The approaches and attitudes of the last century, which we were all part of, have led us to a point of crisis.. As I studied and researched systems thinking, and psychological understanding and analysed great stories of achievement I found evidence of how shared purpose and joined-up, holistic approaches yield better, maybe exquisite, outcomes on every level; individual, team, company, society, eco-system and planet.. At this point in human history I will argue that we have all the technology or technological development capability we need to solve our problems, what we lack is a scale of vision and connected approaches.
A fundamental issue is the lack of integration across key areas..This includes a disconnect between university education and industry needs (e.g., scientists understanding automation and vice versa), and a 'peculiar' investment environment in the UK where there's a significant gap in funding to take intellectual ideas to an investible stage.. 3.
Regional Silos and 'Primate City' Structure Impede Network Building:.Although the strategy discusses focusing on industrial clusters, there's a concern that these clusters might become siloed and compete rather than forming a connected network..The UK's 'primate city' structure, where investment gravitates towards London, also complicates the effective distribution of support and infrastructure for these regional hubs.. 4.
Addressing the Productivity Malaise Requires a Shift in Societal Mindset:.The UK suffers from a widely recognised lack of productivity, and a low uptake of AI and robotics in SMEs..
There's a perceived 'malaise' where society needs to reappraise its relationship with work and effort relative to desired per capita income, moving beyond merely changing environmental conditions to actively fostering growth.. 5.
Compelling Vision and Clear Measures are Needed to Engage and Drive Change:.At the moment, Victoria is going in one direction.
New South Wales is going in another.Victoria’s permanent modular skill building program increased the number of offsite fabricators from five to 16 in four years and they recently released their offsite construction guidelines.
New South Wales has done a comprehensive study over the last two years leading with their Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DfMA) guidelines for schools that go beyond volumetric towards a platform-based approach.In Queensland, there’s been a recent expression of interest released to find out how they can utilise MMC to build more affordable and social housing.. States are talking about DfMA and MMC but taking different approaches and not necessarily sharing knowledge and insights.. 2.