Monday, December 15, 2003		Guest Speak

THE Internet revolution during the last few years has proved without any doubt that technological innovation can expand access to information and knowledge faster than one can imagine. The knowledge available at WWW alone will continue to empower communities and individuals around the world. The major impact of new information technologies (which creates new opportunities) is on the society where there has to be a greater focus on gearing up IT professionals to meet the challenges. A quick look at global trends in technology applications and IT investments reveals the opportunities for professionals. All these do not really reflect any slowdown and a detailed analysis indicates a rise in the need for skilled IT professionals.

Technology and market trends

The Internet technologies are becoming more affordable as technological companies and software developers "open systems," by making software packages freely accessible through the Internet, instead of costly proprietary software. On the hardware side, it is often argued that the communications infrastructure and data networks are the major obstacles, making it even harder for developing countries to take full advantage. This may be true, but it is also true that many developing countries are "skipping" a generation of hardwired technology. In the developing countries, wireless services are replacing traditionally expensive land wires. And already, in some developing countries such as Cote d’Ivoire and the Philippines, more than 50 per cent of phone lines are mobile-based systems. Such innovations in cellphone technology, wireless local loop, and satellite technology hold our best hope even for rural and traditionally inaccessible communities.

Today, information technology is a $600-$700 billion business, accounting for about 7 per cent of the US economy, and close to half of all business investments. Virtually every sector is increasing its IT and communications capacity at a rapid rate.

The Wall Street Journal recently noted that annual business investment in IT is up over 300 per cent since 1990, and now accounts for over 50 per cent of the total private sector investments. Companies are using IT to cut costs, increase productivity, reduce the time required to develop new products, harness the collective expertise of their employees, and create an extended enterprise by closer relationships with their customers, suppliers, and partners. Business-to-business e-commerce in goods and services is projected to grow to $1.5 trillion by the end of 2003 in the US itself.

Innovative applications

Below are just a few applications that have the potential to increase global productivity and competitiveness.

Electronic marketplaces: Electronic marketplaces allow buyers and sellers to meet to exchange goods and services. These services include directories of buyers and sellers, multi-vendor electronic product catalogues, customised industry information, online auctions and support for different phases of a transaction, including approval, ordering, and payment. These services and technologies support large corporate buyers to aggregate content from multiple suppliers, create customised sites within their Intranets, and integrate Internet-based procurement into their financial and accounting systems.

Knowledge management: Many firms have recognised that the knowledge of their employees is one of their biggest assets and have launched initiatives to manage it. These efforts include creating, identifying, collecting and organising internal knowledge, sharing it within the firm (or with customers and suppliers), and encouraging the adaptation and use of that knowledge. IT helps/ enables knowledge management initiatives, such as databases of best practices, electronic discussion groups to support communities of practice within the firm, and relevant search engines.

Technology-based training: Fast changing technologies necessitate training the manpower. The training may be about products for sales managers, product support for customer support personnel, operation of equipment or products for operators and users. This demand cannot be met with conventional means of training. The market for technology-based training is growing rapidly. Managers are finding that technology-based training can allow workers to learn at a time, place and pace that is convenient for them, and can be more cost-effective than traditional classroom based instruction. Modelling and simulation: Modelling and simulation technology offers many advantages and permits industry to try out the ideas and products much before they are implemented. They help in the design of products, study the impact on the market, evaluate the marketing strategies, test service models etc

Remote monitoring and maintenance of equipment: Improvements in the ability to continuously monitor the condition of power plants, vehicles, aircraft engines, and manufacturing equipment will increase the reliability, improve energy efficiency, indicate when and what kind of preventative maintenance is required, and save lives. Companies such as Caterpillar are installing sensors in earth-moving equipment to monitor engine temperature, oil pressure, and metal shavings in the oil. This information is transmitted to corporate headquarters, so that technicians can nip problems in the bud. Low-cost wireless sensors could significantly increase the cost-effectiveness of condition-based maintenance.

Computational grid: Computing will be like the electric power grid - invisible to the end user and easy to tap into. A computational grid could make the benefits of high-end computing for modelling and simulation and other applications accessible to a much broader range of companies. One can see the first small steps in this direction with "application service providers" - firms that host enterprise applications on remote servers for small and medium-sized companies. Imagine the benefits, if the computing is available via a phone line and the results come back through the phone line. Component-based software engineering: Currently, the software industry lacks the equivalent of inter-changeable parts. Many software applications are written from scratch, with little reuse of existing code. Success in this area would allow for much more rapid and cost-effective development of applications.