"We'll all be rooned," said Hanrahan
In accents most forlorn
Online and twittering round the globe
One frosty Sunday morn.
(apologies to PJ Hartigan)
analysis There is currently a great deal of gloom and doom about the state of the Australian ICT sector.
Some of it is linked, validly, to the global financial crisis and the traditional place of ICT spending in business priorities; that is, one of the first things to be cut. But there is also a view that governments in Australia do not understand the sector and fail to give any strategic policy leadership. For good measure, some think the industry itself is inwards looking, too conservative and poorly led.
Certainly there are plenty of negative signs if you care to look for them: The tough economic climate, apparently falling disproportionately on the ICT sector, is a legitimate reason for firms to be a little distracted; There is fear and loathing (perhaps unwarranted but still there) about the impact of the Gershon Report on how Australian Government agencies manage ICT projects and budgets; and opportunities identified for ICT in the Review of the National Innovation System have vanished into "consideration in the budget context".
Then too, the Government's proposed National Broadband Network does not appear to offer much for high-end users, for example researchers, audiovisual producers, e-health specialists; and a government discussion paper on future directions for the digital economy excluded key issues and offered little evidence of new thinking; Australian Government administrative arrangements in this area are fragmented and uncoordinated and opportunities continue to be missed (for example, the 2020 Summit agenda was watered down to exclude information economy issues and potential invitees; the 2008-09 Budget and the 2008 stimulus package had no ICT initiatives; and CeBIT 2009 in Hannover was almost devoid of an Australian presence.
What
are the real issues?
Before we get too excited about "growing a
local industry" and "we need our very own Minister" we should
consider some of the defining characteristics of the ICT sector in
Australia in 2009. The key ones are as follows: At one level ICT is a
commodity — Broadband is the most obvious example, but server
capacity and mobile connectivity are also valid examples, as is
Moore's Law.
Prices are driven down, but services become both essential and taken for granted. At another level ICT is an enabling platform — innovation through the collaborative use of information across all sectors, not just research, is a key element of the recent review of the national innovation system. ICT and associated user skills are key.
In addition, ICT is strongly focused on the government as a customer — the upside of this is government's demanding nature for continually solving new problems, driving innovation. The downside is an emphasis on marketing and sales to the exclusion of most other issues. There are success stories to celebrate — one is National ICT Australia (NICTA), which is doing world-class ICT research with excellent business linkages. Another is the Australian games sector, which is a creative and export success.
Furthermore, international linkages are critical — all industries may be global, but ICT is even more so, in terms both of institutions (policy, standards-setting and regulatory) and exposure to the proverbial world's best practice.
10 ideas for moving ahead
Here are some ideas for taking the ICT sector ahead,
and which can be done without a summit, a Minister for ICT or the
hiring of any new government employees. Some of them will require government action, some are a matter for industry
and the research community. They are, in no particular order:
- Establish a National Information Strategy as recommended by the Review of the National Innovation System: Making government information and publicly funded research data and collections freely available and accessible as part of a global public commons can provide new resources for use in innovative ways. The OECD has shown this in significant research. Rather than major new expenditure, it requires changes in attitudes from government; for example in shifting from traditional copyright to the more flexible Creative Commons.
- Extend Australian Government funding of NICTA beyond 2011 and make it responsible to a single minister: A review of NICTA has recently been finalised. If core funding is not extended, NICTA will not be able to continue, which would be a perverse outcome given its successes in moving beyond the traditional university research model. There is no good reason why NICTA should have to answer to both the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research and the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy.
- Rationalise ICT representative bodies: These include the Australian Information Industry Association, the Australian Industry Group, the Australian Computer Society, the Australian Interactive Media Industry Association, the Australian Telecommunications Users Group, the Internet Society (Australia) and the Communications Alliance. An attempt to work together through a National ICT Industry Alliance seems to have disappeared so some mergers appear an obvious alternative, especially in the current economic climate.
- Commit to an e-health strategy and follow it through: This has been an area of significant failure in national standards, interoperability, acceptance by health professionals and Commonwealth-State cooperation. The potential gains in terms of better services and lower costs make it worth pursuing. A strategy document has been agreed by commonwealth and state Ministers but there does not appear to be any implementation schedule.
- Develop a new framework for ICT standards: Standards are effectively set internationally — the main Australian connection is a private body, Standards Australia10 — with little government involvement but can have far reaching consequences eg is a Microsoft-sponsored standard "open" and capable of continuous development. Greater transparency and accountability would be good in itself and may also encourage more involvement by qualified Australians.
- Open up international engagement: Bodies such as the OECD, APEC and ITU have provision for private sector involvement, but Australian business is chronically under-represented, leaving the work to government officials who tend to be secretive about proceedings. More open cooperation between government and business would ensure a more productive Australian place at the table when issues such as Internet standards, innovation through ICT and regulatory cooperation are up for decision.
- Encourage marketing of Australian capabilities in ICT: Austrade, which seems to have scaled back its work with the ICT sector, focuses on products and firms already in the market. This overlooks Australia's problem-solving capabilities in ICT as a very saleable commodity which differentiates us from many competitors. This should be a service export rather than the inwards investment focus currently given to it by Austrade.
- Revitalise the ICT Research Roundtable: This little-known group facilitates cooperation among publicly funded ICT research bodies including NICTA, CSIRO, DSTO and universities. Some funding assistance and greater private sector involvement would bring real results and help bridge the gap between business and research.
- Establish a small business innovation contracting program as recommended by the Review of the National Innovation System: Based on a long-standing US Government program, this would see Commonwealth and State agencies allocating a proportion of their R&D funding for small businesses to develop innovative solutions for government. It would provide a cost-effective way for small Australian ICT firms to participate in the government market from which they are effectively excluded at present.
- Ensure that new
government ICT arrangements look at the bigger picture: The newly
established Ministerial Committee on ICT and Secretaries ICT
Governance Board should not confine themselves to management of
government ICT projects (important as that is) but also address
broader issues such as ... well, the previous nine suggestions.
Better coordination and cooperation between Ministers and between
agencies is only achievable from the top down — it is how
government works.
Tom Dale was a senior executive with the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy until May 2008. He has 34 years' experience in the Australian Public Service and 12 years in the Senior Executive Service. He is a partner in BartonDale Partners. This article first appeared on the company's site and is published on ZDNet.com.au with his permission.
6%
2%
ITIL can fit the bill perhaps? Or maybe a mix of ISO standards? No need to roll our own...
There must be a reason why none of these are being looked at when you have a department for ICT... and most of these DO require government action. Do you see any organization willing to take the initiative under the current climate?