Gartner predicts that by 2025, 75% of enterprise-generated data will be created and processed outside a traditional centralised data centre or cloud.
For the fourth episode in our new series of digital debates, alongside Tech London Advocates and NVIDIA, I was joined by an expert panel sitting at the cusp of this 5G revolution: Sameh Yamany, Chief Technology Officer for VIAVI Solutions, Rosalind Singleton, Advisory Board Chair for UK 5G, and Anthony Hills, the EMEA business development lead for telecoms at NVIDIA.
Chaired by TLA founder Russ Shaw CBE, our discussion focused on the lessons we can learn from the rollout of 5G, how it is benefiting business, and how we can ensure 5G technology is as accessible as possible. Here are some of my key takeaways from our penultimate debate in this series.
Collaboration is the key to a successful 5G rollout
One of the biggest lessons to draw from the ongoing rollout of 5G is that collaboration with customers is crucial to maximising its potential. Working with partners and the entire ecosystem to build reference architectures means a set of best practices can be shared and agreed upon, making the 5G ecosystem as accessible as it can be.
Building a truly open 5G ecosystem is a core aim of Dell Technologies, and it is why we are building partnerships across the industry; to provide the best possible connectivity for our customers and beyond.
How we encourage businesses, industries, and people to adopt 5G technology is vital to its success and to make it accessible, we must talk about it in a user-friendly way.
We are bringing together hardware vendors, independent software vendors, systems integrators, service providers and private organisations as part of Dell OTEL open telecommunications initiative, to test, build, and manage some of these processes and environments.
Small businesses stand to gain the most from 5G
High latency, superfast 5G technology is bringing real-time data processing and decision-making ever closer to small businesses, expanding the capabilities of SMEs without access to large teams or complex infrastructure. In having ready access to 5G technology, SMEs will be able to benefit from an ecosystem that hides the complexity behind 5G technology and promotes simplicity and accessibility.
In doing so, we must ensure that the development and integration of 5G technology can be applied to every sector and every environment. Whether it be in farming, conservation or manufacturing, 5G has the capacity to bring real benefits to enterprise.
Our discussion touched on the need for collaboration between private and public interests to ensure that 5G infrastructure is placed at the disposal of all, not just those already connected. Dell Technologies’ partnerships with a diverse set of organisations are already working to ensure the benefits of new technologies like 5G are spread evenly and further than ever before.
We must talk about 5G in a more accessible way
5G is still relatively new technology and many businesses – particularly SMEs that stand to gain the most from its rollout – do not yet fully understand how it works and to what processes it can be applied.
To drive the take-up and adoption of 5G, the messaging surrounding the technology must be clear, accurate and simple. How we encourage businesses, industries, and people to adopt 5G technology is vital to its success and to make it accessible, we must talk about it in a user-friendly way.
This means demystifying 5G by not relying on industry terminology to explain its benefits and functions. While it can be tempting for experts to rely on ‘telecom’ to explain the complexities of 5G technology, we need to remember that the public are the chief consumers of emerging technologies. By reducing complicated language from the conversation around 5G, we can increase accessibility and drive uptake in a positive and inclusive way.
You can register to watch all episodes of the Digital Debates, including this conversation on 5G and the Edge, and our previous episodes on the Future of Work, Cyber Resilience, and Innovating with Data, here.
