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Example eWork goal: Supplying and applying the technology

Improve the regional availability, affordability and usability of ICT infrastructures, hardware, software and services for eWork, where necessary by combining regional resources and demand with market supply.

A checklist for developing a strategy to achieve this goal might look something like this:

• Consider pooling regional demand in order to maximise market supply benefits (in terms of availability, quality and price).

• Take account of some basic principles, for example the need for:
  • interoperability between organisations and regions, open standards, multiple access platforms, scalability, etc.

  • a balance between customised large scale turnkey solutions versus outsourcing and standardised solutions. The former enables control to be retained and ensures maximum benefit through specialised functionality, but has the disadvantage of large scale and thus high costs, as well as the heightened risk that failure or shortfall will have serious consequences. The latter provides less control, but also tends to mean cheaper, less risky and smaller scale solutions, as well as enhancing interoperability with both legacy systems and implementations elsewhere, as long as the right standard is chosen. A important long term strategy is to aim to customise standard products and systems, rather than build bespoke solutions. In other words, ensure interoperability but also that solutions are tailored to regional needs.

• Understand the ICT being used, for example:

  • appropriateness to task, does not have to be high-tech but should be used to get maximum advantage

  • use proven technologies

  • avoid technology innovation at the consumer interface

  • be disciplined and creative in defining network environments and services that can be delivered with existing technologies.

  • enter into ICT supplier partnerships, but do not become dependent.

  • carefully evaluate the evolving competition among technology providers when sourcing technologies that have not yet emerged as widely accepted standards

  • design a modular technology architecture, permitting easier swaps of technology.

  • carefully develop information architectures at the outset to help focus sourcing of appropriate data capture, storage and manipulation technologies.

• Understand how the ICT is being used, for example:
  • existing use and potential future use, eg by local enterprises especially in sectors with export potential and by firms and activities which can strengthen local exchange networks

  • organisational innovation: enabling more flexible organisational forms, such as networked and virtual organisations

  • process innovation: making economic processes more efficient and effective

  • product innovation: upgrading existing products and services or creating new ones

  • market innovation: enabling new market intelligence and opening up new marketing methods and channels

  • don’t forget, ICT is not simply a tool to do existing things faster, cheaper or better. Depending on how it they are introduced, ICTs can change processes, organisations, products and markets, particularly by changing relationships between individuals, organisations and regions.

See also supply side dynamics of regional ICT and use of ICT and the digitisation of work.

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© 2002, Institute for Employment Studies