Safety, strategy, success: Going hybrid
This year’s Digital Government 2021 hybrid event, being held in the Europa Hotel, Belfast on 6 October marks a significant change in approach to conferencing from even a few short months ago.
The capability and limitations of digital have never been as clear as we emerge from the global pandemic and this year’s conference will serve to showcase how the public health crisis has propelled digital adaptation in the public and private sectors, as well as amongst citizens.
In April 2020, agendaNi, host of the long-standing conference, a critical event for a range of stakeholders offering and gaining insight into the Government’s objectives for digital transformation was, like many others, forced to adapt its approach to delivering conferences.
Digital was critical to a new approach and ensured an almost seamless transition to bring global speakers and delegates from physical events to an online platform. In fact, an online-only approach served to offer many opportunities, broadening the accessibility for key speakers, enabling flexibility for delegates and critically, ensuring that the organisation played its part in keeping our colleagues safe.
However, as restrictions eased, agendaNi listened to colleagues and partners about the value of in-person conferencing and networking. In moving to a hybrid approach, agendaNi is ensuring a best-of-both worlds approach, offering delegates a choice of physical or digital attendance.
Having successfully piloted a number of events in this format already, the Digital Government 2021 conference will follow three key steps prioritised by agendaNi:
- safety: With Covid-19 still very much a part of our daily lives, attendee safety will remain our highest priority with all the necessary social distancing and hygiene measures in place for the physical event, while also offering a high-quality digital option for those who wish to attend online.
- strategy: Using our long-standing expertise in conference organisation, we have carefully planned the approach to ensure delegates and speakers get maximum value from which ever format they wish to attend.
- success: Enabling that all in attendance have a valuable, enjoyable and safe experience.
Digital Government 2021 is an event not to be missed with key stakeholders outlining the pandemic-driven responsiveness, resilience and agility of public service organisations. The conference will feature a range of expert speakers who will talk about their digital transformation journey and look ahead to what’s next as we look to the post-Covid recovery.
Key speakers include NICS Enterprise Shared Services, Director of Digital Shared Services, Ignatius O’Doherty on the future of digital public services post Covid-19; Claire McGuckin, Director of the Covid-19 Response Team, HM Revenue & Customs talking about the rapid design and building of the Job Retention Scheme; Department of Justice Permanent Secretary, Peter May discussing the Digital Justice Strategy 2020-2025 and the Department of Health’s Chief Digital Officer, Dan West. The full programme can be viewed here.
The event will be of interest to senior managers and decision-makers working across Northern Ireland’s public and private sectors. Not just for CIOs, it is also for those within organisations in policy-making and service delivery roles.
Key themes covered in the conference, which is sponsored by Version 1, AWS Public Sector and Expleo include:
- Accelerating the digitalisation of public services;
- Putting digital at the heart of our economic recovery;
- Responding to the pandemic: Digital strategy for resilient organisations;
- Citizen engagement – making government accessible;
- Collaboration as part of the Covid-19 response;
- Digital transformation for resilience and better healthcare;
- The future of work: Supporting hybrid working;
- Cyber security in the health sector;
- Better data for better services;
- Improving the user experience;
- eLearning: A new way of working;
- Emerging technologies and IoT;
- Embracing Robotics and AI in the public sector: Challenges and opportunities;
- Smarter government, driven by digital;
- Digital inclusion: Technology to empower citizens;
- Best practice case studies in digital delivery from outside Northern Ireland.
We look forward to welcoming delegates to the Europa Hotel for the full conference and networking experience. Your safety will remain our highest priority with all the necessary social distancing and hygiene measures in place. If you can’t join us in person, delegates can watch the event from the comfort of their own home or office. Virtual attendance will be easily facilitated by our online conference platform and dedicated technical team. We will follow Government guidance and keep you updated with any changes to the event. Tickets will be transferable if the conference has to move fully online. The Europa Hotel meets the Covid-19 industry standard We’re Good to Go. To read more about the hotel’s peace of mind policy please visit www.hastingshotels.com/peaceofmind.
