Digital Strada Founder Joins Software NI Working Group: Sector Futures - Shaping the Future of Northern Ireland's Tech Sector

✨ Exciting news from the heart of Belfast's tech scene! As the Founder of Digital Strada, I had the privilege of attending the Software NI Working Group at Allstate Northern Ireland. Our focus? The crucial Sector Futures (Economic and Societal Impact) initiative, which is set to shape the future of Northern Ireland's software industry.

You can Connect with us with us on Software NI Directory: https://softwareni.glueup.com/my/memberships/1978998/

✨ The event was part of Software NI's ambitious "50 and Five by 35" strategic vision, launched earlier this year. This forward-thinking approach aims to drive our industry forward through dedicated Working Groups, each tackling key areas of development.

Software NI's mission 💻

🛠️ At the core of Software NI's mission is a three-point advocacy manifesto. First, they're pushing for dedicated focus on the software industry across all relevant economic policies through a cross-departmental government forum. Second, they're advocating for closer cooperation between education and industry to develop our software workforce from an early age. Finally, they're calling for robust investment and entrepreneurial support to fuel growth for software companies in Northern Ireland.

Sector Futures Working Group ✨

🚀 The Sector Futures Working Group, which I'm now proud to be a part of, is one of four key groups established. Alongside Education, Skills, and Sales and Scale, we're tasked with establishing and maintaining strategic insights for our specific focus area. 

✨ Our responsibilities include assessing the current status of the sector, identifying gaps, challenges, and opportunities, and proposing potential routes for improvement. We'll be engaging with stakeholders across industry, academia, education, government, and community to ensure a comprehensive approach.

✨ What's particularly exciting is the collaborative nature of this initiative. Each Working Group has two Board Sponsors who support the Group Leader in managing and articulating our key areas. This structure ensures a strong connection between the working groups and the Software NI Board.

🎯 As a Working Group member, I'm looking forward to the benefits this role brings. We'll have access to a supportive and professional industry-focused Board, an expanded professional network, and opportunities for personal development. It's a chance to increase our professional profiles while making a real impact on the software industry in Northern Ireland.

Advancing Digital Twin Technology 🚀

Digital Strada's expertise in creating immersive, 4K-resolution, photo-realistic 3D digital twins for hotels, restaurants, venues, and various other building types aligns perfectly with the region's focus on digital innovation. ?

Our technology has the potential to contribute significantly to the UK Digital Twin Centre recently announced for Belfast, which aims to revolutionize how industries develop products, services, and systems across the UK.

About Software NI 💻

Software NI was established in 2022 by a group of independent companies as the representative body for software engineering companies in Northern Ireland. 

Founding member companies have underwritten the organisation for its first three years of operation as it works towards an independent, fully sustainable industry funded model. The founding member companies are:

• Allstate Northern Ireland
• GCD Technologies
• Instil
• Kainos
• Liberty IT
• Version 1

As a not-for-profit organisation, we exist to champion the NI software sector which contributes £1.7 billion annually and employs 23,000 people across approximately 2,200 businesses. We work with key decision makers to create the best conditions for people and companies in the sector. This includes the areas of Education, Skills, Sales and the future of the sector itself.

Vision  

Our 50 and 5 by 35 vision is to double the Software job footprint in NI to 50,000 jobs by 2035, at which point we estimate the software industry will contribute around £5 billion in Gross Value Added to our local economy.

Mission Statement:

“We are the voice of the software industry in Northern Ireland. We exist to lobby and support strategy and policy development to ensure that Northern Ireland becomes the world leading region for innovative software businesses leading to a sustainable and prosperous economic future.”

Looking Ahead 🔮

We are excited about the opportunities that lie ahead as we integrate into the Software NI community. ?

Our team is eager to collaborate with fellow members, share our expertise, and contribute to the growth of Northern Ireland's software sector. ?

By joining forces with Software NI, Digital Strada is not just expanding its network; we are actively participating in shaping the future of technology in Northern Ireland. ?

We look forward to this new chapter and the innovative solutions we will create together. ?

💡 See our Digital Twins portfolio and Contact us for a new project.

✨ Help your customers to Experience Immersive Communication with a Digital Twin for your hotel, resort, restaurant, museum, factory, real estate project or space.

☎️ Leave a comment with your business and let’s connect to deliver a 3D Digital Twin Solution for your Facility Managemnt Team.