The study establishes that the events of the last 3 years have led to a significant increase in digital competence and confidence. In this regard, 55% of respondents claim to be digital leaders within their industry, while only 17% believe their organizations are slow adopters of technology.

The perception of technology as a driver of job creation has also grown over the past three years. Thus, 43% of respondents say that new technologies have created job opportunities, up from 35% in 2019.

Indeed, job creation and destruction will be an area to watch as AI becomes a key part of organizations' technology strategy. While AI makes some roles obsolete, it will open up new types of higher-value employment "Every technology revolution we've been through has been a catalyst for new job creation. In the current revolution it is not yet clear what these jobs will look like, but the scenario that is opening up is fascinating," has said Daniel Newman, CEO, The Futurum Group.

Following Newman, the international summit also featured world-class technology gurus such as Chief Evangelist Officer Vala Afshar and Mike Hayes, COO of VMWare, who shared the keys to developing a successful digitisation process in companies and institutions. With Artificial Intelligence as a backdrop, the leaders emphasised the humanisation of technology, highlighting that the development of exponential technologies has made it necessary to reaffirm the role of people in the digitisation process.

Mike Hayes, the value of teams for digital transformation

Former Navy serviceman and advisor to the White House, Mike Hayes, has put the focus on the power of teams. "Teams amplify and produce the results”; we must "think about teams and technology, how they come together and how they go hand in hand." The VMware executive has also emphasised the need to be efficient in business models through the incorporation of processes that help to be faster and better, and in the impact capacity of technology "Have you ever changed the life of someone you knew? And of people you didn't know? That's the power of technology," the executive has stated firmly.

Vala Afshar, transformation is a constantly evolving process.

The renowned international guru, Vala Afshar, has defended at DES2023 the importance of movement, energy and information to achieve business success and the full development of our potential. "Seek out people, make friends, create connections and these will lead you to reach your full potential" the expert encouraged the attendees. In order to imprint this movement within organisations, the guru has pointed out seven key principles, among which are the integration of systems to improve daily work, the distribution of tasks, or autonomy, which, in the words of the expert, is "giving people the freedom and space to be creative; people who are not afraid of failure, who are part of our culture".

Vala Afshar has also claimed the need to unlearn in order to continue with the digital transformation process. "80% of digital transformation processes fail", so "you have to unlearn in order to make room for these new technologies". "We must have a beginner's mentality and always want to learn from mistakes", he has concluded.

The most disruptive companies meet at DES2023

Along with the great gurus of the international scene, DES2023 has hosted the intervention of the top managers of leading technology companies that have highlighted the vital importance of communicating the purpose of change and explaining to the people who are part of their companies the benefits of digitisation.

"Values are more important than technologies, but we are the ones who make the technologies and not the other way around," has said María Jesús Almazor, CEO of Telefónica Tech Cyber Security & Cloud. Violeta Fabé, Vice President - Global Telco Accounts at Kyndryl, has also argued that digital transformation "has to be embraced by the culture of the company. Communicating a story helps a lot, people understand it better", an idea supported by Fernando Matzkin, Chief Business Officer Europe at Globant, who stated that "it is very important to convey the purpose of the change".

María José Talavera, Iberia Managing Director of VMWARE Spain, said that "digital transformation is a culture that goes from the top down to the employees", an idea shared by Zigor Gaubeca, Engineering and Technology Director of Grupo Aire, who also stressed that digital transformation "is not about bringing together many technologies". "One of the best things is to have good partners to help you take good steps, it's not about making leaps," the executive emphasised.