28 September 2016
Orkestra, Basque Institute for Competitiveness of Deusto University, is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, and in doing so strengthens its commitment to the future development of the Basque Country. To this end, the leading figures at the Institute are holding a series of meetings with different reference economic and social agents in order to broaden its partnership network. In this context, Orkestra and Euskaltel have set up a Research Chair in Digital Economy to help define the strategic position of the Basque Country in this field. The initiative was announced today following the meeting between the heads of Deusto University, Orkestra and Euskaltel.
The digital economy is resulting in the transformation of traditional business models and the appearance of other completely new ones. Various studies show that in the year 2020 the digital economy will represent 22% of GDP in Spain. Its importance lies in its potential as a strategic sector in its own right and its capacity to generate and provoke changes in other productive sectors. Orkestra recognises that this transformation process may provide part of society with significant benefits, but, at the same time, may also leave behind part of that same society. For this reason, the Basque Institute for Competitiveness-Orkestra, along with Euskaltel, has decided to create a Research Chair in Digital Economy that can contribute to defining the development strategy of the Basque Country in this field, which is going to affect every productive sector and the citizens as a whole
Companies need to advance quickly towards digitalisation of a large part of their processes and services in order to be able to satisfy an increasingly sophisticated demand. The evolution towards digitalisation, Industry 4.0, the servitisation or personalisation of products are processes of change that affect companies in every sector and are going to have a major impact on the area of digital economy.
The Research Chair in Digital Economy is created with a commitment to generate the knowledge necessary to be able to address a process of reflection between public and private agents regarding what should be the strategic position of the Basque Country vis-à-vis the digital economy. Thus this process should identify the priority activity areas in the context of the digital economy, so as to contribute with greater intensity to the development of the territory and to a better positioning of the Basque Country and its companies.
In particular, this Research Chair in Digital Economy aims to analyse the opportunities offered by the digital economy for the development of the Basque Country, encourage interaction between researchers, companies and public administration and facilitate the processes of change that will lead to a better positioning of the Basque Country and its companies with regard to the digital economy.
Euskaltel’s involvement in Orkestra’s Research Chair in Digital Economy responds to the driving force exerted by the Basque telecommunications company, contributing to the development and strengthening of the sector in the Basque Country and lending momentum, at the same time, to the processes of change and digitalisation of companies in all sectors.
This initiative was presented on the occasion of a meeting held today between the leading figures of Deusto University, Orkestra and Euskaltel, one of the companies that has participated the Basque Institute for Competitiveness since its creation. Indeed, the cooperation between the university, and public and private agents has been one of the fundamental characteristics of the evolution of Orkestra, and has permitted the development of numerous projects during these ten years.
The new Research Chair in Digital Economy is the latest initiative in this context of collaboration between Orkestra y Euskaltel. The Rector of Deusto University, José María Guibert, along with the president of Orkestra, Ignacio Mª Echebarria, the Honorary President, José Luis Larrea, and the Director General, Maria José Aranguren, reviewed the details of this initiative with Alberto Garcia Erauzkin, President of Euskaltel, and Francisco Arteche, Managing Director, who were accompanied by, amongst others, Francisco Javier Allende, Secretary General and Board Member, and Nerea Lupardo, Director of Institutional Relations at the company. The meeting also provided an opportunity to acknowledge the role played by Euskaltel as promoter of the Institute and to reinforce the most valuable aspects of Orkestra’s experience of cooperation with the companies that support its work.
In this respect, one of the objectives of the directors of Orkestra over the coming years is to promote the Institute’s activity via new partnerships with public and private organisations that are committed to developing the competitiveness of the Basque Country and the welfare of its citizens. Orkestra has prepared a Manifesto on the occasion of its 10th anniversary, identifying the ten main challenges that the Basque Country must address in the near future. One of these great challenges is, precisely, the development of the digital economy.
