< Go to all news articles

IoB inaugural education conference examines the skills required by the financial services workforce of the future

16 January 2020

Presentation videos, slides and report now available to download

The impact of technology and regulation on organisational culture and the future of financial services were some of the topics presented and discussed at the inaugural IoB education conference. Transforming financial services - harnessing future opportunities in the Westin hotel on 16 January played host to a range of national and international speakers and was attended by delegates from across the financial services sector.

The workforce of the future

The conference was opened by Clive Bellows, President of IoB, and Head of Global Funds EMEA at Northern Trust. Paul Sweetman, Director of IFS Ireland, introduced David Smith, futurologist and chief executive of Global Futures and Foresight.

David enlightened the audience on his research report into the skills required by the financial services workforce. The over-arching theme in Future Skills in Financial Services is that artificial intelligence (AI) is a game-changer in the sector and will lead to significant changes in work practices and service delivery, affecting 100 percent of jobs. And while job titles many not change much, the nature of the work within them will and those who use AI will displace those who do not. David’s full talk is available below and the slides can also be downloaded.

David joined a panel chaired by Eimear McBride, Head of Digital and Innovation, IoB and featuring Paul Healy, CEO, Skillnet Ireland and Dr Maeve Houlihan, Associate Professor, UCD College of Business to discuss the findings in more detail.

A second panel discussion on the transformative nature of technology, culture and regulation in financial services was introduced by Mary O’Dea, Chief Executive of IoB. Contributors included:

• Professor Blanaid Clarke, Trinity College Dublin • Dr Wieke Scholten, Senior Consultant, &samhoud • Dr Edward McDonnell, Director, Ireland's Centre for Applied AI

The panel was moderated by Dr Kate Cullen, Academic Director of the Certified Bank Director, IoB.

Blockchain

The latter half of the conference focused specifically on blockchain with an original paper presented by Philipp Schulden, COO of the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management’s Blockchain Center. His presentation examined the opportunities that blockchain technology offers to the CFO and finance department to improve financial metrics. Philipp looked at how blockchain can improve efficiencies in processes associated with key performance indicators and the reporting of same by increased automation. His slide deck can be downloaded and you can the view the live presentation below.

Philipp Schulden then joined a panel chaired by Adrian Hayes, Director of Financial Services Technology at Deloitte Consulting, where his ideas were discussed further by John Munnelly, Chartered Accountants Ireland and Paula Kelleher, Branch Manager of The Bank of New York SA/NV, Dublin Branch.

Dr Margaret Fitzsimons, Dean, IoB, delivered the conference’s closing remarks, thanking the speakers and delegates. The event is set to become an annual occasion and more details will follow later in 2020.