Cisco and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have launched a shared research initiative on digital well-being.
Cisco and the OECD's Centre on Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equal Opportunity (WISE) are collaborating to explore the intricate implications of digital transformation and its "role as both a catalyst for progress and a source of potential risks to well-being".
The initiative was partly influenced by the rapid speed of digital transformation in recent years and the recent explosion of AI competency, which Cisco and the OECD state "merit a global discussion on how people experience technological change".
Fran Katsoudas, Executive Vice President & Chief People, Policy and Purpose Officer at Cisco, said:
It is our responsibility to keep well-being top of mind, and this partnership will help us connect with people around the world to learn about their experiences with digital technology—how it influences their social connections, their jobs and work-life balance, and their physical and mental health. Co-building a model and better understanding the role technology plays in everyday life is fundamental to our work at Cisco and to pursuing our purpose to power an inclusive future for all."
The partnership objective is to establish an interactive, dynamic, and compelling digital platform for sharing experiences and to build a thorough understanding of how digital technologies impact various facets of our lives, including but not limited to the workplace.
Anchored in the OECD Well-being Framework, the platform will collect data and insights from individuals, shedding light on digital well-being in its entirety, such as the effects of the digital divide and disparities in the adoption and utilization of digital technologies.
"Our initial report, ‘How’s Life in the Digital Age’, highlighted the benefits and challenges of digital transformation, from enhanced access and productivity to issues like the digital divide and personal security threats in people’s everyday life and workplace," added Romina Boarini, OECD WISE Centre Director. "Our partnership with Cisco helps us take the next step in broadening what we know about the interplay between technology and life to enrich our understanding of well-being in the digital realm."
The global knowledge hub aims to capture data to expand awareness of technology's impact on well-being by centring on 11 key "dimensions": education and skills, healthcare, jobs and earnings, income and wealth, subjective well-being, smart communities — work-life balance and social connections — environmental sustainability, critical infrastructure, cybersecurity, governance and civic engagement, and housing.
