Bridging the Data Skills Gap: The Role of the UK’s National Innovation Centre for Data and its Data Innovation Bootcamp

Hodgson, JB

doi:10.1109/e-Science62913.2024.10678712

Bridging the Data Skills Gap: The Role of the UK’s National Innovation Centre for Data and its Data Innovation Bootcamp

Lookup NU author(s): Professor Barry Hodgson

Downloads

Accepted version [.pdf]

Licence

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).

Abstract

The UK’s National Innovation Centre for Data (NICD) addresses the data skills gap hindering productivity in private and public sector organisations by engaging them in innovative, collaborative projects. Established to transfer essential data skills, NICD employs data scientists with expertise in AI, statistics, data engineering, and visualisation. These experts focus on collaborative skills transfer projects, enabling organisations to leverage data more effectively. Since 2019, NICD has delivered over 100 projects, impacting clients from multi-national corporations to small charities and government departments to start-ups.This paper introduces NICD’s Data Innovation Bootcamp, an experiential programme integrating data science with practical business problem-solving. Unlike traditional data science education, the Bootcamp emphasizes practical application in industry, addressing real business challenges provided by private and public sector organisations. By fostering multidisciplinary collaboration, the Bootcamp enhances skills such as teamwork, critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making.The programme benefits students by bridging the gap between academic theory and business application, and provides businesses with fresh insights, recruitment opportunities, and innovative solutions. Additionally, it strengthens industry partnerships for future collaborations. The Data Innovation Bootcamp exemplifies the potential of combining innovation thinking, entrepreneurship, and data exploration for economic and societal benefit.