Intellect

The view from up there

2008-07-08T15:02:07+01:00

Here's a "helicopter view" of the communications market from Ofcom chief executive Ed Richards given at Intellect's consumer electronics conference last week. Richards' speech was based around securing a regulatory regime that encourages competition, investment and innovation.

So far so good. Within the broad brush of the speech that sweeps from telecoms market to broadcasters, mobile players to consumer electronics manufacturers, a strong line on super-fast broadband was made. Richards wants to allow a fair return to be made to stimulate efficient and timely investment. He actually went further on this saying the return should be "commensurate to the risk taken" and made "over a reasonable time horizon."

We're into the thorny issue of risk premium here, recently discussed by European Commissioner Viviane Reding who suggested that about 15 per cent would be an appropriate level for next-generation access investment.

More difficult questions to answer for our friends on Southwark Bridge.

Ability is sexless

2008-06-27T21:01:31+01:00

The technology industry has always been a challenging environment for women to work in and the issue of diversity has been one of the most researched areas in the industry. A recent eskills report showed that female IT and telecoms staff still earn 20 percent less than their male counterparts, which is also unfavourably compared to the 12.6% national average. The gender pay gap has been long debated and with Minister for women and equality, Harriet Harman announcing details of the government’s Equalities Bill in a statement to the House of Commons yesterday, many will be welcoming the raise in profile of the debate.

Intellect has been campaigning on issues of equality in the industry and this month released its third Perceptions of Equal Pay survey. Every year the survey has highlighted worrying observations in the industry showning a lack a transparency concerning pay and action on discrimination policy. For example 54% of women working in technology think their pay package is not comparable to male colleagues performing a similar role, with 35% having evidence of this. Clearly the Equalities Bill is an important step in the fight for parity in pay, not just with women in the technology industry – but also for people across the UK workforce who are not receiving equal pay for equal work. It is important that both government and industry work together to enable full transparency, the removal of the salary gagging clause in contracts and the widespread adoption of equal pay audits.

Action taken in this sphere will also have a positive knock on effect in other areas where the technology industry is struggling. As identified in Intellect’s President’s Report, a state of the industry account, the sector is suffering an increasingly acute skills shortage. At a time when employment in the industry is growing five times faster than the UK average, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) education take up is declining rapidly and the ‘boys club’ culture remains, initiatives that go some way in addressing the concerns of women are welcome. The industry is at a point where it simply cannot afford to alienate a vast proportion of potential or current workers.

The Equalities Bill is an opportunity to openly debate the stark reality of inequality in the industry. If properly implemented the UK workforce stands to gain a transparent and fair employment system which will ensure the UK technology industry's position in the global economy.

By Carrie Hartnell, Transformational Business Programme Manager

Technology in security – a double edged sword

2008-06-20T15:34:48+01:00

The Prime Minister addressed industry and stakeholders at the IPPR this week with a speech on balancing security and liberty. His focus on the need for modern, interoperable solutions to constantly changing modern threats was warmly welcomed by industry. Intellect’s members believe that whilst globalisation and the proliferation of information, communications and digital technology have been a boon for the UK, they have also created new dependencies and vulnerabilities which must be addressed.

Instantaneous communications and information technologies underpin our economy’s ability to generate wealth in sectors like financial services, and make possible the sharing of inconceivable amounts of information on almost any subject via the internet. Once again, however, this progress comes at a cost – that of a minority who use it for subversion, radicalisation and to commit crime. The globalised nature of contemporary organised crime and terrorism is a grisly monument to the all-pervasive nature of our industry’s capabilities.

Nor has technology’s impact been merely to extend the reach of existing threats – it has also created whole new arenas for conflict. Cyber warfare is a relatively new phenomena in its modern form, made possible by the widespread adoption of high speed internet infrastructure. Critical national skeletons of power, water and healthcare utilities are increasingly reliant on massive networks of ICT, which are now susceptible to cyber attack – whether from shady terrorist groups or more traditional state foes.

Computing readers will recall the widespread power failure that hit New York and dozens of other major cities in Eastern US States in 2003. A leading American policy journal recently suggested that the outages originated in overenthusiastic hacking by Chinese Government agents. UK policymakers are alive to these new theatres of war – the Ministry of Defence is to dedicate increased time and resources to the combat of cyber warfare .

The picture, as Gordon Brown pointed out, isn’t all doom and gloom. Technology has created and influenced threats to national security, but it also makes fighting and resolving them more effective and more efficient. Criminal detection at all levels has benefited from the use of CCTV and DNA technology, and the ability to follow criminals’ electronic and digital trail as easily as Poirot followed footprints by the conservatory. Early warning systems for natural disasters and improved communication systems for response coordination mean that in the face of natural disaster, responders are better linked and better informed than ever before.

Technology has changed our economy, altered our civil society and as we are now seeing is changing our security. The UK isn’t alone in recognising it – this week the French publicised a long awaited strategic review of Defence & Security , whose themes of international interdependence and the prioritisation of information and intelligence are encouragingly familiar to those who’ve been following this debate in the UK. Western security strategies are starting to agree on common challenges, and industry will play a major role in helping to implement the sort of flexible, coordinated and cohesive responses needed to face them.

By Joel Grundy, Defence and Security Programme Manager

Skills? We need IT now...

2008-06-13T17:52:24+01:00

A study commissioned by the UK’s Council of Professors and Heads of Computing (CPHC), predicted, this week, that demand for IT skills is expected to grow by 15% over the next 8 years. This isn’t new news. We know from an e-skills report that every year the technology industry itself is looking to recruit around 140,000 new staff and this is before companies in other sectors need to fill their further requirements. Unfortunately this coincides with time when the number of computing students has dropped by almost 50% since 2001. Intellect’s own President’s Report shows that the number of applicants for single subject computing courses has declined from 31,000 in 2001 to 16,000 in 2006.

The UK technology industry has long talked about and suffered from a skills shortage. There are a number of good industry and company schemes looking at short-term and long-term solutions. However, the problem too often is that industry, government, educators and customers have failed to tackle the solutions as a collective. Schemes too often are started but then run out of support or funding, and little is done to challenge the perception of technology as an undesirable career or degree. There are many barriers to increasing the number of computer graduates, from changing the teaching of IT at school to changing the perceptions of parents, students and teachers . Of course, funding to encourage students to take these courses will help, but we must work to also change the image the industry and careers project.

It is no longer just an issue for the technology industry and its customers, the shortage will, and already is, going to have real impacts on all industries from public sector, to finance, to retail and teaching. Technological competence is a core skill, in the same way as literacy and numeracy. It is important not only for industry but to ensure citizens do not face exclusion in any aspects of their lives. Technology will only increase in its importance to the UK and we would all be better able to reap the benefits of technology with a more skilled society and workforce.

We must ensure that we all work together to find workable and effective solutions to these falling numbers of graduates. We must promote all opportunities, role models and career paths and should encourage people to retrain or return to our industry. The UK needs a lot more technologists and at present we don’t have the numbers of students going into further education which will provide industry with the skills required to ensure the UK remains competitive in a global knowledge economy.

By Carrie Hartnell, Programme Manager

Do it right - not right now

2008-06-11T17:48:52+01:00

Why haven't we built a Next Generation Broadband network in the UK yet? It's the perennial debate in the telecomms and communications industries, and is beginning to climb the list of priorities for both those in the media and the policy wonks down in Whitehall. Before we have a crack at the question let's take a quick look at the numbers that dominate it and remain the biggest barriers to its quick delivery. To roll it out to about 80% of the country should cost around £16bn give or take loose change, and depending on the solution deployed - be it fibre to the home or fibre to the cabinet - will take between 5 and 10 years. The majority of this expenditure and time will be spent doing the civil engineering that is needed to dig up the highways and byways of the UK to lay the pipe.

The debate is moving quite quickly now, driven by a raft of new bandwidth intensive services that have brought us to a pressure point neatly displayed this week by BBC's Broadband Britain study which looked at different speeds across the country and received unprecedented viewer feedback - around 60,000 responses to bbc.co.uk apparently - as people complained about headline speeds far below those they were promised. There are a number of dissatisfied and frustrated consumers out there. Hence the media’s interest in what is already a fundamental part of the mixed economy of broadcast platfroms that the PSB’s are now using (iplayer, digital radio and some simulcast stations are all available online) and the government’s involvement in what it claims it recognises as the crucial enabling infrastructure of the 21st century. Enabling here is meant in the very broadest sense, both socially and economically.

So what to do? The Broadband Stakeholder Group - the industry government forum that looks at these issues published a report this week on 'A framework for Evaluating the Value of Next Generation Broadband' that tries to quantify the economic and social benefit that Next Generation Broadband could deliver to the UK. Sadly no headline grabbing number here to make the case, just carefully couched analysis that sees returns to the economy being at least commensurate with any investment made.

There is real consensus that this enabling infrastructure will be rolled out soon, as business models evolve and ISPs begin to differentiate themselves in the market around quality and speed of service provision rather than just on cost. However Antony Walker CEO of the BSG framed the debate in terms of what economists call an 'option value' - in simple terms the value in a policy of wait and see where you can learn from the other choices and deployments that are made elsewhere. This value does diminish over time but as Walker summarised, the point he believes we have reached in the UK is that we must 'Do it right, but not right now'.

By Sam Ingleby, Programme Manager

Financial Services: banking on technology

2008-06-06T16:29:34+01:00

The turbulent time for the banking sector continued this week with the news that Bradford & Bingley has issued a massive profits warning. Worryingly, reports suggested that the bank’s directors did not have up-to-date information about the state of the company; it has been suggested that this was, in part, due to ‘hopelessly antiquated information technology’ within the bank, which led to outdated financial information presenting an inaccurate picture on which crucial decisions were made. Bradford & Bingley now finds itself in an IT position not dissimilar to that of Northern Rock; the bank’s sub-standard technology systems were a noted factor in the downfall of the institution.

The relationship between financial institutions and technology has, like a share price, always been up and down. Technology can provide valuable services to financial institutions, which are needed now more than ever. These services are very much in demand; recent research from a recruitment firm found that demand for IT professionals from city firms remains strong, despite the impact of the credit crunch and concerns over market volatility.

The skills of IT professionals will be needed as the government continues to look at ways to reform the banking sector, restore consumer confidence in the system and in doing so, try to avoid another Northern Rock. The Banking Reform Bill, announced as part of the government’s pre-legislative programme, is part of the means to achieve this. One of the aims of the Bill is to improve the Financial Services Compensation Scheme’s ability to pay out to customers more quickly in the event that a bank becomes insolvent. This legislation, and issues like information sharing and data security, will be causing headaches amongst the CIOs in the city as they seek to ensure their information systems are up to the task. As the fall out from Northern Rock and now Bradford & Bingley has demonstrated, 21st century technology should be at the heart of financial institutions, enabling them to overcome the challenges of the future.

By Ben Andersen-Tuffnell, Programme Manager

Never New

2008-05-30T17:12:47+01:00

Whether human history is advancing from a beginning point to an end point – teleologically - or is merely cyclical is a debate that has been going on between historians, scientists and technologists for some time now. For instance, the 20th century was a period of rapid and unprecedented change with the enormous progress being made in modern medicine, science and technology having a profound affect on the way humans lived their lives. Life expectancies in the West soared, global travel became a reality, technology empowered millions of people to work in with their minds rather than their bodies. However some would argue that the world has been shaped by the same impulses and needs as it ever was. Aldous Huxley the British science fiction writer and author of ‘Brave New World’ captures this sense of things being simultaneously always and never new. He said ‘The charm of history and its enigmatic lesson consist in the fact that, from age to age, nothing changes and yet everything is completely different.’

Technology sits at the heart of this debate, facilitating huge changes in our lives. But when you consider the impact of technological innovation upon the way we are, the changes might not be as seismic as they first appear. Indeed a recent survey commissioned by BT expresses the constant nature of human behaviour - which any amount of technology will never change.

BT's 21st Century Life Index Report, which was released this week, examines the digital world as it stands today compared with the visions of the public 10 years ago. It found that the proportion of the population spending more than five hours per week online has doubled in the last 10 years from just 24 per cent in 1998 to 57 per cent in 2008. We can expect this figure to grow by the same order of magnitude over the next 10 years. This is new: what is not is what people are doing in there online time. According to the report people are spending more time online to stay in touch with loved ones and to do some shopping. Not so new.

Other interesting stats include the fact that three quarters of us now use the internet to keep in touch compared to 44% ten years ago. There is also the unexpected impact of technology, which despite its benefits can sometimes make us feel alone and disconnected: just over two-thirds of those polled preferred speaking face-to-face rather than using any technology to stay in touch, compared to 51% ten years ago.

Alnoor Samji, Director of Ipsos MORI, said: "The results from BT's 21st Century Life Index Report reveal how consumers have steadily shifted their communications habits over the last 10 years from exclusively voice and mobile, to email on the move - as well as much greater interaction with social networking sites - to help them stay in touch with friends and family." I for one rather like the fact that the use of new and complex technology is driven by something as basic and timeless as keeping in touch with your friends. Same as it ever was.

By Sam Ingleby, Programme Manager

Widening the workplace

2008-05-23T16:29:02+01:00

An announcement by John Hutton MP, Business Minister, last week gives an extra 4.5 million parents in Britain the right to request flexible working. The announcements follows the publication of the Walsh Report, an independent review into the right to request flexible working. The change will now enable all parents whose children are under 16 to request, but does not guarantee, flexible working. The extension was mentioned as part of the Draft Queen’s Speech published last week but there is still debate about whether the implementation will be staggered or fully implemented immediately.

There is certainly an attitudinal shift occurring around flexible working and the benefits it brings to the employee and employer. For many technology companies, flexible working and the opportunities it brings is a positive move. The ability to offer employees a working environment anywhere, anytime adds to their attraction as an employer as well as being able to service their customers requirements around the clock. However, it is important for all companies that the request of all employees is balanced against the deadlines and requirements of customers.

Flexible working is a useful and relevant business process that can add real productivity value to businesses and access to talent and skills that were not available before. However, we must ensure that it is not just seen as only a ‘female or family friendly’ policy but one open to all in employment. If the policy is handled appropriately it can ensure a happy and dedicated workforce and a productive and competitive business. The Walsh report provides new and important issues and moves the debate forward but any continuing progress, in relating to any form of flexible working, can only be successful if a fair balance between the needs of the employer and the employee can be maintained.

By Carrie Hartnell, Transformational Business Programme Manager

A night to remember

2008-05-19T10:57:06+01:00

The Intellect Annual Dinner held last week was one of those occasions when it felt great to be part of the UK's technology industry. Sitting amongst 500 fellow technologists, talking about the many interesting aspects of our work, I felt truly proud. This feeling only got stronger when our President's Report was launched.

Did you know that we provide a bigger percentage of UK GDP than the transport and agricultural industries combined? Or that one in twenty of the working population is an IT professional? Or more importantly that the technology sector generates over £35 billion of Gross Value Add (GVA) to the UK economy? I also found out that while the sector is performing relatively well at present - we are expecting to grow 1-2% above GDP - there are some things we need to pay much greater attention to if we want to be part of a great industry in a few years time.

Identified as one of the six booster areas in the President’s report, the issue of skills and the workforce is not just a concern for our industry; it also affects the citizen as increasingly we see a world where a degree of IT literacy is necessary. Currently employment in the IT industry is growing five times faster than the UK average, which is a good indicator of the favourable growth rates we are seeing. However technology-related education is declining rapidly, leaving the industry with a shrinking talent pool to hire from. It is vital for the industry that more is done to encourage students into STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects. Equally the industry must work collaboratively with schools, universities and curriculum developers to train and retain the brightest. Indeed we are seeing recognition of the importance of this issue as John Denham, the secretary of state for innovation, universities and skills, is today announcing £200m in capital spending over the next three years to prevent an acute shortage of skills in strategic sectors of the economy.

Improving the UK’s communications infrastructure is another booster high on the agenda. Over the centuries the UK economy has benefited from extensive transport infrastructure, helping drive economic growth. Today a world class communications infrastructure is the cornerstone for any leading 21st century knowledge economy. Ensuring the UK has access to next generation broadband will be key in keeping the economy competitive in a global environment. A concerted and innovative approach will be required to achieve the right balance of investment incentives and competition that will enable a market led transition to next generation broadband.

These were just a couple of boosters that struck me, the others were:

· Higher professional standards in the sector and its workforce
· Improved trust and confidence in the sectors ability to deliver value securely
· Better exploitation of innovation
· A continually improving relationship with other sectors

The boosters had succeeded in hitting home the point that we cannot rest on our laurels. This is a great industry to be in, but unless we all play our part to nurture it, we run the risk of loosing our edge. It was a great night to be a part of the technology industry, but the boosters certainly left us all with food for thought.

By Carrie Hartnell, Transformational Business Programme Manager

The future of eHealth without frontiers

2008-05-12T13:08:53+01:00

As with most of these events the title of this month’s EU ‘eHealth without frontiers’ conference in Slovenia seemed to focus more on ‘ill health without frontiers’. The UK is clearly not alone, with representatives from across member states describing the same challenges time and time again: a rapidly ageing population and the growth of chronic diseases like COPD (or smoker’s lung), combined with rising citizen expectations and an ever mobile population.

The sharing of electronic health records (EHRs) and interoperability (technical and semantic) are becoming increasingly critical to delivering both value for money and more personalised healthcare services. These solutions are essentially about one thing – cooperation. Ultimately, the only way to deal with the healthcare challenges of the future will be through patient-doctor partnerships that provide tailor-made healthcare delivery, doctors working with other doctors (within and across borders), and computers communicating with other computers (within and across borders).

There was much talk of the European Commission’s Smart Open Services (SOS) programme, a three-year plan involving 12 member states and 31 suppliers cooperating around a shared goal – to enable the interoperable sharing of electronic patient summaries and e-prescribing across borders (and with, I should add, patient consent). What’s important about the SOS project is that it has the potential to revolutionise healthcare by establishing the basis for a future pan-European eHealth infrastructure, supporting integrated care and improving patient safety.

Telehealth was also a major focus of the debate. Case studies presented from Slovenia, Greece and Finland demonstrated technology’s role in compensating for shortages in health professionals and increasing patient choice through personalisation. Dr Andrew McCormick (Permanent Secretary, Department of Health and Social Services and Public Safety, Northern Ireland) gave an overview of Northern Ireland’s plans to implement telehealth solutions on a national scale. I am sure all eyes will be on this programme, which has earmarked £46m to be spent on telemedicine services for chronic disease management (CDM) and aims to have 5000 people on remote patient monitoring by 2011.

Ultimately technology will provide the tools that enable society to look away from traditional disease-centric models of health management and more towards self-empowered health management. But, technology cannot achieve this vision alone – cooperation will be essential in ensuring that the UK and other member states are able to meet the challenges presented by 21st healthcare. And less tangibly, just imagine the social benefits that can be achieved through cooperation on this scale.

By Melissa Frewin and John Hoggard – Transformational Government