Digital Economy Programme Scoping Workshop

Transcription

1 Digital Economy Programme Scoping Workshop Wednesday 25 June 2008, Sunningdale Park, Ascot Executive Summary Over 40 people attended this workshop to discuss the issues and challenges surrounding the Digital Economy Programme. The main output of the workshop was the generation of six broad issues that are key when undertaking research in the Digital Economy and should be considered in user-driven contexts. These are: Any advances in the Digital Economy should be developed in a way that all find accessible and engaging. We need to effect real cooperation and collaboration between disciplines, whilst respecting individual subject culture and practices. To develop trust and create flourishing communities in the Digital Economy, appropriate levels of security and privacy must be established for individuals, organisations and industry. Digital technologies should be designed to create opportunities for all, both individually and collectively, to shape and personalise their economic and social interactions. Capabilities which are developed to sustainably exploit the Digital Economy must be firmly embedded within business and user practices. An effective socio-technical infrastructure is essential if we are to reap the benefits of the Digital Economy. The Digital Economy Programme Advisory Board (PAB) discussed the outputs from this workshop on the following day. This led to the following future plans: A call is to be issued for Digital Economy Research Hubs these will be large, multidisciplinary research centres which will aim to build capacity and expertise in the skills needed to realise the Digital Economy. The research hubs should bring together the broad range of disciplines necessary to address these challenges. Funding is available to support 3 Hubs for 5 years at up to 10 million each for their core activity. Closing date 26 November Digital Economy is to be highlighted in the call for Leadership Fellows. Applicants should demonstrate existing or proposed collaborations across disciplines and with end-users, ensuring an appropriate multidisciplinary perspective. Fellows will also act as advocates for the research area and community. Closing date 9 October. 1

2 We will be looking to fund research activities through Sandpit Activities. The choice of topic and stakeholders will reflect the need for user-focussed research. Outcomes of sandpits range from a single large research project to several smaller projects, feasibility studies, networking activities, overseas visits and so on. The outcomes are not pre-determined but are defined during the sandpit. This is not an exhaustive list and further plans will be announced over the coming months. 2

3 Workshop Report 1. Introduction to the Digital Economy Programme The Digital Economy Programme is an RCUK priority programme led by the EPSRC. The EPSRC is working closely with Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the Medical Research Council (MRC) to ensure the delivery of this important programme. The Digital Economy Programme is aimed at providing capability in the early adoption of information technologies by businesses, government and society and focuses on the transformational effect that these technologies can have. The Digital Economy Programme will bring together the underpinning technologies, with all the elements required to deliver transformation. Challenges in the Digital Economy will require multi-disciplinary input across a broad spectrum of subjects including researchers from the arts and humanities, economic and social scientists, medical sciences, in addition to engineering and physical sciences. Key to developing the Digital Economy is the creation of a new cohort of researchers who have a strong research capability, but also an understanding of user needs and the social and economic implications of their research. 2. Workshop Introduction, Aims and Objectives The aim of this workshop was to help inform the Digital Economy Programme of the big issues surrounding this area of research and to therefore, shape the future activities of the programme. Over 40 people attended this workshop, from a wide range of backgrounds. Attendees included representatives from EPSRC, ESRC, AHRC, Technology Strategy Board (TSB), Financial Services Authority (FSA), NHS, BT, IBM, GSK and other companies along with many academics from a range of disciplines and research areas. Dr Dave Watson of IBM gave a short introductory talk about the background and the progress of the Digital Economy Programme so far. The rest of the day was spent discussing the requirements and issues surrounding the Digital Economy. 3. Mapping the research needs and UK capability Participants were split into six groups and tasked with identifying the key research areas, sectors and capabilities that are necessary if we are to realise the goals of the Digital Economy Programme. This was then formed into a Mind-Map. The groups then discussed which areas the UK has a strong research capability and other areas where capability needs to be increased. The disciplines and sectors suggested during this session were incredibly wide ranging, they included (in no particular order): 3

4 Computing and IT, creative arts and design, heritage, education, imaging, visualisation, complexity science, healthcare, business models, transport, data mining, security, trust, privacy, dissemination of innovation, wireless technologies, optics, sensors, financial management,, robotics, hardware, ethics, pure and applied computer science, insurance, banking, software engineering, personal and organisational behaviour, geography, media, economy, maths, sociology, ethnography, psychology, anthropology, electrical engineers, public policy, epidemiologists, modelling, human-computer interaction and public awareness..amongst many, many others. This session illustrated to everyone the wide range of research disciplines, user and sector engagement and collaborations that will be required for the Digital Economy Programme to realise its aims. 4. Identifying the Big Questions In this session attendees were given 3 green cards each, on which they were asked to write down some of the Big Questions that the Digital Economy Programme should aim to address. They then joined with one other person, and were asked to write 4 Big Questions between them, via a process of prioritising or combining the Big Questions they wrote individually. This process was repeated in groups of 4 and each group produced 6 final Big Questions per group. These Big Questions were then clustered to combine those that were similar. The clustered Big Questions were used as the basis for defining the Problem Statements in the following sessions. 5. Defining Problem Statements Six of the clustered Big Questions were each allocated to a group who discussed the issues and questions further and defined a Problem Statement beginning with a How can we or How to phrase. The six Problem Statements that emerged from this process are shown in bold in the table in Section 6. Other participants were given the opportunity to comment on these Problem Statements in a marketplace. 6. Solution Focussing New groups formed around each of the Problem Statements and discussed how the problem could be tackled by the Digital Economy Programme and the research community has a whole. At the end of the session each group reported back to the whole group who were then given further opportunity to comment. Below, each Problem Statement is detailed, with a brief summary of the suggested solutions and comments received: 1. How can the Digital Economy be developed in a way that all find accessible and engaging? Research should look at the reasons why people are not engaged or excluded can t or won t. This would enable research into ways to overcome barriers to inclusion. Pilot studies may be the most suitable format. This could then inform future policies and research. 4

5 Multidisciplinary and multiagency teams should work together to build interfaces that are accessible and engaging to all. This should be driven by social need, not profit. Also, need to consider the consequences of a Digital Economy, where not all sections of society are engaged. 2. How can we effect cooperation and collaboration between disciplines whilst respecting individual subject culture and practices? A way of ensuring different disciplines work together is to have a specific project as the central focus within a single team, rather than between collaborating teams. This requires sufficient team building and discipline hopping to allow the group to truly work as a team. It is essential to commit to the long-term future of the research area, with effective funding, project management and leadership. Issues were raised about the suitability of current peer review for the review of such multidisciplinary projects. 3. How to develop trust and create flourishing communities in the Digital Economy with appropriate levels of security and privacy for individuals, organisations and industry? Trust/mistrust and privacy must be defined in both an online and offline context. Using ethnography, grants, surveys and experiments to exploit arguments, determine reliability and check validity. Research the online mechanisms which can be private, or otherwise, in distinct contexts, such as facebook and banking. The ways in which online users secure the information they give should also be investigated and thought given to dissemination of best practice. Comments were received to suggest that overcoming this problem would be an enabler to the whole of the Digital Economy and that thought should be given to the next step. What will a secure Digital Economy enable? 4. How will we design digital technologies to create opportunities for all, individually and collectively, to shape and personalise their economic and social interactions? Provide tools for the individual to allow rapid formation of trusted communities, (e.g. trade consortiums). This will require a lot of research into the behaviour of communities (potentially a novel research discipline). Increase flexibility and responsiveness of organisations, by creating new business models to adapt to new communities and interfaces. How are grassroots cultural practices affecting professional industries and how are they reacting to this pressure? Give the individual the ability to obtain value from their creativity (e.g. profit, pleasure, reputation, communication etc). Development of novel interfaces (as alternatives to standard computer interfaces) may be required. 5. How to develop and embed capabilities to exploit sustainably the Digital Economy within business leadership and practices? Collect and disseminate Case Studies about Value Creation in the DE. This would enable knowledge exchange and demonstrate value. Ensure someone within organisations takes responsibility for embedding DE to encourage longer-term thinking through appropriate education. It was noted that this may not be within the DE Programme remit and that the TSB, other Government departments and universities may have a role to play here. 5

6 Invest in R&D to understand how to embed transformation in organisations. Understanding and communication of the technologies and also the dynamics of the DE would be required. 6. How to construct a socio-technical infrastructure that reaps the benefits of DE? Co-evolve better tools (open source), which are responsive to users. Ensure any tools are future proof. Put business models in place that are flexible, respond to change, sustainable and conceptual. However this is very hard, as the ecological principles for DE are not known. Many issues were raised on these topics, including how to manage the complexity of a Digital Economy and especially the potential for fragmentation. 7. Summary Some very useful debates took place and these discussions will help to dictate the thinking behind the future plans within the Digital Economy Programme. We would like to thank all those who attended for their attendance, hard work and enthusiasm. 8. Programme Advisory Board meeting, 26 June The PAB met on the 26 June to discuss the outputs from the Digital Economy Workshop the previous day and to further develop the plans for the Digital Economy Programme. The Digital Economy Programme Advisory Board (PAB) was set up to advise the programme on its strategic direction and activities. The PAB is made up of a number of industrialists and academics and meets regularly to discuss the programme s activities and plans. PAB Membership: Dr Dave Watson, IBM, (Chair) Mr John Hand, EPSRC Professor Nigel Waite, FSRF Mr Ian Neild, BT Professor Peter Grindrod, Reading University Dr David Chilvers, NHS Innovation Hub Dr Michael Lyons, BT Dr Russell Hamilton, Department of Health (was unable to attend) Professor Brian Collins, Department for Transport (was unable to attend) 9. Conclusions The Scoping Workshop and the subsequent meeting of the Programme Advisory Board led to the following future plans: 6

7 A call is to be issued for Digital Economy Research Hubs these will be large, multidisciplinary research centres which will aim to build capacity and expertise in the skills needed to realise the Digital Economy. The research hubs should bring together the broad range of disciplines necessary to address these challenges. Funding is available to support 3 Hubs for 5 years at up to 10 million each for their core activity. Closing date 26 November Digital Economy is to be highlighted in the call for Leadership Fellows. Applicants should demonstrate existing or proposed collaborations across disciplines and with end-users, ensuring an appropriate multidisciplinary perspective. Fellows will also act as advocates for the research area and community. Closing date 9 October. We will be looking to fund research activities through Ideas Factories. The choice of topic and stakeholders will reflect the need for user-focussed research. Outcomes of sandpits range from a single large research project to several smaller projects, feasibility studies, networking activities, overseas visits and so on. The outcomes are not pre-determined but are defined during the sandpit. This is not an exhaustive list and further plans will be announced over the coming months. Annex 1 Attendance list Prof Anne Anderson University of Dundee Prof Erkko Autio Imperial College London Prof Paul Bellaby University of Salford Prof Phil Blythe University of Newcastle Prof Ashley Briganza Brunel University Mr John Cass Imperial College London Dr Dario Crispini FSA Prof David De Roure University of Southampton Mr Justin East Merlin Prof Elaine Fernelay University of Salford Dr Tony Gandy TPS Knowledge Mr Fred Gill Swordfish Studios Mr Paul Glover Transport for London Prof Carole Goble The University of Manchester Prof Philip Hargrave DC-KTN Dr Marina Jirotka OII Dr Angus Laing University of Glasgow Mr David Linsdall Thales Group Dr Michael Lyons BT Prof Sir Alex Markham University of Leeds Prof John Polak Imperial College London Prof Tom Rodden University of Nottingham Prof Mark Sandler QMUL Dr Ralph Schroeder OII Dr Janet Smart Said Business School 7

8 Dr Calvin Taylor University of Leeds Dr Rob Thwaites GlaxoSmithKline Mr Matthew Willis Solidstate Logic Prof Mike Wilson University of Glamorgan Dr Kirk Woolford Lancaster University Dr John Wylie FSA Research Council Staff Mr John Hand EPSRC (Head of Digital Economy) Dr Helen Bailey EPSRC (DE Team Member) Dr Richard Bailey EPSRC (DE Team Member) Dr Pamela Mason EPSRC (DE Team Member) Dr Carol McAnally EPSRC (DE Team Member) Miss Dolly Parkinson EPSRC Dr Zoe Lock Technology Strategy Board Dr Emily Nott Technology Strategy Board Dr Julie Taylor AHRC Dr Alison Wall EPSRC (Associate Director Mission Programmes) Dr Esther Wilkinson ESRC Programme Advisory Board Dr Dave Chilvers NHS Innovation Hub, London Prof Brian Collins DfT Prof Peter Grindrod University of Reading Dr Russell Hamilton NIHR Mr Ian Neild BT Dr Nigel Waite Nottingham (FSRF) Dr Dave Watson IBM Annex 2 Agenda Registration and Coffee Welcome Dave Watson, IBM Key Research Areas and UK Capability Coffee The Big Questions Lunch From Big Questions to Problem Statements Coffee Solutions, Barriers and Opportunities Conclusions Close 8