For three days, the European University has offered inspiring talks with renowned professionals in which new technologies have been the main protagonists. The emergence of Artificial Intelligence, 5G, web 3.0 or blockchain, were some of the issues addressed in the third edition of the Digital Business Week. Employability also played a significant role thanks to the Business Job Days held with job fairs and presentations to improve entry into the labor market
The first session of the Universidad Europea has featured speakers and activities that have allowed students to learn about the experience, wisdom and opportunities offered by prominent working professionals
The third edition of the Digital Business Week kicked off. The European University, through workshops, conferences and practical activities, has witnessed the management of organisations in the new era of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital transformation on the first day of the conference that drives business success.
Throughout this conference, as the dean Mariló Martínez recalled at the opening of this new edition, "the Institution will transfer to the more than 1000 participating students one of the fundamental values of the European University, the experiential learning model that allows learning in a way that is close and close to the reality of companies". Along the same lines, Javier Camacho, Vice-Dean of the European University, stated that "one of the main aims is to bring students closer to companies and thus help them to find their vocation".
The Director General of Economy of the Community of Madrid, Juan Manuel López Zafra, presented the inaugural conference in which he defined the concept of innovation as "something conceptually simple that allows an idea to be translated into a materially successful result". He also highlighted the importance of innovation in companies and society in general and emphasised machine learning: "Science is moving towards Artificial Intelligence and it is fundamental, but where we really need to focus is in the area of machine learning, as it is the basis for understanding generative AI".
Artificial Intelligence was the protagonist in the talk "The Future of Organisations". In it, Diego Bodas, director of AI at MAPFRE, also stressed the importance of lifelong learning: "It is essential to be prepared to be able to adapt quickly to the changes that will continuously occur in the professional world. He also explained that "the key to the professional future lies in proactivity and autonomy" and stressed that "in the business ecosystem in which we find ourselves, generative AI is going to be on the table and form part of everyday life. We have to decide how we use it, how we use it and how we make the most of it".
"The Interconnected Society", given by the director of Billing and Revenue Assurance at Orange, Tomás Alonso, addressed the emergence of 5G and what it represents for digitalisation: "It is really the first ingredient in the recipe of companies that can make a qualitative leap when it comes to digitalising them". The speaker explained numerous practical cases in which the emergence of 5G has improved the productivity of companies, made their day-to-day work easier and has become essential for our society.
Marta Alonso, Head of Corporate Human Resources at TALGO; and José Antonio Marcos, Head of Intelligent Systems and New Projects at TALGO, showed the students the importance of organisational culture in companies and the commitment of Talgo, leader in the high-speed train segment, to young talent. In addition, the speakers recalled the importance of training and diversity within organisations.
Students were not only able to enjoy inspiring talks, but the Alcobendas campus also held a Job Day. In addition, at this campus they were able to learn the best tips to successfully pass a job interview; Fernando Domecq, from CITEC, explained how to launch a Fintech with AI; and Oriol Marín, from Linkedin, explained in depth how Linkedin Learning works.
Under the slogan "digitalization at the service of companies", renowned experts have addressed the challenges of new technologies and have explained different cases of good practices on the second day of the Digital Business Week
Internationalisation is one of the pillars of the Universidad Europea. The institution, which has approximately 35% of international students, has addressed in English its second day of presentations of the third edition of the Digital Business Week at the Villaviciosa de Odón campus. Meanwhile, at the Alcobendas campus, attendees were able to network, delve into data science, learn how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can promote health and safety at work and attend a round table to promote the incorporation of students into the labour market. In addition, the day's sessions in Alcobendas were opened by Dean Mariló Martínez, who highlighted the importance of conferences such as the one held and lifelong learning.
"Towards a responsible AI" was the presentation with which Richard Benjamins, Chief AI Officer at Telefónica, tried to explain how AI can help to improve society, reducing poverty, improving the ecosystem or the quality of education, among other issues. The expert in this emerging technology also wanted to show the challenges it presents, such as in the labour market or in the control and identification of fake news and deepfakes.
Ignacio Gallego, Country Manager of Nokia, explained the great challenge that the irruption of generative Artificial Intelligence poses for telephone companies. As he explained, mobile device brands must incorporate this technology. The Nokia Country Manager also highlighted the importance of protecting companies from cyber-attacks.
The Regional Sales Director of Microsoft, Miguel Ángel Cervera, highlighted the important progress and the great challenge presented by new technologies. The speaker explained that generative Artificial Intelligence, while being a tool with great innovative potential and improving productivity, must be used in an ethical and responsible manner.
Enrique Serrano, Founder & Ceo at Hackrocks, closed the day's presentations at the Villaviciosa de Odón campus by stressing the importance of preventing and knowing how to deal with cyber-attacks in companies. Serrano also highlighted the benefits of entrepreneurship and emphasised the need for continuous training and knowledge of the functioning of the technologies on the rise.
The challenges of the digital challenge are at the heart of the closing session of the Digital Business Week
The last day of sessions of the Digital Business Week brought together a large panel of experts at the European University who discussed the uses of new technology and its application in real life, the future of web 3.0 and the implementation of data to improve the economic profitability and logistics of large companies. The students were the main protagonists of this last day with activities focused on their professional future. They had the opportunity to participate in the Job Day held in Building E of the Villaviciosa de Odón Campus, where they were able to attend a meeting with leading companies and institutions in different sectors such as Asisa, Carrefour, El Corte Inglés or Banco de España; and an employability workshop where they were given tips to improve their CV for future selection processes.
"The value of data" was the presentation given by Rafael Fernández Campos, president of the Club Chief Data Officer Spain and Latam, who tried to explain the importance of using data to generate a business strategy and a demand forecasting model in large companies. The expert also commented that CEOs of companies must have notions of data strategy to lead their company towards a successful future.
At the round table "The present and future of Web 3.0 and Bitcoin", Javier Pastor Moreno, Head OTC Bit2Me; José Luis Cáceres, CBO of Bit2Me; and Cristóbal Mataran and Asaf Levi, professors at the European University, discussed the added value that the blockchain and Bitcoin have acquired in society. The experts explained that this virtual method of payment to third parties will become our usual way of transferring money in a few years.
The Cryptoclub of the Universidad Europea also played a leading role on this day with the presentation of the Camaró Names project, in which the students of the Universidad Europea reviewed the career of this prominent figure and presented the activities carried out by their club, chaired by Álvaro Farreny.
The finishing touch to these three days, where students were able to learn from leaders in their sectors of knowledge who apply the latest technologies in their daily lives, was provided by Maria Eugenia Renaldi, Head of Linkedin Universities for Spain and Portugal, who gave an inspiring presentation. The challenge of the consultancy firm Nfq was also presented.
The rest of the activities scheduled for this last day of the Digital Business Week were held in Building E of the Villaviciosa Campus, where different posters about the Cryptochallenge challenge, made by the students, were exhibited.