Cornwall and the Digital Revolution: The Software Story

Cornwall is enjoying a Digital boom. West Cornwall is the second fastest growing digital hub in the country. There are over 680 tech companies in Cornwall, supporting more than 1,300 highly paid jobs - with advertised average salaries of £34,367. These companies range across artificial intelligence, the internet of things, robots, cloud-based services, virtual reality and drone filming.

The Poly is pleased to announce the launch of a series of talks aimed at examining this phenomenon. We will invite speakers from across the digital, creative and entrepreneurial sectors to examine the implications. Is it too soon to be talking of Silicon Kernow or Silicon Coast? How do we really compare with creative hubs elsewhere? What does this digital boom do for traditional sectors such as tourism, the arts, agriculture or fishing? Who are the local stars? What will happen when the European grants dry up?

We are delighted that Belinda Waldock will launch this series with an overview of the Cornish Software sector. She is a director and co-founder of Software Cornwall, a high growth cluster of businesses, education and support organisations dedicated to connecting, promoting and supporting the growing software community in Cornwall.  Belinda Waldock is an Agile Business Coach and Trainer, she is a professionally qualified ILM Coach and Mentor in Business Management, and the author of Being Agile in Business. Her book Being Agile in Business, published by Pearson and available internationally is an introduction to agile working for any business professional interested in adopting the highly successful methods and practices of agile from the tech sector. The book has been shortlisted as CMI Management book of the year and recently translated and published in Chinese. Belinda is part of the organising committee for one of the World’s leading agile conferences, Agile on the Beach, helping to develop and grow the conference over the past 7 years to be self-sustaining. She is a regular speaker at events and proactive member of the business community in Cornwall.