Accenture and MIT Team Up to Help Organizations Seize Opportunities from Industry and Technology Convergence
October 26 2020 - 6:59AM
Business Wire
Five-year alliance extends longstanding
partnership to explore impact of convergence on future of business
and society
Building on their trailblazing partnership of more than 15
years, Accenture (NYSE: ACN) and MIT today launched the MIT and
Accenture Convergence Initiative for Industry and Technology. The
new initiative brings together Accenture’s technology, strategy and
industry experts and the best minds from across MIT to explore how
the convergence of industry and technology will transform global
business, what it means for the future of society, and how
organizations can uncover and better capture its opportunities.
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MIT and Accenture announced a five-year
collaboration to advance technology and innovation, attended
(virtually) by MIT President L. Rafael Reif (left) and Accenture
CEO Julie Sweet. (Photo: Lillie Paquette)
The five-year initiative will develop forward-looking thought
leadership, research, educational programs and other activities to
offer industry fresh insights and practical guidance on realizing
the full potential of technology. The project is co-sponsored by
Accenture’s Chief Executive Officer Julie Sweet and MIT President
L. Rafael Reif.
“As disruptive technologies and ideas continue to blur the
boundaries between industries, moving with speed and designing a
future that will benefit all requires a different approach,” said
Sweet. “Rapid progress will depend on the ability of industries to
learn from each other, from technology leaders and from diverse
perspectives across business and academia. MIT, with its strengths
across science and engineering, the arts, architecture, humanities,
social sciences, and management, and its continuing commitment to
interdisciplinary programs, is the ideal partner for Accenture to
create breakthrough new research, education and thought leadership
programs that can help companies and countries seize the
opportunity of the convergence of industry, technology and markets
and embrace the change it will bring to create more 360-degree
value for all.”
“The world is experiencing disruption beyond what any of us have
seen in our lifetimes. In that context, it is more important than
ever that academia and industry collaborate to address pressing
societal challenges and opportunities,” said Reif. “Building on
MIT's long relationship with Accenture, we are eager to join forces
again now to demonstrate how the convergence of industries and
technologies is powering the next wave of change and innovation,
and how we can harness and shape these forces for positive
impact.”
The MIT and Accenture Convergence Initiative for Industry and
Technology will advance three main pillars:
- Research: The initiative will address industry and
technology convergence through a portfolio of near- and long-term
joint research projects. Topics will range from the long-term
impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and reinventing healthcare with
robotics, to the role of artificial intelligence in the workforce
of the future, to driving value with digital manufacturing and
supply chains. Insights from these activities will be developed
into reports and presented at global forums.
- Education: New programs combining the unique, leading
capabilities of Accenture and MIT will explore areas such as cloud
computing, artificial intelligence, bioengineering, 3D printing,
robotics, 5G, blockchain, and quantum computing, to better equip
industry and business leaders with an understanding of the
convergence of forces reshaping business. Programs will be brought
to life through novel approaches that allow for digital learning
and collaboration at scale targeting business executives, as well
as more than 500,000 Accenture people, and will include a C-level
executive education program focused on immersing leaders in the
foundations and implications of today’s and tomorrow’s
technology.
- Fellowships: Innovation is at the heart of this
initiative, and innovation is fueled by diversity. To ensure that
the initiative enhances diversity across critical disciplines, MIT
will designate, and Accenture will provide academic support for,
five “Accenture Fellows” each year among its graduate students.
These fellowships will be awarded to graduate students working on
research in industry and technology convergence who are
underrepresented, including by race and ethnicity and by
gender.
“Collaborating with MIT on cutting-edge industry research will
enhance the value we provide to our clients and elevate our
position as a global thought leader on technology and industry
convergence,” said Sanjeev Vohra, global lead of Accenture Applied
Intelligence and Accenture’s program lead for the MIT and Accenture
Convergence Initiative for Industry and Technology. “This
initiative will also give Accenture professionals and MIT faculty
and students unique opportunities to explore, ideate and
learn.”
Anantha Chandrakasan, dean of the MIT School of Engineering and
MIT’s lead for the initiative, added: “Our new collaboration with
Accenture, which will build upon prior mutual efforts, is an
obvious and wonderful step forward. I can’t wait to see the many
incredible educational and innovative opportunities launched
through this alliance.”
About Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is dedicated to
advancing knowledge and educating students in science, technology,
and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and
the world in the 21st century. The Institute has more than 1,000
faculty members and over 11,500 undergraduate and graduate
students. MIT's commitment to innovation has led to a host of
scientific breakthroughs and technological advances, in fields
ranging from aeronautics to computing to cancer research. More
information can be found at www.mit.edu.
About Accenture
Accenture is a global professional services company with leading
capabilities in digital, cloud and security. Combining unmatched
experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries,
we offer Strategy and Consulting, Interactive, Technology and
Operations services—all powered by the world’s largest network of
Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers. Our 506,000
people deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity
every day, serving clients in more than 120 countries. We embrace
the power of change to create value and shared success for our
clients, people, shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us
at www.accenture.com.
Copyright © 2020 Accenture. All rights reserved. Accenture and
its logo are trademarks of Accenture.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201026005077/en/
Julie Bennink Accenture +1 312 693 7301
julie.l.bennink@accenture.com
Lori LoTurco MIT School of Engineering +1 617 253 2264
loturco@mit.edu
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