By Karen Peattie

A NEW virtual event that rewards Scottish businesses for their ability to embrace new ways of working and harness digital technology to accelerate growth has been launched by The Herald in association with Digital World.

The Digital Transformation Awards, supported by Capito Ltd, Digital Boost and Tec-Source, will shine a spotlight on how companies and organisations across all industries and sectors have successfully adopted digital technology into their daily practices.

With firms having to adapt quickly to changing circumstances over the last 14 months and ramp up focus on their digital capabilities, these new awards will highlight how agile many businesses have been in the processes they have adopted to accelerate digital transformation across several sectors.

And with the publication earlier this year of Scotland’s Digital Strategy, it is clear that the need to harness digital technology as an integral component of everyday business will become a key focus for many organisations.

Award categories, designed to ensure that organisations from all sectors can be recognised and rewarded for their achievements, include Best Use of Technology in the Third Sector, Digitally Transformed Business, Digital Community, Digital Diversity and Digital Young Person of the Year.

Others awards up for grabs are Best Use of Technology in Healthcare, Best use of Technology in Education, Digital Professional of the Year, Digital Marketing Campaign, and Business Growth.

A spokesperson for Digital World and Skills Development Scotland said: “We are delighted to sponsor the Digital Transformation Awards. Digital skills across all industries, not just the tech sector, have never been so important.

“The pandemic has not only highlighted this but also forced organisations and individuals to pivot and rethink how they do things. These awards recognise and reward those that have really grasped the importance of digital in this new world we now live in.

“Digital tech and the associated skills are now vital for rebuilding Scotland’s economy, and we at Digital World can help people retrain and upskill to continue our country’s digital transformation.”

Capito Ltd’s managing director, Mark Gibson, is one of the judges. He noted: “Capito works closely with the healthcare sector so have seen first-hand some of the tech challenges and triumphs during the pandemic.

“For this reason, we are delighted to sponsor the Best Use of Technology in Healthcare Award and look forward to hearing some inspiring stories from the nominees. There is also a tremendous opportunity to leverage technology further in the economic and social recovery from the pandemic.

“We can’t slow down but we must innovate at pace to deliver flexible and personalised care to those who need it most.”

David Mains, head of technology recruitment at Tec-Source, said: “In a year when digital transformation has accelerated at its greatest pace, we are delighted to support the recognition of those pace-setters with our sponsorship of the Digital Professional of the Year award.

"We’re also very much looking forward to celebrating the success of companies, large and small throughout Scotland, who have successfully adopted digital technology into their daily practices, as business strove to adapt to the massive change enforced upon them. I’m sure it will be a great night, celebrating all that is excellent in the Scottish digital transformation sector.”

You can read more about the event and award categories, and get all the information on how to apply at: http://newsquestscotlandevents.com/events/digitransform21.

The closing date for entries is Friday, September 10 with the virtual awards ceremony taking place on Thursday, November 4.

If you have any queries, contact Linsey Hunter, events manager, at linsey.hunter@newsquest.co.uk.