Making innovative technology work in practice

Published on 09 June 2026

Article by Anne-Maree Hapgood, Category Manager

Emerging technologies are reshaping how organisations operate, deliver services, and respond to change. Headlines frequently highlight the rapid pace of innovation – artificial intelligence (AI) breakthroughs, automated systems, and data driven tools that promise faster and smarter ways of working. For many organisations, particularly in the public sector, the challenge is not awareness of these developments but understanding how to adopt them in a practical, controlled, and sustainable way.

Questions such as “How quickly is technology really moving?”, “Will we miss out?”, and “Where do we even start?” are increasingly common. The reality is that keeping pace with technological change requires more than simply adopting new tools, it requires access to the right expertise, governance, and delivery models.

The Emerging Technologies category within the ICT Arrangement LB308 is designed to support organisations as they navigate this complexity. Rather than focusing on a single technology or trend, this category brings together suppliers that have capabilities across a range of innovative and rapidly evolving digital technologies. These emerging technologies support automation, intelligence, resilience, connectivity, and data driven decision making across government and enterprise environments.

Importantly, the category recognises that emerging technology adoption is not a one size fits all exercise. What qualifies as “emerging” differs between organisations depending on their respective capability, maturity, and strategic priorities. For some, it may involve experimenting with artificial intelligence. For others, it may mean improving digital resilience, introducing automation into key processes, or strengthening data platforms.

A defining feature of the Emerging Technologies category under LB308 is its coverage of the entire technology lifecycle, not just implementation. Suppliers within the category collectively support organisations through:

• Strategy and discovery - helping clarify problems, opportunities, and readiness.

• Proofs of concept and pilots - enabling safe experimentation and learning.

• Delivery and integration - ensuring new solutions work alongside existing systems.

• Managed services, optimisation, and scaling - supporting long term use, improvement, and governance.

This lifecycle based approach reflects a growing understanding that successful adoption depends as much on planning, integration, and ongoing management as it does on the technology itself.

The Emerging Technologies category houses a cohort of over 120 pre-qualified suppliers, combining specialist innovators, technical delivery partners, and enterprise integrators. This diversity allows organisations to engage with niche expertise where required, while also accessing partners capable of scaling solutions across larger environments.

Rather than positioning emerging technology as disruptive by default, the category supports a measured approach, allowing organisations to trial new capabilities, modernise systems incrementally, and automate processes safely and effectively.

While artificial intelligence and automation are often at the centre of emerging technology conversations, they are not the only focus of the category. Policies, procedures, legislation, and governance frameworks are increasingly recognised as critical enablers of responsible technology use. More broadly, the LB308 Arrangement also includes suppliers with expertise in these supporting areas, acknowledging that technology adoption must align with regulatory obligations, ethical considerations, and organisational controls, particularly within public sector environments.

Through the Emerging Technologies category under the LB308 Arrangement, organisations have access to a structured ecosystem designed to support experimentation, modernisation, and long term adoption, helping turn emerging ideas into practical, sustainable outcomes not just for today, but for the years ahead.

For more information on this Arrangement, please contact Category Manager, Anne-Maree Hapgood ahapgood@localbuy.net.au