"1 Billion young people will start work in the next decade - only 40% in jobs that now exist"
The Economist, 23 Jan 2016
Founders4Schools’ mission is to improve the life chances of students by giving them access to inspiring business leaders in their community who help them discover the skills and pathways that will be relevant when they leave education.
It is a FREE nationwide service that enables teachers to connect with leaders of successful, growing businesses to invite them to visit their schools and inspire their students.
F4Schools want all students in the UK to be well-informed about their future options, motivated to succeed and to lead enterprising lives.
Here we share their video that explains the program.
The disruptive properties and revolutionary capabilities of blockchain have become a popular theme. Touched on briefly in our previous article "Bitcoin boom or bust". It could be the most disruptive piece of technology to surface over the past few years, but what exactly is blockchain and why is it so disruptive?
The first generation Apple Watch launched into the Smartwatch Market last April with great confidence, looking to lead the way amongst other Smartwatch brands and leap forward on the technology curve. However being reliant on the iPhone (models 5s onwards) and prices starting at £299 for the 38mm model, it would see only the innovators being first to embrace it.
"Scaling-Up" - Research shows that a large proportion of economic growth comes from a relatively small number of highly productive, fast growing firms. Here we share a link to Sherry Coutu's presentation on the importance of scaling-up for the UK economy.
Delighted for the Swiftkey Founders. Here is a good piece on what Swiftkey's acquisition means for UK Tech Exits.
Microsoft is acquiring London-based SwiftKey, a predictive-keyboard app maker, for a reported USD250m, which represents a good exit for the two founders and its investors, which had pumped USD21.59m into the company to date. Powered by artificial intelligence (AI), the app fits neatly into Microsoft’s ongoing attempts to build up its mobile and productivity services, as well as its AI and language recognition capabilities. SwiftKey will continue to function as normal with Microsoft saying that it will, “explore scenarios for the integration of the core technology across the breadth of our product and services portfolio.”
Here we post Business Weekly’s article published on 13th January 2016, offering an insight to the growth of the digital economy.
Next year the consensus forecast for world growth is 2.6% and for the UK, 2.5%. We are optimistic about next year, however, there are plenty of risks to watch.
Here are our thoughts on the outlook for the UK economy in 2016:
1. Oil Prices – Lower for longer
Oil has continued to tumble throughout 2015 as Brent crude and WTI crude are down close to 40% at 11-year-lows priced at $36 and $34 respectively. Forecasts for oil prices ranging from $25 - $60 per barrel; with Iran pledging to boost exports and OPEC holding a firm stance on their supply we believe that oil has lower to go before it starts to strengthen.
This year’s theme is digital disruption. Here we build on December 2015’s research Looking Forward to 2015: Ten Themes for Technology. We will be tracking the following prominent technology themes during the course of 2016.
1. Security and Privacy – Not just for the individual
“The digital revolution is the new industrial revolution”. This exponential growth of the digital age has highlighted severe deficiencies with the protection of sensitive information and data. A recent survey by PwC, found that 90 per cent of large UK organisations had reported a cyber attack this year, up from 81 per cent a year earlier, highlighting the need for cybercrime legislation. 2016 will need a big leap in becoming a global movement to help protect individuals as well as big corporations.
Venturing forth – the push and pull of early stage valuations
Company valuation is difficult enough in public markets but for early stage companies, lack of track record and profits means that valuation rests mostly on what someone is prepared to pay. Apple’s valuation crystallises every fraction of a second during stock market hours when a trade is booked, but private company valuation crystallises about annually, when investors hand over cash to company management and become shareholders. Company value at this moment equates to funds raised divided by the percentage of the company sold to new investors. This sounds obvious but it means management needs to convince investors that the cash handed over is appropriate to the business needs and will get the business to its next, higher valuation milestone, and that will determine dilution. Our friends at Go4Venture help us “do the math”.
Recent data about gender (in)balance in the digital world shows that women make up only 4% of the engineering sector and about 10% of the VC community, while just 1 tech company out of 10 has a woman among its founders. Matha Lane Fox's hope is that "The UK can become the country with the most gendered-balanced digital sector in the world."
Martha Lane Fox has been a pioneer of digital culture and technology in the UK. She is calling for the creation of a national institution to lead an ambitious change - to make Britain brilliant at the internet.
Delta2020 supports Martha Lane Fox's petition to create DOT EVERYONE a public institution for the digital age.
Here we share a recent article written by Andrew Griffin from Oakhall Advisors that provides a valuable insight for private companies on how to pitch to potential investors.
Pitch perfect
Most pitches by private companies to potential investors fail. Bad ideas are of course the main problem, but the way companies communicate is also a barrier. Putting your pitch together in a way that actually answers investors’ questions in a structured way will help you identify if you have thought your strategy through properly.
We have a digital revolution in the UK, but lack the data and sector classification to effectively measure and exploit it. Currently its contribution is hidden away in the wider services sector, which makes up almost 80% of the UK economy. We previously explored this subject in Is the UK Missing a Trick? It's Time to Recognise 'Digital Manufacturing'.
Recently this theme has re-emerged following Sir Charlie Bean, former deputy governor of the Bank of England, arguing that the internet revolution has rendered Britain’s official statistics out of date. We thought it worthy of revisiting the topic, this time with supporting data from the Boston Consulting Group (BCG).
The UK’s digital economy is an engine of growth