
InvestTech Bulgaria focus group meeting was held
On 23.10.2024, a focus group workshop for the InvesTech Project was held at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. The meeting was moderated by Milena Koleva from the Sofia Knowledge City Cluster and Teodora Sotirova from the Unified Innovation Center of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. The participants in the focus group are representatives of partner organizations of the three Bulgarian organizations participating in the InvesTech Project - Sofia Knowledge City Cluster, TUES - Technical University and the Unified Innovation Center of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. The purpose of the meeting was to conduct a study of the trends, conditions and attitudes in the ICT sector in seven previously specified technological areas.
- Artificial Intelligence and Ethics
- Big Data
- Blockchain
- Internet of Things (IoT)
- ICT for Sustainability
- Industry 5.0
- Quantum Computing
The following problem areas, directly related to the technological areas under consideration and key to the successful implementation of the InvestTech Project, were considered and subjected to analysis and discussion:
- The current state and trends of cutting-edge/advanced technologies in the country and the main challenges and opportunities,
- The impact of technologies on the skills and competence requirements identified as insufficient,
- The relevance of current educational programs to industry needs and new skills requirements due to technological advances
- The state of collaboration between academia, other educational institutions and industry to address skills shortages and possible new business models.
The participants of the workshop provided their views and experiences on the topic under discussion. The group recommended that in the near future the main gaps in the skills and competences of professionals in this sector, and in particular in the technological areas considered, be identified and classified.
The following main issues were identified, which require further in-depth study by the project:
- Low level of functional literacy
- Lack of good communication between HR departments, recruiters and technical teams
- Outsourcing does not allow for skills development
- Poor productivity of development units
- Insufficiently developed soft skills and teamwork skills
- Manifestations of lack of adaptability and flexibility
- Insufficient people skills
- Insufficiently developed critical thinking, creativity and empathy for innovations
- The challenges of artificial intelligence and the tendency for professionals in this sector to abandon deep thinking
- The presence of key gaps in technical skills
- Gap related to higher education.
Conclusions and suggestions were made that will be presented for the needs of the InvesTech Project:
The focus group ended with a friendly meeting to establish personal contacts between the participants.