Australian technology leaders have emphasised the importance of funding research and innovation, even when working with tightening IT budgets.

Panellists told the annual ACS Tech Summit in Brisbane last Friday that even the tightest budgets needed to make space for innovation, in order to improve processes and unlock future growth.

Sarah-Jane Peterschlingmann, managing director of cloud hosting company ATech and vice chair of the ACS QLD Branch Executive Committee, told the summit that setting aside money for innovation was necessary, even when it was sometimes difficult.

“The challenge is, when you're faced with a constrained budget — which many of us are in the current economic climate — it's easy to take a knee-jerk reaction and cut costs and just focus on the bare basics of operational delivery, but that actually hurts you in the long run,” she said.

“We need to keep investing in innovation.”

Peterschlingmann said innovation was not only about better products and services, but about improving ways of doing things and increasing efficiencies to hopefully find extra budget.

Paul Gampe from communications company PCCW Global reiterated this, adding:

“If you don't have that 10 to 15 per cent of your team's time categorically guarded through some sort of framework for innovation, you start slipping backwards quickly.

“You cannot cost-cut your way to success. You have to invest.”


ACS CEO Josh Griggs says tech workers should learn how to use AI in order to remain competitive. Photo: Tomo Okai / ACS

'Get ahead’ of the AI curve

Panellists also discussed the importance of training employees in how to use artificial intelligence.

Tim Coventry, CEO of Business Analysis (BAPL), said encouraging innovation was “not just [about] replacing people with AI”, but training people to use it as well.

"That's where the transition really works, is that we have to be training people coming in to be doing more advanced roles than what we've got now, but utilising AI,” he said.

Coventry added that stretching IT budgets was also about having people “working on the right things” given what an organisation wanted to achieve.

“As we move into the age of AI, it's only going to become more prevalent, that we have people focused in on the right things,” he said.

ACS CEO Josh Griggs said Australia was “a bit of a laggard” when it came to AI adoption in business, but it was important for workers to discover AI’s capabilities.

"There's a lot of fear about jobs. But even when you look at it, effectively you won't lose your job to AI — but you’ll probably lose your job to someone that uses AI.

“So you really need to get ahead of the curve, make sure that you're teaching yourself, do a bit of lifelong learning to remain ahead of the game in that space.”


Tech leaders discuss psychologically safe workplaces at the ACS Tech Summit. Photo: Tomo Okai / ACS

Invest in trainees and psychological safety

Tech leaders discussed the need to foster innovation by creating a welcoming team culture and investing in trainees, interns and graduate roles that can often bring in new ideas.

Nicola Steel from JJP Talent Solutions said it was crucial that companies allowed young workers to build their experience while contributing to office culture.

“It's a catch 22 — you need experience to get experience. That's still the case today. In fact, it's probably more difficult.

“… So the more companies that can offer internships, that would be fabulous — and bringing forward the next generations, as well.

“Because there could be that temptation to save money with AI that could do the same work maybe as a junior, but you're not getting those soft skills, that character, the values and all that kind of perspective.”

Panellists said business innovation was also more likely to occur in psychologically safe workplaces where employees felt they could openly discuss their ideas and difficulties.

This could be achieved by creating an inclusive and supportive work environment, and by understanding and accommodating individual differences, they said.

This included encouraging managers and team leaders to model vulnerability and to normalise conversations about mental health and workload.

Lauren Fell, an associate lecturer at Queensland University of Technology, said, “If you don't have a psychologically safe workplace, people's ideas, the things they put forward, the communication that happens, tends towards the norm, and people present what feels the safest option.

“You don't get those really exciting, great ideas, and great discussions that you would get in a really healthy psychologically safe workplace.”