Digital Revolution 2016

#DigitalRevolution is back again for 2016!

With a focus on the development and support of the digital industries across the North West, Digital Revolution offers a snapshot of how digital and technology businesses based here are continuing to grow, develop and revolutionise the world around them.

Digital Revolution is a must attend event for anyone who is passionate about the development of the sector, wants to mix and network with their peers and most importantly find out what the future holds for their business.

Digital Revolution 2016 is sponsored by Rullion, Manchester Metropolitan University, University of Manchester and Democracy PR.

The agenda is as follows:

10:00 - 10:30 REGISTRATION

10:30 – 10:35 WELCOME AND OUTLINE OF THE DAY
by Katie Gallagher, Managing Director, Manchester Digital

10:35 - 11:20 MANCHESTER DIGITAL'S 5 AREAS OF FOCUS

Talent and skills, promotion and profile, leadership, developing the ecosystem and infrastructure form the cornerstones of our strategy for the next 3 years and this session will give you an idea of the projects and initiatives we have planned to support the further development of the industry. 

Presented by Manchester Digital Board & Council

• Alison Ross, customer experience & operations director, Auto Trader
  
• Tony Foggett, CEO, Code Computerlove
  
• Shaun Fensom, secretary, Manchester Digital
  
• Richard Gregory, non exec & advisor
  

11:20 – 11:40 COFFEE

11:40 – 12:25 MAPPING MANCHESTER'S PROGRESS
What does the global picture look like for digital and technology? Which key markets are leading the way and where are the next big opportunities for our businesses? Where does Manchester sit in the global scheme of things?
Presented by Matthew Rushton, PwC 

12:25 – 13:10 THE FUTURE OF AGENCIES

Manchester has a vibrant agency sector. There is a proliferation of small, new agencies springing up, bigger players such as CTI, Code Computerlove and Amaze and most of the large global ad networks have a presence here. However the world is changing, many clients are growing their own digital teams, talent is being poached by companies that had no interest in digital 3 -5 years ago. In order to survive do agencies need to develop a new model and what will that look like?

• Chair: Richard Gregory, non exec & advisor
• Aaron McGrath, sales director, Bing Ads, Microsoft
• David Edmundson-Bird, principal lecturer, Manchester Metropolitan University
• Nicky Unsworth, CEO, BJL
• Jon Kershaw, head of strategy, Havas Media

13:10 – 14:10 LUNCH

14:10 - 14:55 INTERNET OF THINGS
A quick scan of Twitter shows that the term ‘internet of things’ is widely derided by many parts of the industry but given that Manchester has been awarded £10m to create an IOT demonstrator is this something regional businesses should be taking seriously. What is the vision for a city that is fully IOT enabled and what and where are the opportunities for the companies based here.

• Chair: Professor Vikas Shah, MD and CEO, Swiscot Group
• Simon Ho, senior innovation officer, TFGM
• Nick Chrissos, head of innovation technology, Cisco 
• Caroline Gorskil, head of IoT, Digital Catapult

14:55 - 15:40 MOVING IN
There has been so much activity in the digital industry in the North West over the last 12 months and we have seen some fairly significant brands either open offices here or place new tech teams here. In this session we find out what attracted them to Manchester, what are their views on the tech ecosystem here and how are they going to get involved?

• Chair: Jennifer O'Grady, head of agency, Democracy PR
• Warren Hughes, head of systems development, Bet 365
• Peter Donlon, head of development, Sainsbury’s
• Tim Jones, CEO, Moneysupermarket.com
• Sarah Brooks Pearce, head of talent, Zuto 

15:40 – 16:00 COFFEE

16:00 - 16:45 TECHNOLOGY, ETHICS AND REGULATION
Technology is no longer the limiting factor for the advancement of society but how we implement it, how it changes society and in some cases our humanity raises some big worrying questions. Is automation going to be our downfall or our saviour, what will humans do when robots replace white collar work as well as blue collar? How do we protect our privacy when everything about us can be monitored and tracked and where is the burden of responsibility to protect us? What will driverless vehicles mean to us as humans and to industry, who should they be programmed to protect?

• Chair - Martin Bryant, Editor-at-large, The Next Web
• Dr Bex Lewis, senior lecturer, Manchester Metropolitan University
• Tony Prescott, Professor of cognitive neuroscience & director of Sheffield Robotics
• Dr Simon Holgate, CEO, Sea Level Research

16:45 - 17:00 CLOSING

17:00 – late POST CONFERENCE NETWORKING 

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By booking a ticket to this event, you agree to our event cancellation policy: https://www.manchesterdigital.com/event-cancellation-policy.

A full refund will be given for cancellations received any time up to 7 working days prior to the event (unless stated otherwise). If you cancel any places after this date you will be charged the full amount and a refund will not be given. However, you may choose to send a replacement delegate. There is no charge for this service.