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Which are the most digitally competitive countries and why does it matter?

IMD and digitalswitzerland to co-host first Summit on digital competitiveness and latest trends
June 2018

On Wednesday June 20, IMD business school and digitalswitzerland are hosting the first Digital Competitiveness Summit 2018 on digital competitiveness and the latest digital trends, at IMD’s campus in Lausanne.

The Summit will bring together 250+ business leaders from telecom and technology companies as well as representatives from governmental and international organizations active in the digital sphere, and will include networking opportunities during a reception following the conference.

The event coincides with the release of the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Rankings 2018 by the IMD World Competitiveness Center, just ahead of the the event and examines what contributes to the success of the top ranked 63 countries.

This evening event will begin at 17:30 on IMD’s campus in Lausanne. It will feature addresses by IMD President Jean-François Manzoni, and Marc Walder, CEO of Ringier, a leading Swiss Media Group, and President of digitalswitzerland’s Steering Committee.

“IMD is a member and strong supporter of digitalswitzerland, and we are proud to host this year’s General Assembly and the first Digital Competitiveness Summit. In 2018, ‘Digital’ is a must-win-battle for nearly every organization and IMD is committed to helping companies to make the most of this extraordinary opportunity. Being part of digitalswitzerland helps us to extend our network of partners active in the digital sphere and to contribute to Switzerland’s reputation as a center for digital excellence,” said IMD President Jean-François Manzoni.

Michael Wade, IMD Professor and Director of the Center for Digital Business Transformation, an IMD and Cisco initiative, will give a keynote speech on ‘Why Digital Transformation is not about Digital’. Pierre Vandergheynst, digitalswitzerland Vice-President of digitalswitzerland and Professor at EPFL, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, will look at the evolving landscape of digital education. Christos Cabolis, Chief Economist and Head of Operations at the IMD World Competitiveness Center, will present the Digital Competitiveness Rankings 2018 and what it means for Switzerland. Swiss Politician and media personality Fathi Derder will be the Master of Ceremonies.

Marc Walder, founder of the cross-sector association digitalswitzerland: “It is a great opportunity for digitalswitzerland to connect our General Assembly with the release of this year’s Digital Competitiveness Report and the Digital Competitiveness Summit at IMD Lausanne. I am very happy to host this year’s general assembly, one of our most important events, at IMD, a world class academic institution and am pleased that IMD is now a member of digitalswitzerland. With IMD as a new digitalswitzerland member, we gain an important partner to advance our goal to position Switzerland as one of the leading digital hubs in Europe and around the world.”

A members only digitalswitzerland General Assembly will precede the public event.

IMD is a leader in the field of digital business transformation. It is home to the Global Center for Digital Business Transformation, an IMD and Cisco Initiative. The IMD World Competitiveness Center publishes annual a ranking of the most digitally competitive countries in the world. IMD’s educational offerings include a host of programs covering digital topics including business transformation, marketing, new technology, supply chain, leadership, disruption and more, in both face-to-face, blended and online formats.

IMD is a member of digitalswitzerland since February 2018.

digitalswitzerland is a cross-industry association created from the shared vision of its 90+ members to strengthen the country‘s position as a leading digital innovation hub and to project those benefits across the whole of Switzerland’s industries. Some of its key initiatives include attracting outstanding digital talent, helping existing companies master digital challenges and significantly strengthening the Swiss start-up ecosystem.

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