The concept of the GA2100 delivered from the DW5000 and AW500.

Fast forward to today, and the GA2100 line hits the scene - the timeless spirit of toughness those two epoch-making models, fused with cutting-edge technologies to create timepieces like nothing you’ve ever seen before. Not much later, in 1989, the AW500 arrived, offering the same shock resistance but in an analog watch. It was 1982 when the resolve to build a watch that would never break produced the very first G-SHOCK - the DW5000. With the support of Accenture and Nesta, we worked with our community partners to create Future Proof: Skills for Work, testing a blended model of holistic support and digital work skills, and building in the use of digital skills and careers resources, such as Accenture’s Skills to Succeed Academy and Stay Nimble.G-SHOCK has always embraced the spirit of challenge in it’s untiring pursuit of the ultimate toughness. Recognising the challenges faced by those in lower-skilled roles as digital continues to reshape the world economy, we wanted to explore how building habit, self-efficacy, goal-setting, and other qualities can support the acquisition of digital work skills, equipping people to stay resilient and able to adapt as work continues to change. We also know that the ‘whole person’ support provided by community organisations helps build confidence, resilience, and motivation: in work parlance, the ‘softer skills’. The most effective models embed essential digital skills support end-to-end, rather than bolting it on. We know from our work on community-based digital inclusion that essential digital skills are most likely to be learned and consolidated as part of other social interventions, from employment support and English language classes to money management and health improvement programmes. They are also less likely to receive support from their employer. However, those in lower-skilled jobs at risk of automation are often likely to face barriers that make it harder to acquire them: lower confidence, less time, and lower-level learning skills.

Most people will need digital skills to gain or remain in employment as all sectors embrace and accelerate digital business models and ways of working. Yet 13.6 million UK workers lack the core digital skills essential for today’s jobs, and 9 million UK adults cannot use the internet independently.

In 2019, 82% of UK jobs required some level of digital skills, and the figure today will be higher. In a world reshaped by the Covid-19 pandemic and facing a prolonged economic shock, digital skills are crucially important.

How to get core shocks