Driving growth and job creation through innovation

A Smart Economy comprises of local and global connectivity, productivity, entrepreneurship and innovation. It combines the elements of an enterprise economy and the innovation or ‘ideas’ economy, while promoting a high-quality environment, improving economic security and promoting social inclusion. To be a successful economy of the future, Perth will need to combine these attributes bringing knowledge capital; physical capital; natural or environmental capital; and social capital together to create ingenuity and creativity. This will drive a research, commercialisation and innovation ecosystem in Perth; making the city a hub for knowledge, innovation and entrepreneurship.

Commitments

We will:

Develop an Innovation Lab and Business Accelerator with a focus on growth sectors including digital/creative industries
Promote and support new digital businesses in Perth and Kinross and across the Tay Cities Deal area, through existing Angels Share initiative
Investigate a crowdfunding platform for Perth businesses and social enterprises providing access to finance for innovative start-up companies
Develop travel/visitor apps that will bring trails, accommodation, eateries, activities and offers together.
Encourage the proliferation of new digital skills in the population by engaging with coders and programmers to develop a series of hackathon events.
Cultivate digital skills in the workforce by working with schools, the UHI and employers to promote training and apprenticeships in digital skills
Use the “Developing the Young Workforce” initiative to promote digital skills in young people
Develop a better understanding of the retail economy in Perth using smart phones and other devices to monitor activities and use the data to inform policy and planning.