Volume 9, No. 1, January 1999
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Let me wish all the readers a very happy 1999. Last year was bad for us as we had to skip the October 1998 issue because of lack of funds. There is promise of new funding in the new year. For the IT professionals in India 1998 was a very good year. Amidst a slow-down in all the sectors of the Indian economy, IT was the lone exception. The new government has done a lot to provide an impetus to the IT industry. Many state governments are vying with each other to attract investments in the IT sector. The scrips of leading IT companies are doing very well. Many Indian companies are planning to establish a bigger presence in other countries. Several new educational institutions have been announced. Robert Schware from the World Bank and I thought we will contribute to the general upbeat mood by documenting in a book, the impact of IT on rural development in India. The book is sponsored by IIMA and the World Bank jointly. We set about scouting for IT applications which have been implemented at the lowest level of administrative hierarchy (for a cluster of hundred villages) and have produced significant benefits for the population. The search was exciting and we were able to locate fifteen applications of this kind. For example, in 600 milk collection centres located in the rural hinterland of Gujarat, IT has helped to: reduce queues of people who bring in their milk; provide immediate payment to such people and prevent inaccuracies in measurement of weight and fat content of the milk. People drop a plastic card in a reader which identifies them to the computer and pour in the milk into shallow trough kept over a weigh bridge which immediately displays the weight. A 50 gm sample is tested in a semi-automatic machine and the fat content is dispalyed in 20 seconds. The data is logged into a PC which calculates the payment due to the farmer which is then paid at an adjoining window. Three customers are handled per minute. I have rarely seen this kind of speed in even the most automated customer service counters. The total cost of the integrated equipment which is being supplied by a private enterpreuner is $2000. This is triumph of public/private partnership and sensible use of technology. The PCs are old (486s) and the software is written in FoxPro but the impact is significant. With this issue we are also inaugurating the web delivery of this newsletter from IIMA. Please provide us feedback.
Industrial Development And The Access To Information Per Lind ‘The information rich and information poor’ was an expression coined some years ago to illustrate that information was a resource for the richer countries, generated and used among those who were endowed with the appropriate technology, skills and infra-struc-ture that would enable them to benefit from the growing flow of information. Since then, information has developed into a commodity, available globally through communication networks that make little distinction between developing and developed countries. Various future scenarios can be pictured, one where the gap between the information poor and the informa-tion rich shrinks further due to general access to infor-mation technology. Another scenario may see a widening gap between those who can afford and those who cannot afford to pay the price for information, set by the market. Yet another scenario may see a gap develop between those who can distinguish useful from not useful information and those who do not have this ability due to lack of knowledge. All scenarios will have si-gnificant impact on industrial development and on industrial competitiveness in developing countri-es. What is industry information? No industry can manage without information. The crafts-worker needs to know where material can be purchased at an acceptable price or how much the competitors down the lane charge for their scarves or knifes or carvings. The advanced industry firm with international operations must know, in addition, how customer taste varies between markets and what is the production capacity of its most distant plants. Because of their complexity, advanced firms also use formal economic and business models to secure their strategic develop-ment. Industrial informa-tion can therefore be grouped into three categories – factual, descriptive and normative information. Factual information provides direct and non-disputable facts such as bank exchange rates, actual stock exchange quotations and prizes on the commodity market. Factual information is preferably presented with numerals. Users of factual information are mostly knowledgeable about specific topics and can, therefore, directly assimilate the informa-tion. Easiness of interpretation depends on the user's familiarity with technicalities such as graphs, indices and indicators. Descriptive information explains and describes function, and also presents views. Understanding this information requires familiarity with the subject and is mostly understood without specific interpretation. Knowledge of language and terminology used for the descrip-tion is required. Access to factual and descriptive informa-tion has been constrai-ned by lack of adequate information channels. Information technology based on international networks such as the Internet will signifi-cantly improve this flow of information to remote areas. In view of the very big investments being made in information technology for global communication, most developing countries will be linked to these networks in the near future. Information of a normative kind requires interpreta-tion. For instance, computer soft-ware for production planning and control is a model of compressed normative informa-tion, used by managers to plan and control production flows; it has built-in functions for correc-tive actions. Based on ideas about what are essential produc-tion problems and appropriate solutions, this type of informa-tion is not value-neutral but advocates a certain school of thoughts and ideology. Problems as well as solutions must be viewed in their proper contexts, and interpretation must therefore be made within this contextual framework. Access to normative information is also facilitated through the new information technology and global information networks. The constraints on normative information are less of a technological nature but reflect differences in value systems, reference frames and meanings of words. Normative information is a pre-requisite for appropriate applications of descriptive and factual infor-mation. Adequate understanding of models and methods in technology, economy and management leads to the demand for factual and descrip-tive informa-tion needed for industrial operations. Misunderstanding or lack of understanding of normative information may result in demand for wrong or inadequate factual or descriptive information. There are different constraints to using information in industry. Local conditions may make the infor-mation less useful, or agents may make a selection that is less useful, or there may be a combination of obstacles. Confusion is caused by failing to distinguish between them. Constraints in local conditions In small and medium enterprises, in particular, managers show resistance to dependence on information in decision- making. Instead, decisions are often made on previous commitments with little resort to analysis. Limited use of informa-tion in decision-making is also ascribed to a general lack of awareness and understanding on what enhances produc-tivity and perfor-mance. Without such awareness, an important incentive for using information for business analysis is missing. Constraints in the demand for this type of information are often related to decision-makers. There may be a lack of awareness and know-ledge about theories, methods and models that can help in organising work and which can contribute to improved performance. There may be unfamiliarity with abstract reasoning concerned with trends and indicators and other types of output reports. Resort to formal analysis may also be regarded as a threat to organisational authority. Constraints in selection The flow of information from source to user is determined by the supply and demand of information. Agents are important as links between suppliers and users. An agent may, for example, be a local sales office of a multinational enterprise or an international organisation, collecting and dissemi-nating information. Agents are needed to bridge gaps between source and user. Such gaps exist for different reasons. Long distances and also cultural or language barriers, cause the supplier of information to seek the assistance of an agent to act as a mediator. Local regional branch offices are typical agents where industry-related information is brought to the market together with products or services. In developing countri-es, the agent often has the role of promoter and conveyor of information. This role makes the agent important - as users often turn to them in search of information - but also controversial because of the power they may exert on the selection of information. Agents, acting as intermediaries between sources and users, are becoming significant users of international information channels. The synergy effects created between agents and channels give new values to information, making it a commodity that is traded and also assigned a market value. On the basis of market economy principles, it can be assumed that the financially strong users will have a crucial influence. Primarily these users are found in the most industrialised countries. Developing countries will have limited influence on what information will be supplied. Constraints in information value Lack of correspon-dence between reality and model hampers the use of information for certain types of analysis. Concepts and models that may be well defined and valid in one cultural setting may be less appro-priate in another. Also linguistic discrepancies also occur- words and expressio-ns may mean different things. Different cultures may have different time concepts or different authority patterns, so different meanings are attached to organisational efficiency. Sources of technical and industrial information Sources of industry-related information range from conferences and university research institutions (normative information) to information agents continuously disseminating factual business infor-mation about patents, industry profiles, commodity prices and exchange rates. Information is disseminated in various forms, from books, periodicals and conference proceedings to electronic channels in global networks. Most publications about industrial and technical subjects originate in the industrialised world (the most industrialised countries account for more than 90%). The poor representation of developing countries is partly explained by the reluc-tance by researchers and analysts to collect industry data for scientific purposes. National scientists may even consider local industry's research inquiries ridiculous and unworthy of their attention. Information agents and information channels While only few years ago information was primarily transferred in physical documents such as books and periodicals, a significant share of today's informa-tion flow is channelled electronically via satellites and computers. Growth in global communication networks has been excep-tional and has facilitated the exchange of vital informa-tion also to developing countries. Global information networks primarily handle factual and descriptive information. But because of the increased commercialisation of information and its huge volumes, users will not only need to know how to select, but also how to filter information. This awareness is gradually growing in the industrialised countries as knowledge about information oriented societies develops. In most developing countries, a more balanced and discriminating attitude to information and infor-mation values is still to come. Internet and other communication concepts that will develop in the near future are metaphors for uncomplicated global communi-cation and interaction. The metaphor is, however, not unambiguous since in-creased carrying capacity is primarily a question of quantity. Net-works can make information available. The value and usefulness of information is still a different matter. Information for management control Privatisation of public enterprises and private entrepren-e-ur-ship are today two concepts that attract growing worldwide interest. In line with the growing interest in small and medium scale enterprises and with the development of concepts to strengthen their competitive edge, informa-tion techno-logy can greatly promote business, monitor operations and improve administra-tive effici-ency. The full benefit of informa-tion tech-nology, however, is achieved only when an organisation applies it to analysing in addition to process-ing. Software for processing applica-tions, with the focus on internal productivity, is available for enterprises in most developing countries. This type of software is primarily control orient-ed, seeking to direct operations towards pre-set objectives and goals within existing constraints and organisational frameworks Processing software preserves stability. Software for analysis, on the other hand, assumes active management involve-ment and organisational adaptation in order to remove con-straints that hamper the enterprise in its business process. Information and knowledge Would the less developed countries in the world today be better off if they had access to more information? Would there be more efficient utilisation of scarce resources and better decisions made? Would there be less famine and more literacy? Has computerisation in governments and ministries in developed countries drastical-ly improved political decisions? Have advanced information process-ing methods significantly improved the economic predictions made by macro-economists? Has the thorough computerisation of newspaper pro-duction led to higher standards in newspaper articles? The answer to these questions is yes and no. Information technology certainly facilitates the exchange of factual and descriptive information needed for more efficient management. But information technology has not facilitated the exchange of normative information based on values, moral and ethics - simply because information is no replace-ment for knowledg-e. A crucial question is how the growing capacity of global informa-tion networks can provide knowledge that will be of benefit, directly and indirect-ly, to countries and their popu This basic issue remain what steps are needed to ensure that increased access to and dissemination of information leads to increased knowledge? This issue is closely related to how normative information can be transferred between different social, economical and technical contexts without being distorted, misunderstood or loosing its origi-nal meaning. An example: new management and business principles have emerged that seem particularly relevant to the development of small and medium industry, including those in developing countries. A basic and common concept in these new management ideologies is total quality. But quality is a normative notion, developed in the industrialised countries as a counter-reaction to the systems rationalism of the 1950s and 60s. It signifies a changed atti-tude to employees and clients and reflects the new social patterns that developed in the most industrialised societies in the 70s and 80s. The meaning of total quality has therefore been difficult to transfer to other cultural contexts with different attitudes to employees and clients. A phrase like ‘customer satisfaction’ simply has different meanings in different places. Information is the new hope in Pandora's box, the magic that will help the industries in developing countries optimise resource utilisation for the benefit of the their popu-lations. It could build up management awareness and competence and help develop industry models that could also be applied to social struc-tures that domi-nate the less developed countries. But it could also lead to neo-colonialism where power of information becomes power to dominate. A critical approach to commercial information and a strong demand for quality information that addresses real needs will be an important strategy in the years to come, both in developing and developed countries. Participation in Information Systems Projects: The New Tyranny? Richard Heeks It often seems that use of participative approaches in the development of information systems (IS) has reached the status of a new orthodoxy: a ‘magic bullet’ technique that is always relevant, always beneficial in trying to overcome the high failure rate of information systems. Actual application of participative approaches to IS projects in developing countries (DCs) appears relatively limited, with a top-down style seeming to be much more prevalent. Some have also questioned the applicability of participative techniques in the context of the DCs, given their apparent mismatch to the overtly hierarchical, even autocratic, culture of some DC organisations (Avgerou and Land 1992). Mikko Korpela (e.g. Korpela et al. 1998) has been digging behind the overt image to suggest longer-term currents of participation that run through the cultural values and histories of some developing countries. Adding to a general consensus that participation is desirable, Mikko’s work therefore suggests that participative approaches may also be both appropriate and viable in a DC context. This debate about the role and value of participation in information systems development has parallels with a debate about the role and value of participation in development projects more generally. This article therefore seeks to draw conclusions from the latter debate for the former domain, based on papers and discussion at the recent symposium, ‘Participation: The New Tyranny?’, held by the Institute for Development Policy and Management at the University of Manchester in November 1998. Further details of the original workshop can be obtained from Bill Cooke (bill.cooke@man.ac.uk) or Uma Kothari (uma.kothari@man.ac.uk) at IDPM in the University of Manchester. Problems of Participation Participation has become a ‘container concept’ (Musch 1998): so broad as to cover a multitude of approaches and techniques. Participation can thus mean many things. For example, one can participate in providing information; in decision making; in implementation of decisions; and in evaluation of those implemented decisions. Like ‘motherhood and apple pie’, participation defies tight definition, yet is regarded as a ‘good thing’. It thus attains the status of a new mantra amongst development agencies, despite limited hard evidence of success of participation (Cleaver 1998). Its mantra status is confirmed by the fact that most debate has settled into discussion about different participative techniques rather than a deeper or continuous questioning of the value of participation per se. Yet that deeper questioning reveals a number of problematic aspects of participation. Ignoring Context Participation is often undertaken without considering the political and cultural context within which it seeks to take place: ‘participatory processes have been increasingly approached as technical, management solutions to what are basically political issues’ (Gujit and Shah 1998:3). In particular, there are clear cases in development contexts where participation is not participation: where the culture and politics of an organisation prevent apparently participative processes producing participative outcomes by constraining who can say what and how within any kind of group activity (Biggs and Smith 1998). For IS projects, this suggests that there will therefore be contexts in which participation is not a viable technique, and where attempts to introduce it will fail. Veneered participation. Because of the orthodoxy of participation, however, organisations often feel forced to create a veneer of participation even if they perceive it to be contextually non-viable. They may do this in order, for example, to please the aid donors, with this veneer covering a reality of more top-down, authoritarian approaches to decision-making. In such organisations there may be constant reference to theories and models of participation as guiding principles when, in fact, they do not guide actual practice. In some cases, this veneer is erected to cover decision-making processes that are ‘organisationally recognised’ as being more effective or efficient. In other cases, though, the veneer may be a cover for the attainment of personal objectives by one or two powerful actors. In understanding the apparently participative IS projects it is therefore necessary to ‘scratch beneath the surface’ and see whether there is any real sense of participation in those projects. Inequitable participation. There can be a mistaken assumption that the process of participation breaks down existing inequalities. In practice, political context suffuses participation. Outcomes of supposedly participative processes are frequently dominated by those individuals who are themselves powerful through position, knowledge, etc. or who are representatives of powerful groups or who, more prosaically, have the power of being publicly articulate. One well-observed finding has been the lack of input from women in processes that outwardly appear participative (Mohan 1998). Particular mention can also be made of the role of external facilitators and their powerful ability to steer apparently participative processes and to shape decision outcomes. Skewed participation. Inequality may arise even before participation itself has begun in the way that representatives are selected to ‘participate in participation’. Membership is often skewed towards the powerful and away from the marginalised. This happens both through nomination and self-selection of members. It can, for instance, bias IS participation towards managerial secondary users and away from clerical primary users. Non-communicative participation. Participative groups and processes tend to reproduce their political and cultural context. One consequence is the inability of representatives from different stakeholder groupings to empathise and communicate with each other. In the IS project process, this is seen most strongly around the ‘ITernal triangle’ (Knight and Silk 1990) that recognises the separate cultures, mindsets and even language of three groups: a) senior managers; b) IT staff; and c) mainstream staff and users. Consequences of their non-communication include delays, misunderstandings and inappropriate design or implementation. Career-enhancing participation. The use of participation may reflect the personal agendas of one or two powerful staff rather than the needs of the project or organisation. Those who introduce participation into their projects will often see their careers boosted – and may even go on as consultants to sell the skills and techniques of participation to other organisations – regardless of the success or failure of the initial project (Mosse 1998). Ignoring participation Because participation has become the new mantra, it is often introduced in a top-down, blueprint manner. This may preclude true participation, as already suggested by many of the acontextual approaches described above. Indicative/token participation. Where participation is merely a token – perhaps a presence more for external than for internal consumption – there may be an obsession with the institutions and overt indicators of participation, such as committees and meetings, rather than the process and outcomes of participation (Cleaver 1998). Mere membership of such committees, mere attendance at meetings is equated with successful participation. Projects therefore claim to be successful by demonstrating an appearance of participation rather than by demonstrating achievement of participative outcomes. Such token participation is normally not part of any wider or longer-term process of empowerment. For an IS project, the outcomes are little better than those achieved by top-down diktat. Indeed, the outcomes may be worse if, for instance, user groups are disappointed by the tokenism and thus become alienated from the IS development process. Bureaucratic participation. Very similar is the bureaucratic approach to participation, or ‘participation by numbers’: a checklist approach that fails to create any true process of empowerment or involvement. One example of this is ‘bean-counting participation’ that requires one representative of each perceived existing structure or grouping to be present, regardless of the validity or impact of such representation. For IS projects this may create dysfunctional teams that are unable to produce the required decisions and outputs. Injurious participation. Top-down, bureaucratic participation may impose rigid formal structures on pre-existing flexible informal truly participative structures, thereby submerging the latter. Formal committees and meetings can jeopardise longer-term, carefully-crafted relationships between existing stakeholders (Hailey 1998). If imposed, participation may also be seen as a powerful and demotivating ‘vote of no confidence’ in existing IS staff and their methods. Participation seems especially likely to be injurious in this way if it is ‘alien participation’: introduced as a technique by outsiders, such as consultants. This undermines the ability of organisational groups to take responsibility themselves for change generally and for IS development more specifically, thereby increasing their external dependence (Mohan 1998). Ignoring reality As already described, supposedly participative approaches may ignore the realities of context and the realities of poor outcomes. Reality may also be ignored in other ways. Resource-deficit participation. Those introducing participation can make a mistaken assumption about the innate resourcefulness of individuals and groups: assuming that they are latently capable and resourced and that these capacities merely need to be uncovered through participation. In reality, this is not so. Members of organisations, like members of communities, often have heavy existing workloads and have no time to invest in new processes of participation. Where they do participate, there are frequent cases of stress and burnout (Dockery 1998). There are equally a significant set of required capabilities for those who would take part in participative processes: to absorb information, to put forward a viewpoint publicly, to take decisions, to implement decisions, to evaluate decisions, etc. In reality, individuals may lack these capabilities. Inefficient participation. Even where there are no resource deficits, participation may deny the reality of its resource costs. In practice, participation – which can be a substantial consumer of time, effort and money – may be far less efficient than a well-communicated top-down decision that could be equally acceptable to most stakeholders. There is a constant danger that participative groups may invest heavily to produce an information system that is no better (or even – see below – is worse) than one produced much more efficiently by less democratic means. Rational non-participation: There may be a mistaken assumption about the presence of a further resource: motivation. It seems generally assumed that engagement in participation is the only rational approach that individuals can adopt; that there is no such thing as a rational choice not to participate in a decision-making process or an IS development process. In reality, it may often be rational for individuals not to participate. This may be so even where the decision outcomes are of interest, if someone else will make and implement decisions that will be beneficial, or at least acceptable, to the individual without requiring them to invest time and effort. Even more, where the individual is not interested in the decision or outcome, it is rational not to participate. The result of this mistaken assumption can be top-down imposition of participation on individuals or groups who resent th Groupthink participation. Participation generally means working in groups, and the reality of group working is not always positive. Cooke (1998) describes three potentially negative outcomes:
Post-modern participation: ignoring rigour. There can be a mistaken conflation of participation with the post-modern view that all perspectives are of equal value, or even with the view that there should be an categorical rejection of formality and structure. This, in turn, can mean a rejection of rigour in decision making and action. There can be deification of personal feelings and opinions that ignores more structural, systemic, environmental factors that need to be considered. With information systems, this may materialise in the idea that having a talking shop about the IS is good enough and that any kind of rigorous analysis, design or implementation can be – indeed should be – rejected. ‘Let it all hang out’ participation: ignoring confidentiality. A necessary part of ‘proper participation’ can be seen as a requirement to bring all issues and all feelings out into the open. In the first place this is clearly alien to many organisational cultures. Secondly, secrets have their value in all contexts. ‘Letting it all hang out’ can have negative impacts of increasing disagreement and conflict within the organisation, making a positive outcome of participation less rather than more likely. Conclusions From the
discussion above, one can differentiate: Despite all these criticisms and shortcomings, participation will remain an important tool in the IS development toolkit. Not surprisingly, then, new and refined techniques are still suggested to cope with both the identified constraints and problems. For example:
“It is important to look at what is going on around the techniques themselves if, as suggested here, the main determinants of outcomes lie not with the choice of method but with the institutions and protagonists in which those choices are made.” (Biggs and Smith 1998:245) This therefore suggests that three key questions must be asked where participation is being considered. 1. What is the political and cultural context? As noted, it seems likely that this context determines IS and other outcomes more than the particular approach or techniques – participative or otherwise – that are utilised. Discussion and diffusion of politico-cultural analysis tools may therefore be of greater value in the IS domain than the minutiae of participative or technical analysis techniques. 2. Who wants to introduce participation, and why? Those initiating participation may be motivated by a desire to offload IS responsibilities and workloads onto others, or by a desire to achieve certain career goals. This is clearly less likely to be successful than the situation where participation is driven by a desire to improve IS decision-making and increase the ownership of those decisions. 3. Who is participation sought from? Do they want to, and can they, participate? Similarly, from the perspective of potential participants, their motivations and resources are central. Where they lack a good reason to participate in an IS project and/or where they lack the resources to participate, participation failure is the likely outcome. References Avgerou, C. and Land, F. (1992) ‘Examining the appropriateness of information technology’, in Social Implications of Computers in Developing Countries, S.C. Bhatnagar and M. Odedra (eds), Tata McGraw-Hill, New Delhi, 26-41. Biggs, S. and Smith, G. (1998) ‘Beyond methodologies: coalition-building for participatory technology development’, World Development, 26(2), 239-248. The following papers presented at symposium on Participation: The New Tyranny?, IDPM, University of Manchester, 3 November:
Gujit, I. and Shah, M. (1998) ‘Waking up to power, conflict and process’, in The Myth of Community, I. Gujit and M. Shah (eds), Intermediate Technology Publications, London. Hailey, J. (1998) ‘Beyond the PRA formula’ paper presented at symposium on Participation: The New Tyranny?, IDPM, University of Manchester, 3 November. Korpela, M. et al. (1998) ‘Blueprint for an African systems development methodology’, paper presented at IFIP WG9.4 international conference on Implementation and Evaluation of Information Systems in Developing Countries, Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, 18-20 February. Knight, A.V. and Silk, D.J. (1990) Managing Information, McGraw-Hill, London. The following papers presented at symposium on Participation: The New Tyranny?, IDPM, University of Manchester, 3 November.
Information Technology, Government and Development Richard Heeks This reports the outcome of a recent workshop on ‘IT, government and development’ held jointly on Nov. 26, 1998 by the UK Development Studies Association and the British Computer Society. A consistent – if downbeat – theme of the workshop was the limitations and failures of information technology in helping governments contribute to the development process. Information Technology’s Potential This is all the more frustrating given the undoubted potential that new technology has to offer. David Newman, for example, outlined the use of IT – especially the Internet – to support and develop community networks in Northern Ireland. Jean Hartley summarised the contribution that IT can make to the relationship between local governments and the communities they serve: in ‘grassrooting’ government, in building social, political and economic coalitions, in building representation upwards and outwards, and in mobilising the bureaucracy. The Reality of IT in Government: Barriers and Failures However, the potential of IT frequently remains just that: a potential that is not actualised. The application of IT in government is beset by both barriers and problematic outcomes. Vic Munro described the barriers that particularly affect the application of IT in African governments, but many of the issues he raised are almost universal within the public sector: financial constraints, politicisation of decision-making, and cultural clashes between existing values and those demanded by IT-based government. This was illustrated by Chrisanthi Avgerou in her description of the barriers to effective implementation of an IT-based system in a Greek social security organisation. Again, systemic cultural and political barriers were to the fore. We can,
appropriately, summarise these barriers to IT implementation in the form
of a ‘DEPREST’ framework:
Piers Cain provided an example of such failure in describing the impact of automated systems on accountability and records keeping in government. This has, at times, led to a diminution of accountability since intangible computer-based records are far more malleable and less durable than paper-based records. This was but one instance of three archetypes of IT, government and development failure that Richard Heeks des
In seeking to realise the potential of IT to support government’s contribution to the development process, the starting point must be to look beyond the technology. At the workshop, four integrated starting points were identified in harnessing IT:
In summing up these ways forward, and as an antidote to the earlier DEPREST model, one may conclude that effective application of IT in government to support development must be HAPPI because it puts at its Heart: Aims, Processes, People, and Information. Papers and
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Role of Education in Building Indigenous Information Technology in Africa Ms Adanma Cecilia
Eberendu and Jules-Raymond Tapamo Abstract It is an acceptable phenomenon that computer based information technology (IT) has the potential to romote development and alleviate some of the common information management problems identified in African countries. Education and training are important factors that can lead to faster development of indigenous IT in Africa, offering opportunities for exportation of IT products and services. The authors argued that proper education of IT experts and improved curricula are major tools. Some of the problems encountered while teaching information technology courses in Africa were highlighted as well as practical suggestions for improvement were made. Key words: Building indigenous, Problems encountered, Education, IT experts, Training Professionals. Introduction Startling and breath-taking advancements have been taking place continuously in the world of information technology. There is a rapid world movement from divergence to convergence, cries of open system, global village, paperless office, Year 2000 (Y2K) syndrome, robotics and the like. Developed countries are on their toes moving along these changes and investing billions of dollars in research with startling results. IT has advanced in such a way that the world is getting smaller and the revolution has left African countries grasping for breath. Africa, where are you? Are you only going to be users-never developers? Africa is asleep in a tumultuous sea, ignorant of the revolutionary changes going on in the world. We either join the rest of the world on the progressive information superhighway or we will forever be forgotten. Long ago, the goal of public education was to teach basic citizenship plus the limited skills needed in an economy that demanded more willing hands than active minds as stated by Anagnostopoulos and Williams, 1998. Today, nearly half of the workers must use computers on the job and to join the international workforce, all learners must develop the capacity to use computers effectively. To attain such level of performance, students must have adequate classrooms and practical time, rich array of learning materials (hardware and software), and access to skilled teachers. Education is a crucial prerequisite for successive development of indigenous IT in Africa. High priority should be accorded to every field of IT in tertiary educational system where vital role is played according to Philips, 1993. The goal of technology transfer is to benefit from experiences of others and implement such knowledge in near future on your own which later improves productivity, services and manpower. IT is having a great impact on the conduct of business and as such there is need for educational institutions to adequately prepare upcoming businessmen, engineers, scientists, artists, etc for the computer era. Unfortunately, in most universities and other institution of higher learning, computer science degree is still absent on their curricula. Most institutions that run the course are under stress with many students chasing few computers, few lecturers, few laboratories, etc. Unavailability of fund for research, maintenance of hardware and software, libraries, and unconducive environment for studies are some of the problems encountered while teaching information technology in higher institutions. Most African countries (Nigeria, Senegal and Cameroun, for instance) ended having lots of computer training schools which run nothing but computer appreciation courses, producing end-users but not the needed experts. This remains a major setback to the development of graduate skills in information technology for developing countries' workforce. In most African countries (Nigeria and Senegal for example) tertiary institutions include in their curricula "INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER SCIENCE" as a course for all disciplines in the graduate studies which ends up theoretically in most cases for lack of computers for practical learning. This knowledge is not enough to meet information technology expert needs in these countries. African tertiary institutions encounter lots of problems in teaching information technology, for instance: unavailability of computer hardware, software, professionals, funds, etc. Improved curricula for training new entrants is a major tool and there is need to include computer studies in primary/secondary curricula to create awareness at a tender age. The poor education system in most African countries prevents information technology from penetrating into the curricula. The teaching of general study computer course should be tailored to suit individual departmental need. Multinational companies have the best information system capabilities followed by government and institutions leaving behind an almost computerless private sector. Africa depends heavily on expatriates for IT needs which has made us a dumping ground for outdated products of which the Y2K syndrome will cost great havoc. Who Needs IT Knowledge in Africa Clearly, IT professionals have a role to play in educating and training one another as well as new entrants in IT field. IT training should not be limited to a particular group because critical services and utilities require IT for improvement, efficient and effective performance of their duties. Selim, 1993, outlined some of the areas in which IT is most needed: aeronautic systems, automated industries, modern power stations, media sector, telecommunications, etc. He also suggested distance learning computer assisted teaching and multimedia tools in vocational training, diagnostic programs and remote counselling for health sector. Books, magazines, journal and other publications for schools and libraries, agriculture, engineering and tourism also need computer systems to function effectively. IT has become a vital part of everyday life overnight, the levels of involvement although vary from individual to individual, between organisations and from one country to the other. It is having a greater impact on business; as such the integration of computers are changing the entire focus in management. IT training programmes in Africa are essentially unreliable, temperamental and uneducative with most teachers commissioned to impact IT knowledge to students either have nothing to offer or can scarcely do it effectively. If these trainers are well trained, then they can produce well-trained graduates. Therefore, we are advocating total computer literacy for all-even housewives. Training Problems in Africa IT capabilities vary from one country to the other in third-world countries of which Africa is one. Hardware and software are insufficient and unaffordable with very few skilled users. Variability is also high within countries in that government institutions with multinational organisations have acquired and are still acquiring IT capabilities leaving private sector behind. The few available professionals are found within these establishments. The shortage of qualified IT personnel hinders the advancement in effective planning, implementation, and use of IT especially in electronic communications thereby delaying the organisation from exploiting IT to its fullness. Funding has been the major bottleneck in the implementation of computer studies programme in African institutions of higher learning. It is that either there is absence of research grant or the available one is nothing-to-write-home-about. Most African lecturers cannot afford to attend international conferences, workshops, symposia, and neither belong to any international association nor subscribe to any international journal or newsletter due to unavailability of funds. At the moment, lecturers are out of date as a result of paucity of funds to provide even the most basic facilities like textbooks, journals or magazines. Insufficient computer facilities in training institutions coupled with staff shortages have made effective teaching, learning, and research very difficult for both students and lecturers according to Njovu, 1993. Motivation is totally absent in remunerating IT personnel in Afri Tertiary institutions are either teaching computer science without computers or many students are chasing few computers. Normally, it should be one student to a computer for effective teaching and understanding but we are faced with three or more students to one computer which is a problem to both lecturers and students. Due to African maintenance culture, frequent breakdowns reduced the availability of these systems. Unfortunately, very few universities offer Electronics Engineering as a discipline or computer hardware maintenance as a course, so there is no production of system maintenance experts. Broken-down hardware systems are kept aside. Computer Science books are scarce commodities both in the market and in the libraries in Africa, yet IEEE Computer Society Publication catalogue provides you with books published annually on Computer Science. What is happening on the internet is a big story to researchers and a tale told by an idiot to students in Africa, notwithstanding, computer communication and networking courses are being taught to these students and by these same lecturers. For instance, not all institutions of high learning is connected to the email. There are also inadequate curricula for training information technologists especially in Computer Science. Computer Science is new compared to other science courses like Mathematics, Statistics, Chemistry, Physics, Biology, etc and it is evolving, therefore its curricula should evolve as well. Computer Science with its peripheral courses is the fastest growing discipline; the totality of the product produced is a concern even to IT experts. Curricula should be revised from time to time to incorporate innovations with modifications to meet organisational needs. Waema, 1994, argued that bureaucracy involved in reviewing curricula is a further debilitating factor and that training programme should change in anticipation of developmental technology and other changes. IT training goes far beyond basic computer knowledge. In an attempt to respond to national information personnel requirement, some institutions embark on training programmes without proper planning and no thorough feasibility study on the need and benefits obtainable from it. Most of this training is organised by vendors with vested self-interest on the system provided, leaving aside the felt needs of the organisation which was not considered before the acquisition, leading eventually to a wasted investment. This is why many installations are either under-utilised or not used at all while the departments that need these facilities lack them. Finally, the problem of implementation failures is associated with decisions of IT training being formulated by computer illiterates. Computer Science departments in tertiary institutions are headed virtually either by novice or non-professionals and these managers are resistant to changes, seeing computer as coming to take over their jobs. IT literacy is vital to every educated personnel to enable him perform his job effectively and efficiently and this is why literacy is being redefined as the art of reading, writing, and computing. It will therefore be misplaced optimism to expect our tertiary institutions to contribute meaningfully to the state-of-the-art IT in their present condition. How Do We Provide This Education Provision of IT education can be carried out either in formal educational system or an informal educational system. There is a clarion call for individual countries to include computer literacy subject in primary and secondary curricula to create awareness, while all disciplines in the tertiary institutions should incorporate computer application courses in their programmes. Awareness is very important because if people are aware of , for instant, what Y2K syndrome is all about they will be at alert and guide against any eventuality. In this case, vendors should be compelled to sell only Y2K complaint systems and the users should look out for this. Public lectures should be organised within countries, states, regions, localities, or institutions. There should be IT situation assessment for each country from which goal for future development can be enhanced. Some leaves should be borrowed from Asian countries like India, which started from zero-based IT to nearly a world major supplier of software outside USA. Governments should promulgate decrees compelling the multinational organisations to contribute to research because they make use of the best graduates. Computer Science books, journals, magazines, and newsletters can be purchased at government subsided rate. We should apply the USA's Goal 2000 act of 1990 which takes into account the entire environment of students and teachers, embracing nutrition and health care, the availability of good schools, lifelong learning, etc. (in Anagnostopoulos and Williams, 1998). Not only that IT is a corporate resource which needs to be planned, evaluated, developed, and exploited also for the new age organisation to work, the empowered employees must have these skills. As such management must be persuaded to incorporate IT training in annual budget. Balcombe, 1993, suggested that the process towards empowerment can be facilitated by coaching, counselling, delegating, training, rewarding, modelling, and challenging. IT professionals have a role to play in educating and training more people into the profession. Conclusion IT-based training has opened up a brand new vista of endless learning opportunities. It has transformed learning into a most educating, interesting, and involving experiences and has created actual opportunities for people to be adequately and effectively trained to operate at their optimal efficiency and productive level. It is the use of IT for training to explore a maze of information with tremendous results. Proper education of information technology experts is one of the important factors that can lead to faster development of indigenous information system in Africa. This will offer opportunities for information system products, services, as well as manpower to be exported. Training problems arise from the following issues: shortage of skilled personnel, lack of planning, inadequate curricula and funding, under-utilisation of resources, and implementation failures. The world is clamouring against Y2K syndrome, I hope Africa is not asleep on this issue because it is a catastrophe that can rob organisation of many years their repute. When Shahbazi and Trimble, 1994 were discussing Intuitive and Relativistic Thinking, they stated that intuitive and relativistic thinkers make correct and appropriate judgements and find perfect solutions to specific problems. Therefore, we call on intuitive and relativistic thinkers to please help in solving these problems once and for all. References Anagnostopoulos
C.N.and Williams, L.A. 1998. Few goal stars for pre-college education,
IEEE Spectrum August. Pp 18-33. Doing Business in the Cyberage – The Net Effect Stewart Bishop As the Millennium approaches, a new era, the Information Age or the Cyberage, is being ushered in by the convergence of computer technology and telecommunications. The emerging technology, the World Wide Web, threatens to radically change the means of communication, and to bring about the death of distance and time as hindrances in the conduct of business and government globally. National information technology (IT) association, especially in developing countries (DCs), have a critical responsibility to shoulder if IT is to become the touted enabler of change and the vehicle through which sustainable development may be attained.This contribution serves to highlight a number of activities that took place in a two-week period between October and November in the Caribbean country of Jamaica. One can only acclaim the role its IT association continues to play in trying to ensure that Jamaica is prepared to grasp all the opportunities and benefits which await those countries that are information-sensitized and on the Net. Human resource development is a necessary ingredient if expected benefits are to be realized. Jamaica Computer Society (JCS) The JCS is an excellent example of such an IT association. Established in 1975, it has as its Mission “to provide leadership in the promotion of the efficient and effective use of IT in Jamaica.” Significantly, while JCS’s earlier emphasis was on the professional development of membership including preparation for British Computer Society examinations, recent attention has focussed to a greater extent on the task of promoting widespread IT utilization throughout the Jamaican society. This change of focus coincides with the government’s stated intention of building an IT-based industrial sector and will allow citizens to participate productively in a business environment dominated by on-line services including electronic commerce. 15th Annual Conference The JCS, fully cognizant of the rapid and pervasive growth of the Internet and of the national development goals of the Jamaican government, chose as its theme “Doing Business in the Cyberage - The Net Effect.” The topics for presentations were selected so that the conference theme could be explored and developed among participants with varied IT interest. Four issues identified were: telecommunications, internet, electronic commerce and year 2000 (Y2K) problem. Presenters were selected from both academic and business environment and, although mainly Jamaican, were from the US and as far as Finland. Most were well aware of the Jamaican IT and business situation and so were able to address issues of direct relevance to the participants. Telecommunications In his keynote address, Minister of Commerce and Technology, Philip Paulwell, outlined his government’s intention to create a knowledge-based society with emphasis on the utilization of technology to enhance areas such as education, health and national security. To facilitate such an initiative and to establish electronic commerce as the new business paradigm, telecommunications policy had to be revised. In this regard government’s role, especially in a small developing country, is crucial. The Conference was updated on the recently enunciated telecommunications policy. This would not only create the necessary framework for the new society to flourish but also would fulfil commitments given in the World Trade Organization agreements concerning basic communications services. A major aspect of the new policy is to permit competition in the delivery of wireless and value-added services. Currently, Cable and Wireless (C&W) is the monopoly provider of external communications in Jamaica and the rest of the Caribbean states. It is also an Internet service provider, a situation that has generated some controversy in the region. However, the Minister was confident that both C&W and other service providers could achieve a profitable revenue base since new businesses in these services would emerge. Caribbean News Agency (CANA), the region’s prime news service was the case study utilized by communications expert, Hallam Hope, to demonstrate how such an agency could be re-engineered through IT application. He traced the transition from a manual system of transmitting news via leased lines to one where a satellite network and the Internet are now utilized. The Senior Editor highlighted two joint ventures with agencies in US and UK through which tourist and business information as well as current news features on the Caribbean are now available on the Internet. In concluding he opined that, in the current debate on a tariff structure for the telephone system, he favored the flat rate system as being more suited to the cultural and socio-economic environment of the region. Internet In recognition of the role of that the Internet is destined to play in the Cyberage, the JCS designated the second full-day of presentations to be “Internet Day” when all attention could be focussed on this most pervasive technology. Predictably a presentation on WEB-based Design was very popular especially with the IT professionals. Likewise another presentation, “Intranets-Technical Issues and Business Applications”, attracted many participants, keen to ascertain how their organization could be enhanced through the utilization of an Intranet. Stewart Bishop in his contribution on “IT and Public Sector Reform: A Role for the Internet” examined how such reform has incorporated and could benefit from Internet technology. Issues such as connectivity, cost of service and universal access would restrict the local use of the Internet for example, as a means of informing the citizens about government’s services and programmes This type of service has been emphasized in some developed countries such as Canada. However, there was at this time a major role for the Internet in marketing the region’s tourism, business and financial services to a global audience. Haniph Latchman of the University of Florida examined how Internet and the World Wide Web could facilitate new approaches to the transfer of knowledge. This is a very topical issue since the regional university has identified distance education as a priority area. While favoring the traditional model of instructor and students in the same time and space, he indicated how even this approach could be enhanced by utilizing emerging technologies. On-line courses featuring multimedia and Internet services would benefit both students and persons being trained in the workplace. Closer contact between academia and the world of work could be promoted. Technical issues and an evaluation of experiences in delivering a course simultaneously to both on-campus and off-campus students at his University were outlined. Electronic Commerce Wessel Thomas, in looking at “Electronic Commerce: A Paradigm Shift in Business”, identified benefits such as providing a global outreach for local businesses, shortening the sales cycle and minimizing customer service costs. Associated challenges included increases in electronic fraud, legal issues in implementing electronic trading services and customer concerns about credit card transactions. IBM’s senior IT architect, Antonio Codrington highlighted problems businesses face as they react to the rapid changes in the competitive EC market. As they seek to extend their traditional roles and environment, businesses must align their strategies to appropriate IT architectures. This includes a careful choice of business partner which should be made so that your EC provider’s operating strategy relates to companies similar to yours. Nicole Farmer in her presentation “The Internet as an Electronic Full-Service Window” recognized an ideal opportunity for Caribbean and developing countries businesses to compete globally. However value for money must be the hallmark. This includes delivering when promised, and stresses the provision of high quality products and services, personalized service and immediate response to queries and complaints. She identified three relevant concerns: existence of a stable telecommunications and power environment to be augmented, if necessary, by the business itself, compliance with government regulations so as not to affect promised delivery schedules, and instigating for the upliftment of IT culture where this is absent or below par. She warned that customer service did not disappear simply because one could no longer see the customer. Finnish university lecturer, Milie Robinson, recounted his country’s experience with the emerging technologies. Finland has perhaps the highest ratio for Internet connectivity and with a similar population density as Jamaica, could provide some useful insights. For him, the Internet is essentially a collaborative technology, involving networks of machines utilizing various software and connecting people. This collaboration extends to incorporate governmental support for research and development and an intense industry- academia cooperation which ensures that there is a proper sense of direction on both sides. He insisted that individuals, companies and even countries for whom the Internet was not part of the taken-for-granted fabric of everyday activities will be increasingly financially and culturally disadvantaged. One wonders if DCs would really suffer culturally!! Year 2000 (Y2K) Problem The crisis surrounding this problem threatens to disrupt information processing at the start of the Cyberage and hence mandated its inclusion in the Conference’s programme. Jon Kibler, in his contribution on the Year 2000 Crisis reviewed the background to the problem. In examining the issue he included a comprehensive list of items containing embedded systems likely to be affected. He emphasized that, in tackling the crisis, the Y2K problem must be seen not as a technology problem but as a business survivability situation. Proper project management would be critical. Governments have a major role to play with senior managers in both the public and private sector providing the direction and associated commitment in probably the largest maintenance effort ever undertaken for software systems. The role of the Jamaica Government in the Y2K dilemma was outlined by Luke Jackson, Project Director of the Y2000 Project Office. This agency was expected to ensure a national awareness of the problem and to devise strategies to effect public sector compliance. A Y2K National Task Force was mandated to assess the probable effects on key economic sectors. Activities undertaken include contacting government agencies to determine their preparedness, a national awareness campaign and initiatives to ensure that only compliant systems would be acquired in the future. The development and maintenance of a national disaster recovery plan would be emphasized with contingency planning in case of failure with computer based systems. The involvement of private sector corporations and of their management was highly desirable and was being encouraged. Conference Organization JCS maintains a full time administrative arm and this, assisted by a Planning committee, ensured the successful staging of the Conference. Vendors of IT products and services, not only exhibited in the Conference Hall but also gave four presentations to the Conference. The Jamaica Business Sector has always been supportive and regards the initiatives of the JCS so highly that almost all of the more than 300 Jamaican participants were sponsored by their employers. At a time of severe economic strictures such support is most emphatic. Technical tutorials for IT professionals and extended discussions for business participants were also offered. An interesting feature of these Conferences is a national broadcasting of proceedings for a few hours on one day. An electronic messaging center which allowed participants to stay in touch with their offices was another welcome feature. However in the luxurious setting of an all-inclusive hotel in the nation’s tourist center one wonders whether this service was a blessing or a bane. A Reggae show and dance served to give participants a full taste of Jamaican Culture. Conclusion Bernard Woods, in his book “Communication, technology and the development of people”, states: “Development is about increasing the capacity of individuals, families, communities, local authorities, private organizations, central government and nations to plan and manage . Therefore it is about putting in place systems and institutions for doing so... and about developing peoples’ capability to use and maintain them.” In addition to the conference a National Technology in Development Week was sponsored jointly by the Ministry of Commerce and Technology and the JCS. Another event sponsored by the Cable and Wireless Public Forum was also organised entitled “Year 2000- Getting Jamaica Ready”. The three activities represent initiatives undertaken by the JCS and other organizations to ensure that IT information is made available to everyone in Jamaica who can benefit from it. The partnerships with government and the private sector indicate that an integrated approach is being taken towards the creation of a knowledge-based society. Other DCs could do well to have within their borders IT associations like the JCS so that no effort is spared to prepare their populations for the Cyberage. The Routledge Series In Information Systems Dr. Simon Bell Introduction It is now widely accepted that information systems will be the single most important feature of the commercial and public sector environments in the 21st century. Whether the context of concern is the development of models which provide for improvements in the marketing and monitoring of trade and industry or the geographic modelling and enhancement of agricultural practice or the temporal analysis of social trends and development, or the development of distance, life long learning - the organisations involved will be making extensive and increasingly ambitious uses of information systems. Information systems are computer-based and make use of all recent IT developments, from flat screens to internet; from satellite technology to infra-red. Information systems based upon or making extensive use of information technology (IT) constitute a growing basis for project control and systems development. From project planning and feasibility study through the use of complex modelling procedures to detailed and adjustable cost benefit analysis and decision escalation studies in project management. Information systems encroach upon all levels of social development - from their effective adoption by political parties to the mapping on computer systems of welfare reform; from the development and planning of drug control to the design of integrated environmentally focused traffic policies. Information systems are evident and important in all aspects of professional, technical, social and cultural life and their development and extension is growing all the time. The information systems domain, the domain which is described here is one of diversity and complexity. Information systems are diverse and they match the diversity and complexity of the contexts which human beings demand of them. Information systems truly are social systems and they impact upon all areas of human activity. Information systems are critically applied in all spheres of human activity, their uses can encourage cross-disciplinary thinking and cross agency cooperation. Information systems and managing change Organisations are
constantly reacting to change and change processes and in this endeavour
information systems are often used as facilitating devices for the
development of new and expansive strategies. In recent years, information
systems have been applied as core components of business re-engineering
and total quality strategies. The ethos of just-in-time management is also
largely dependent upon technology-based information systems. Information
systems evoke extreme responses from managers and provide rich lessons and
opportunities for leadership. Information systems and globalisation As globalisation increases apace and the multi-national organisation evolves into the global agencies of change and barter, this development has been facilitated by and transacted via ever-improving information systems. The nano-world is with us. Information moves around the world allowing global corporations to manage their business on a 24 hour cycle of constant activity. This activity is made possible by the ever-increasing and enthusiastic adoption of information systems. Globalisation and internationalisation of information also means that cultures are brought together and global cultural trends can also proliferate. The bringing together of culture, the adoption of cultural artefacts such as Microsoft’s Windows operating systems in diverse countries such as Nigeria in the West Africa and China means that dynamic actions and reactions come about. The understanding of the processes involved in the globalisation of the world economy is in its infancy. Information systems and the failure of information systems are the objects of extreme reactions from users and planners alike. On the one hand the technology associated with them often has champions and advocates within organisations but - ironically corresponding to this enthusiasm - these systems have often not produced the information which is expected or required. In a large minority of cases, information systems have been disastrously ineffective or even total failures-cases from the UK health service, the financial markets and education abound. As with issues relating to globalisation - the study and documentation of failure in information systems and the learning arising from this process is in its infancy. Information systems - art and science Information systems development is both an art and science. The attempt to formalise information systems, evident in much of the writing of the 1980s, was a manifest failure. Information systems depend almost as much on the art and skill with which they are devised, implemented, used and monitored as they depend upon the bones of technology. The true flesh of information systems is often added months or even years after the implementation of the bare bones. Issues relating to the art of information systems relate to the ethics of use (information systems as tools for democratising the workforce or as tools of tyranny), the aesthetics of application (information systems as aesthetically enhancing work-space or as elements of cyber trash), the ergonomics of development (information systems as forces for enhancing work-life or as the basis for a new range of strain related and depressive illnesses and disorders) and the emotion of impact (information systems as objects of hope or as symbols of failure and prophets of unemployment). Information systems and philosophy The philosophy behind the development of information systems is an area which is now coming to prominence. With the demise of traditional, classical, reductionist and modernistic views of human progress and development and the advent of holism, systemisism and post-modernism. Information systems are often both the means and the message. The capacity of information systems to be developed to reflect different philosophical approaches to problem solving and philosophical enquiry is as yet barely understood. The Routledge series in Information systems is intended to provide an invitation and an outlet for the writings of scholars and professionals which match this complexity and diversity of the territory which is described above. At the outset the series is intended for professionals and academics. To limit the series to either academic study or professional practice would be to ignore either the functional contexts in which most information systems operate or the theoretical basis upon which this practice is based. Therefore, the series takes as its basis the full richness of commercial, academic and social life and seeks to encourage authors from all theatres of experience and practice to write about the scenarios in which information systems are most prevalent and where their implementation is bringing about action and reaction to change processes. If you would be interested in submitting a manuscript for this series please contact the editor. An Analysis of Product Lifetimes in a Technologically Dynamic Industry Dr. Barry L. Bayus Although new personal computers appear to be reaching store shelves at a dizzying pace, computer manufacturers have not really shortened the life cycles of their individual high tech products, according to a study in the current edition of a journal published by the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS). The conclusion means good news for business – but implies confusion for consumers. "Conventional wisdom holds that product life-cycles are getting shorter over time," says Dr. Barry Bayus, a marketing scientist at University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. " However, I find that product technology and product model lifetimes of desktop PCs have not accelerated. And manufacturers have not systematically reduced the life-cycles of products within their lines." Part of the problem with conventional wisdom, says Dr. Bayus, is that a different definition of the 'product' life-cycle is used by each industry observer. His study carefully analyzes 'product' life-cycles using multiple but consistent definitions over time. Dr. Bayus’s findings may spell relief for hardware companies that often feel the pressure to always beat competitors to the marketplace. "My research indicates that the real lesson is not to rush new products to market unless a careful analysis of the potential benefits and costs show that this is indeed the best strategy," says Dr. Bayus. Those shopping for a new PC, though, still face a multiplicity of choices because of the large number of companies and models that have flooded the market. "For consumers, these conditions imply an increase in product options, configurations, and technologies," says Dr. Bayus. "Unfortunately, this expanded choice also comes with greater confusion over the alternatives that are available." The study examines product lifetimes - the time between product introduction and withdrawal-of desktop personal computers over the period 1974-1992. Given that there seem to be no significant trends of shorter product life-cycles over the first 18 years of this industry, Dr. Bayus believes that these results can be extended to the present. The author analyzed International Data Corporation’s Processor Installation Census, a database composed of annual domestic and international unit sales. The census yielded information of about 600 manufacturers and 2,800 brand models. The results of the analyses were consistent for various product-market definitions: Product technology
and product model lifetimes: Brand model lifetimes within manufacturers: Manufacturers are not systematically shortening their own brand model lifetimes, as indicated by analysis of 20 top computer manufacturers. Brand model lifetimes across manufacturers: The more recent entrants into this industry have products with shorter lifetimes than firms that have been in this industry for some time. Products based on ‘old’ technology have shorter lifetimes than products with the newest technology. Perceptions Correct - Up to a Point Although individual companies are not shortening product life cycles, statistics do, in fact, leave the impression that personal computer lifetimes have declined over time. However, this observation is not due to an underlying acceleration in product technology or product model lifetimes, nor is it due to individual firms systematically reducing the life-cycles of products within their lines. Instead, the first products of firms that have entered this industry in the more recent years tend to be based on previously existing technology, and, not surprisingly, these products have life-cycles that are shorter than those of established firms. Implications for Business The study has several implications for corporations, says Dr. Bayus: The sales opportunity window in which to obtain a financial return on invested resources in this industry is not getting shorter over time. This again suggests that those looking over their shoulders at rivals can maintain a constant level of new product development rather than increase spending to speed up R&D. Firms in this industry are not systematically shrinking the lifetimes of products within their own lines. This finding suggests that firms are balancing the costs and returns associated with their own individual product strategies. The competitive
environment in this industry is complex, with multiple generations of
technology available at any time. This finding suggests that consumer
purchasing behavior is complex, with some consumers, for example,
selecting old technology (perhaps with lower prices) in spite of new
advances. Computers are changing the world, and not always for the better. Wayne Ellwood, in an article that appeared on the Net, unveils the other side of the microelectronics revolution. We present an abstract. Fantastic, science-fiction tinged claims about the benefits of the coming 'information age' are hard to escape. The press is full of hacks extolling the liberating virtues of electronic mail and tub-thumping about how the Internet will unite the masses in a sort of electronic, Jeffersonian democracy (at least those with a personal computer, modem and enough spare cash to pay the monthly hook-up fee). This is not the first time technology has been packaged as a panacea for social progress. The concept of progress is welded as firmly to computers in the 1990s as it was to the power-loom in the early nineteenth century, the automobile in the 1920s or nuclear power in the 1960s. Yet, the introduction of all these technologies had disastrous side effects. The power-loom promised cheap clothing and a wealthier Britain but produced catastrophic social dislocation and job loss. The car promised independence and freedom and delivered expressways choked with traffic, sub-urbanisation, air pollution and destructive wars fought over oil supplies. Nuclear power promised energy 'too cheap to meter' and produced Chernobyl and Three Mile Island. There is a lesson
here that can and should be applied to all new technologies - and none
more so than computers. Technology is not just hardware - whether it's a
hammer, an axe or a desk-top PC with muscular RAM and a pentium chip.
Limiting it in this way wrenches technology from its social roots. When it comes to introducing new technologies we need to look less at how they influence our lives as individuals and more at how they impact on society as a whole. New technologies based on micro-electronics and digitised data for example, have completely changed the way information is transmitted and stored. Word processors and electronic mail have made communication cheap and quick and surfing the net has become a fashionable way to spend leisure time. But these are benefits filtered through the narrow prism of personal gain. What is the broad social impact? How else are computers used ? The money maze: The computer that allows us to withdraw cash from an automatic teller, day or night, is the same technology that makes possible the international capital market. Freed from the shackles of government regulation, 'surfing the yield curve,' big money speculators can move billions of dollars around the globe at lightning speed, day and night - destabilising national economies and sucking millions out of productive long-term investment. Computer games: Think of all the computer games you know. Now think of 'Desert Storm', the world's first (and certainly not the last) electronic war. Lethal firepower as colourful blips on our TV screens, charred bodies reduced to the arcing trail of an explosive starburst. We've had the ability to destroy human life many times over for more than half a century and computers have not changed that reality. What they have done is sideline human decision-making in favour of computer programs - making catastrophe ever more likely. Information as power: The new communications technologies are expected to establish a new on-line paradigm of decentralised power, placing real tools for liberation into the hands of the marginalized and the poor. A tall order, they can nonetheless be used positively by political dissidents and human- rights activists. The technology, though both valiant and necessary, does not change the key fact that computers contribute more to centralisation than to decentralisation. They help activists, but they help the centralising forces of corporate globalisation even more. Efficiency and employment: Computerisation is at the core of the slimmed down, re-engineered workplace that free-market boosters claim is necessary to survive the lean-and-mean global competition of the 1990s. In the long run computers don't eliminate work, they eliminate workers. But in a social system based on the buying and selling of commodities this may have an even more pernicious effect. With fewer jobs there is less money in circulation; market demand slackens, re-enforcing recession and sending the economy into a tailspin. The impact of automation on jobs is a dilemma which can no longer be ignored. The government and the business community, both cling to the increasingly firm belief that economic growth spurred by an increasing consumption of the earth’s finite resources will solve the problem. It won’t. And serious questions now need to be raised about alternatives. We need to think about democratising the process of introducing new technologies into society and into the workplace instead of being left typically in the hands of bureaucrats and corporations who base their decisions on the narrow criteria of profit and loss. This blinked mindset that equates technological innovation with social progress needs to be challenged. But there is also the critical issue of the distribution of work and income in a world where waged labour is in a steady, inexorable decline. We need to think creatively about how to redefine work so that people can find self-esteem and social acceptance outside of wage labour. This may mean redesigning jobs so that workers have more control and input into decisions about which technologies to adopt and what products to make. It also means developing strategies to cut the average work week - without cutting pay. This would be one way of sharing the wealth created by new technology and of creating jobs at the same time. Hard work also needs to go into designing a plan for a guaranteed annual social wage. This is a radical (some would say outrageous) idea for societies like ours that have anchored their value systems on the bedrock of wage labour. But how can we deny people the basic rights of citizenship and physical well-being simply because the economic system is no longer capable of providing for them? Reference: IFIP WG 9.4 Conference on Information Technology in Asia: Information Equality in the Next Millennium Merdeka Palace
Hotel, Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia The United Nations is greatly concerned about the imbalance in access to communication facilities. The information technology gap and related inequities between industrialized and developing nations are widening. Most developing countries are not sharing in the communication revolution. A new type of poverty - information poverty - looms. Information Technology (IT) has undoubtedly fuelled the startling pace of Asia's recent development. Yet, tremendous contrasts still exist throughout Asia in the extent and depth of IT use. For most Asians, telephone calls are a rare luxury and computers are unknown. Are the poor destined to be perpetual bystanders on the information superhighway? Will the next millennium herald an information age which is inhabited by a minority elite only or will the poor majority be allowed to share equally in the benefits of a wired society? The following topics will be covered: Policy: national IT policy endeavours, diffusion of IT - barriers and facilitators, electronic government and information equality and policy-making processes and information provision Technology: IT for small and medium sized enterprises in developing countries, rural and remote access to the Internet, IT infrastructures in developing countries, appropriate technology for information equality, and technology transfer Economy: micro-economy and IT for development, new opportunities for employment with IT, IT and income inequalities, aid funding for IT in development Culture: IT and cultural preservation, IT and gender issues for development, First World communities and IT and cross-cultural comparisons Education: IT and education for the masses, Institutional capacity building, IT for distance learning and poverty alleviation Welfare: social justice through information access communications and social equality·information equality,· electronic government and information equality, NGOs and IT in development Health: health and welfare telematics Environment: environmental protection and IT Research Papers (a full length original and previously unpublished paper describing conceptual or empirical research of 12 to 15 pages), Case Studies and Practitioner Papers (original descriptions of IT implementations which highlight aspects of the conference theme in 12 to 15 pages). and Work in Progress can be submitted. Proposals for a panel of up to four individuals each of whom will make a five-minute presentation on a single theme topic followed by an open discussion are also invited. Proposals should name the panel members and should specify their credentials in relation to the chosen topic (up to four pages). Proposals will also be considered for tutorials by suitably qualified/experienced individuals on topics relevant to the conference theme (up to four pages). All presenters of research papers, case studies, practitioner papers, panel discussions, work in progress, tutorials and parallel events must register and pay for the conference. Submissions
of a 300-word abstract is due by February 26th , 1999. Full papers
are to be submitted to the programme chair by March 31st, 1999. Electronic
submissions are preferred. For more information please check the web page
at: The world congress will be organized in two parts. The first three days will be focusing on five tracks covering: technology, applications, social impacts, theoretical foundation and computers and communications for developing countries. In the remaining two days the congress will take up nine issues and will attempt to hammer out specific recommendations which will be communicated to the professional community. In the first two days of the program, sessions on international development in track 3 and all the sessions in track 5 will cover applications of IT, and building technology and human resource capability in developing countries. Over the next two days a program of various invited and contributed papers will share experience of DCs in Technology Transfer and discuss technology needs and appropriate transfer mechanisms (See April issue of the newsletter for details). Armed with this background, those of the delegates who are interested in the issue of technology transfer would meet for a structured discussion to identify problems and solutions which can be recommended to all the stakeholders. A large number of inexpensive rooms (ranging from 15 to 55 US$) have been reserved. Please contact: Prof. Dr. Karl Kaiser (Chairman of Organizing Committee -IFIP '94), C/o Congress Centrum Hamburg, Jungiusstrube 13, P.O. Box 302480, W-2000, Hamburg 36, Germany. Operations Research Conference on Telecommunications The above
conference will be held in March (20-22), 1995 at Boca Raton, Florida. If
anyone is interested in presenting papers on design, planning, management,
economics, or forecasting problems in telecom in developing countries,
please send in an abstract by August 15th, 1994. Suggestions for other
topics and proposals for organizing a session devoted to developing
countries are also welcome. Please reply to: Current List Of IFIP WG9.4 Members Mr. Abiodan Bada, Prof. S.C. Bhatnagar, Prof. Patrick Hall, Dr. V.P. Gulati, Dr. G. Harindranath, Dr. Roger Harris, Dr. Richard Heeks, Dr. Rekha Jain, Dr. Mikko Korpela, Prof. Renata La Rovere, Prof. Frank Land, Prof. Per Lind, Dr. Jonathan Miller, Dr. Sundeep Sahay, Prof. J. Dewald Roode, Prof. Geoff Walsham, Ms. Natalia Volkow, Dr. Edward Mozely Roche, Mr. Mohammed L. Mansaray, Dr. Jorg Meyer-Stamer, Ms. Nora Mulira |