In connection with Statoil’s Autumn Conference today, our CEO Eldar Sætre announced that we will be investing close to 100 MNOK in digital learning and development offerings through Statoil’s Digital Academy in 2018. I am so proud of the step-up we are doing in this area - and of the work we have done in the small but super-engaged project team that has taken Statoil’s Digital Academy from initial idea to reality!
When I started as CIO, the IT function kicked off a “GoDigital” effort that helped shape Statoil’s digital journey and provided important input to the digital roadmap launched earlier this year. It quickly became clear to me that digital had the potential to change our business and the way we work - and that it would mean a shift in the capabilities and competence required. In other words: Statoil leaders and employees – myself included - would need to further develop their digital literacy - and continue to keep that knowledge up to date to stay relevant. The question was – how to make it happen?
I was certain that a Digital Academy in some shape or form could be a powerful driving force in expanding Statoil’s strong core skills with digital capabilities. But to respond to the rapid changes both within technology and learning, it needed to be different from traditional offerings. The aim was to think more like a start-up: launching concepts as minimum viable products and then developing and scaling based on feedback and experience. To get started, I teamed up with some very engaged individuals from our Statoil University - and together we rolled up our sleeves and went to work.
There was no limit to the number of crazy and creative ideas we had 😊 Some of them died a quiet death (which in a rare moment of self-insight was probably for the best – even if I will always remember the laughs we had while inventing them). But others thrived and were successfully implemented- some may be relevant for you as well:
- We introduced a “Digital word of the week” to raise awareness and interest
- We established a Yammer group to share knowledge and create engagement
- We invited people to become Digital Ninjas, trained them in “Digital Ninja Gym’s” and gave them secret tasks - to be ambassadors and help drive the digital agenda
- We launched an app for learning on the go-with short learning videos and tips
- We started running 15 minute broadcasts on digital topics like BlockChain and RPA
- We identified external offerings & strengthened these with internal learning groups
Where are we now? Despite our humble beginnings, we have actually delivered on all of the goals we set for the project phase and are ready for a significant step-up. New offerings are in the pipeline and will be rolled out shortly. Employees will have a broad portfolio to select from based on their preferences and needs. For me, it has been a great privilege to be part of the first leg of the Digital Academy journey. I firmly believe this effort will help the Statoil organisation to prepare for new ways of working and motivate us all to develop new digital capabilities.
The story of Statoil is a story about how the creativity and innovation of our employees have created value for society. I am confident that Statoil’s competent work force will continue to be a key differentiator for us, and that the value that is created in the intersection between our people and new technology will enable us to shape the future of energy also in the years to come. I am very much looking forward to the next steps!
