Our weekly SRI Seminar Series welcomes Kelly Lyons, a professor in the Faculty of Information at the University of Toronto with a cross appointment to the Department of Computer Science. Prior to joining the Faculty of Information, Lyons was the Program Director of the IBM Toronto Lab Centre for Advanced Studies (CAS). Her research interests include service science, knowledge mobilization, AI governance, social media, and collaborative work. Lyons is an IBM Faculty Fellow and a faculty affiliate of the Schwartz Reisman Institute.
In this seminar, Lyons will share her findings from her current SSHRC Knowledge Synthesis project on the impacts of COVID-19 on the labour market, a sector already rife with disruption through the recent introduction of data science technologies.
Talk title:
“Evaluating the future of skills, jobs, and policies for the post-COVID digital economy: A Knowledge Synthesis project”
Abstract:
The adoption of data science technologies by firms across large components of the Canadian economy has the potential to create disruption in the labour market in the form of technological unemployment, labour and skill shortages in rapidly growing sectors, and the potential transformation of skill requirements for existing occupations. To add to the increased uncertainty, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has introduced previously unforeseen challenges to the adoption and further development of digital technologies, potentially altering the speed of diffusion and pace of technical change and the transition to the digital economy for organizations and workers. In this presentation, I report on joint work with Prof. Michelle Alexopoulos that was carried out through a SSHRC Knowledge Synthesis project, and the challenges faced due to the lack of official statistics that could be used to track the impact that COVID-19 has had on the rates of data science technology innovation, the speed of adoption and diffusion of current technologies among Canadian firms, and the disruption to the labour market. I will discuss the methods we used to gain insights, and describe our key findings organized in three themes (trends in adoption and diffusion of AI and data science, labour market consequences, and policy implications), and highlight some implications for future research. I will also share our experience leading a Knowledge Synthesis project.
Suggested readings:
Alexopoulos, M. & Lyons, K. (2021). Toward understanding the COVID-19 impact on Data Science Innovation in Canada, Accepted for publication in CASCON ’21: The 31st Annual International Conference on Computer Science and Software Engineering, November 22-26, 2021, Toronto, Canada.
Alexopoulos, M., Lyons, K., Mahetaji, K., & Chiu, K. (2021). Evaluating the Disruption of COVID-19 on AI Innovation using Patent Filings, Accepted for publication in the 2021 IEEE International Symposium on Technology and Society (ISTAS), 28-31 October 2021, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada (Virtual Event).
Alexopoulos, M. & Lyons, K. (2021). Final Report: Evaluating the Future of Skills, Jobs, and Policies for the Post COVID Digital Economy, Knowledge Synthesis Project Report, co-funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and the Government of Canada’s Future Skills program.
About Kelly Lyons
Kelly Lyons is a professor in the Faculty of Information at the University of Toronto with a cross appointment to the Department of Computer Science. Prior to joining the Faculty of Information, she was the Program Director of the IBM Toronto Lab Centre for Advanced Studies (CAS). Her current research interests include service science, knowledge mobilization, data science, social media, collaborative work, and software engineering. From 2015 to 2020, Lyons served as Associate Dean, Academic in the Faculty of Information. From 2020 to 2021, Lyons is serving as the Dean’s Advisor on Pandemic Planning and Response. Lyons has co‐authored several papers, served on program committees for conferences, given many keynote and invited presentations, and co‐chaired several workshops. She has been the recipient of an NSERC Strategic Partnership Grant, NSERC Discovery Grants, an NSERC Collaborative Research and Development Grant with SAP, two NSERC Engage Grants (with Sciencescape and Dell), MITACS Accelerate Grants (with CA, IBM, and Cerebri AI), a SSHRC Knowledge Synthesis Grant, two University of Toronto/UCL research grants, an IBM Smarter Planet Faculty Innovation Grant, an IBM Advanced Studies grant, and has received funding through the GRAND Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE). Kelly is an IBM Faculty Fellow and a Faculty Affiliate of the Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society. She is currently on the Board of CS-Can/Info-Can and on the Board of the Informs Service Science Section. From 2008 to 2012, she was a Member‐ at‐Large of the ACM Council and a member of the Executive Council of ACM‐W.
About the SRI Seminar Series
The SRI Seminar Series brings together the Schwartz Reisman community and beyond for a robust exchange of ideas that advance scholarship at the intersection of technology and society. Seminars are led by a leading or emerging scholar and feature extensive discussion.
Each week, a featured speaker will present for 45 minutes, followed by 45 minutes of discussion. Registered attendees will be emailed a Zoom link approximately one hour before the event begins. The event will be recorded and posted online.
Kelly Lyons