management of largescale construction projects in the region.
The second speaker, Sam Amory, CEO & Founder of Alpha Systems Group and General Manager ME of Orion Health, outlined the disruptive changes taking place in the healthcare industry on both a global and local level and excited the audience with news of the introduction of Alpha Systems' smart Consult Stations at hospitals in the UAE.
The last speaker, Neeraj Gandhi, VP and Product Head for Retail Liabilities and Transaction Banking at Emirates NBD, took the audience through the bank's digital transformation journey over recent years and discussed the impact of FinTech on retail banking in the region.
Following the presentations, the speakers formed a panel and engaged in an extended Q&A with the audience that picked up on many of the key points raised earlier in the evening.
Reflecting after the event, Dr Katerina Nicolopoulou commented, "It was a real pleasure hosting such brilliant panel speakers from the sectors of Construction, Healthcare, and Banking. Our audience had a rich interaction with the panel and really benefitted from the most contemporary conversations and examples that the speakers shared from their own companies and industries. A truly informative session."
The Strathclyde Dialogues series, now in its seventh year, brings together panels of experts who, by exchanging views and perspectives, promote the sharing of knowledge in various fields of contemporary interest globally, and with particular application to the UAE. The next event will be in Abu Dhabi later in the April semester.