“Working with change, at the interface between technology and humanity, is a real privilege”

David is best described as a humanistic engineer who, over time, has also become even more proficient at programming. That happened before he joined Tietoevry, and was a natural consequence of his interest in technology.
“Programming can be about so many things, from basic control mechanisms to web development, design and modelling. Digitalisation is everywhere and programming is involved in most of the things around us today. I came to Tietoevry via an acquaintance, who was a manager at the former Tieto and thought my background and personality would suit Tietoevry’s mission, which was not easy to specifically define.”

David enjoys the consulting profession, which is based very much on teamwork, coordination and communication.
“I saw consultants as lone experts,” he explains, noting that there is a constant exchange of knowledge between interesting projects and fascinating access to extremely skilled people.

You are leading a project called “The Digital Twin of Bullying”, can you tell us more about it please?
“Yes, it’s a really interesting initiative. The aim is to reduce bullying and mental health problems among children in schools by using modern digital solutions, research and safety work. It is a Vinnova-financed project in which Tietoevry and Örebro University, in collaboration with Friends, will create a data-driven and automated way of combating bullying by using modern data collection, artificial intelligence and modelling technologies to generate a digital twin. Tietoevry’s role is to design, develop and test the digital tool. Örebro University is a world leader in research on bullying and harassment, and Friends does an incredible job with surveys and visits to schools. The term “twin” in this context comes from the medical world, where different models and behaviours are tested through simulation. This requires large amounts of data and knowledge about behaviours, patterns and social health in classrooms and schools. The end users of the “twin” are researchers, as well as headmasters and teachers. The idea is that everyone who works at and with schools should be able to use it. But that is still somewhat in the future. The timetable for the pilot is set for 2023.

How will that be achieved?
“As a first step, digital collection of data relating to children’s health data will be carried out, together with various evaluations. Visualisation of reality, i.e. the digital twin then acts as a copy of a situation, place or person, which is updated in real time. The aim is to make predictive analyses to create safe school environments, and that the project can contribute to defining a national standard for this type of measurement,” says David.

What does Tietoevry have to offer as an employer?
“I enjoy the area of overlap between technology and humanity, and think there are lots of reasons to work at Tietoevry – it provides a varied professional environment that allows for a large range of specialisations. Many of the employees have a technical background, others have a programming background and some come from a management background, and it certainly helps if you have a bit of an engineering mind as well,” David concludes.

Want to know more about the digital twin case? Learn more HERE.