Is Jersey's critical infrastructure cyber secure?

39% of critical infrastructure organisations surveyed failed basic cyber security

Compliance with the proposed Network and Information Security (NIS) Directive, which EU member states must adopt by May 2018, may prove difficult for organisations operating in critical infrastructure industries, a new report from Corero Network Security has highlighted.

I wonder if Jersey is better (small agile community) or worse (lack of big budget)?

https://www.itgovernance.co.uk/blog/39-of-critical-infrastructure-organisations-surveyed-failed-basic-cyber-security/

There is a real risk of a chasm into which our modern blacksmiths and coal miners might fall

RESIDENCY

Following reading How to fix the future by Andrew Keen I am on the brink of applying to be an e-Resident of Estonia because for EUR 100 I am interested to see what it might be like to live on-line in a country with no borders and the e-government and services that has been promised in Jersey, but never quite materialised.

https://medium.com/e-residency-blog/who-are-estonias-e-residents-f8c2ba2bee3d

It may of course be just like living in Facebook-land. If that’s the case then is probably isn’t for me. A place of style and no substance where friends, followers and fake news is traded for your data, privacy and freedom with the aim to get a bigger (or exclusive) slice of your wallet.

It is interesting to think of borderless residency. It is an oxymoron since our avatar or cyber-self may live an ethereal existence but the material me needs food, drink and boarders in the form of roof over my head: Home.

HOME

So as a member of a global village I can be a resident of cyberspace, but my home is where I lay my head and raise my family.

Setting aside the tax residencies of the four horsemen of the privacy apocalypse (Google, Facebook, Apple and Amazon) for future comment, the idea of home is important since Jersey can only legislate, educate and prepare at home for what happens elsewhere.

I am therefore interested in Barclays AI Frenzy Launch Event 12 July 2018, but bemused that in 2018 Jersey’s most sought-after skills for the future are for Microsoft, Navision and AS400 and ostensibly a skill set demanded by a finance industry which “continues decline” (Jersey Evening Post pg2 5/7/2018)

https://www.digital.je/digital-skills-strategy/

This skills strategy is wrong thinking. With some notable and brilliant exceptions our Island trains people to be consumers. Read Brave New World [Aldus Huxley] if you want to know how that works out.

I fear people risk becoming well paid automaton who crave celebrity and consume fake news and amass followers and friends in pursuit of identity and purpose.

I can’t believe Jersey’s current ambition for the future is to have more people who can use Microsoft, Navision and AS400. I doubt that it is the same ambition for Estonia, Singapore or China.

Having read The Road to Somewhere [David Goodhart], I have previously blogged that we put students on a university conveyor belt to turn-out well-paid office workers (note1) with degrees and expertise whose jobs comprise forms, meetings and data-entry.

Karl Marx and George Orwell would be alarmed to see the bourgeois hipster become the white-collar proletariat of the global economy, which hosted in the cloud is fast becoming a deity more powerful than all the others, commanding how we live our lives.

FAMILY

In his excellent sequel to Sapiens, Yuval Noah Harari suggests in Homo Deus that the care you receive in your twilight years will probably not come from your estranged family but instead a foreign worker with education and values that are more practical and caring than those currently valued and rewarded.

When our banking, insurance, legal profession and businesses are run using AI there won’t be a need for us to input into Microsoft, Navision and AS400. The simplistic argument that mechanisation, automation and technology create more opportunities simply wasn’t true for blacksmiths and coal miners, the transformation came from a new generation not labourers who suddenly found an outlet for their dormant engineering skills. So, what will we do, and are we ready?

Now is the time to re-think being human, whilst we contemplate AI. Perhaps before we debate the opportunities and role for AI we might consider what role and purpose do we want for ourselves.

COMMUNITY

I anticipate government will shrink and business will grow. Even within Jersey we are seeing the downsize of the public-sector and the outsource or discontinuation of services.

I have previously argued that it would make sense to rationalise and streamline before downsizing. Losing jobs without having first implemented the technology or change that might replace them seems ill considered. However, the change whether well-orchestrated or badly executed is inevitable.

I believe the voluntary and charity sector will become more important than ever to bridge the growing gap between social need, government capacity and business profitability.

There is a real risk of a social chasm into which our modern blacksmiths and coal miners might fall and it is fear of this that fuels Trump, Brexit and protectionism.

As we contemplate the long-term impact of AI perhaps we should also consider the closer implications of a public-sector which is 10% smaller (700 people?) or a finance industry which has fallen 30% since 2007. It is simply daft to repurpose these people as experts in Microsoft, Navision and AS400, technology which was new in 1980s.

Feedback and comments always welcome

#jersey #egov #blockchain #regulation #socialchange

NOTES

Note1 Average employment costs £70k in Finance Sector. Average bonus £6500 Jersey Evening Post pg2 5/7/2018

REFERENCE

How to fix the future [Andrew Keen]
https://www.amazon.com/How-Fix-Future-Andrew-Keen/dp/0802126642

OTHER READING

Five things to make a difference to our Digital Future
https://medium.com/@timhjrogers/five-things-to-make-a-difference-to-our-digital-future-361f3c73a868

Jersey’s Digital balance between Opportunity and Trust
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/jerseys-digital-balance-between-opportunity-trust-tim-hj-rogers/

Artificial Intelligence: the impact on employment and the workforce
https://medium.com/@gkrasadakis/artificial-intelligence-3c6d80072416

Barclays AI Frenzy Launch Event 12 July 2018
https://www.digital.je/news-events/digital-events/barclays-ai-frenzy-launch-event/

AUTHOR

TimHJRogers
@TimHJRogers @AdaptCCompany +447797762051
https://www.linkedin.com/in/timhjrogers/
http://www.timhjrogers.com/

A more honest and useful survey

The States have asked if Respect, Honesty, Independence, Diversity, Citizen Empowerment, and Volunteering is important. If you want to say YES please click on the survey
https://survey.gov.je/s/DraftPrinciplesCVSandSoJYourViews/

However I am curious: Do the States really need a survey to know if Respect and Honesty are important? Are the States really unsure about Independence, Diversity, Citizen Empowerment? Do they really need your guidance on whether Volunteering is important to the voluntary and community sector?

Here is my suggestion for a more honest and useful survey

1. What are the areas (or which are the services) where Voluntary and Community Sector can work together more effectively?

2. What are the key barriers to Voluntary and Community Sector working together more effectively (and how can they be overcome) ?
3. Should the States put public funding into voluntary and community sector where these organisations can provide services faster, better or cheaper than the public-sector?

4. Which public-services should the States to tender to see can best provide the service: [a] public-sector [b] private-sector [c] voluntary and community sector?

5. Should the States offer their expertise (HR, Accounting, and Compliance etc.) and infrastructure (Technology, Security etc.) into helping voluntary and community sector be more efficient at supporting Jersey’s social and economic wellbeing.

I’d be much more interested in your answers to these questions!

And just in case someone from the States is reading this – YES Respect and Honesty is important (just in case you genuinely didn’t know!)

Do we need LinkyBrains in Jersey to tackle the challenges ahead?

A long time ago I set-up ciChange as a change management think tank focussed on local and practical change management. You can learn a lot from books, but you can learn more from people and in Jersey there is much to be said for local expertise and knowledge on the practical aspects of local change in schools, charities, business and government.

I later discovered TEDTalks and ran TEDxStHelier in 2014 and 2015, again as a forum for discussing ideas rather than a platform for products or sales which dominate many networking groups.

I have now discovered LinkyBrain and wonder if this is the natural successor to ciChange or TEDxStHelier. An opportunity for thinking people to gather and swap ideas.

LinkyBrain Indicators and Information
https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-indicators-of-a-linky-brain
https://www.linkedin.com/company/linkybrain/
https://linkybrains.com/

There is renewed interest in politics following Jersey’s general election and post-Brexit and post-Tump (and arguably post-Truth). There is perhaps both a need and opportunity to tackle Fake News and spin with some honest discussion and debate about issues.

If I ran monthly lunch or evening meal at an affordable price at a venue where people could talk and be heard, listen and enquire would people be interested? I am motivated having read Andrew Keen’s book “How to fix the future” whilst in New York and really do feel that Jersey is the perfect place to challenge and experiment with new ideas.

5 subjects for discussion…

1. Open technology platforms
To what extent does Jersey seek to be like Estonia, Singapore, China or any other country in its approach to data, systems, connectivity, innovation and opportunity?

2. Competition and Regulation
To what extent does Jersey use legislation and regulation to ensure opportunity for innovation and to nurture endeavour and reward investment by a diverse range of organisations in pursuit of economic and community balance.

3. Human Centric Design
To what extent are people involved in the design of the future: Will data and decision making be centralised like some Brave New World, or de-centralised with greater public control. GDPR and Blockchain both put the balance of power to the people, but both have opposition from the establishment (notably US repeal of privacy laws and concern for the lack of “supervision” over blockchain and bitcoin).

4. Public Space and Utility
To what extent does Jersey seek to automate using technology and AI and how does this balance with the need to protect humanity, meaning and purpose. Are people simply human resources, to be replaced by faster, cheaper and better machines? If not, what is the purpose for people in Jersey for the future ahead?

5. A new Social Security System
If robots, technology and AI do replace people and there is a shift of economics from the west to the far east, increased competition and all the other factors apparent, how do we propose to fund, employ, support and care for people in Jersey.

If we did such a thing I suspect the audience would change with each topic. This isn’t about being another Chamber of Commerce, Jersey Business, Digital Jersey or Jersey Finance representative body. Nor is it a new political party or lobby group. That’s not my intention although I welcome participation from all these people in such a discussion.

Would discussion on these 5 themes be interesting to anyone – post comments below or email me at timhjrogers@gmail.com

Failure by design - Lessons for product and project managers

There is often discussion about project and product failures and all sorts of statistics that would tell you about the need to manage people, process and delivery. Without doubt some projects fail for technical reasons, but my experience is that it can be easy to predict failure simply by looking at the management and tools.

If you bought self-assembly furniture you'd expect tools, a guide and the components. Now it may well be that the components are faulty, but I suggest that it is often the case that the tools are absent or not used correctly, or the guide is missing or not understood. Any deficiency results in problems and costs.

Design is about form and function, it is about process and product. It is the end-to-end process from concept to creation through to user experience.  Ikea design for example is not solely about a chair but about the processes that lead to the construction of a chair and the later benefits of having a chair.

It is really important for product and service providers, and project managers who combine both, to understand the importance of process, product, outcome and experience to overall success.

Chernobyl disaster was caused by "I wonder what happens if we turn off all the safety and try this"

Sometimes running a business without clear policies, processes and procedures can lead to disaster. I'm not against innovation or agile but next time somebody says "what's the worst that can happen" do give this some thought!

The cause of the accident was human error.  The RBMK reactor is designed to run at or near full power or be shut down.  Running it at low power is a bad idea, since that design is unstable at low power settings.  There was also a design flaw in the control rods that, under the right conditions, could cause a momentary increase in reactor power.  Anyway, the reactor operators (without input from the folks who designed the reactor) were running a test to see if, after a shutdown, the residual heat in the core could make enough steam to keep a backup turbine spinning to power the backup cooling system.  Great idea- if they'd known exactly what they were doing.  When the reactor (being held at low power for the test) went unstable, the operators tried to SCRAM it (emergency shutdown.)  Tragically, when they dropped the control rods, the reactor was in the exact state that would make the control rods cause a power spike.  That caused a "power excursion" in the core.  Now, a hair dryer puts out about 1,000 Watts of heat.  At full power, the Chernobyl reactor would power 1 million hairdryers, and put out as much heat as 3.5 million hairdryers running at once.  Now, imagine releasing enough heat to run those 3.5 million hairdryers for months- in half a second.  All the water in the core flashed to steam, and blew the reactor to smithereens

Imaging if a £10 note had a memory

If a £10 note had a memory it could say where it has been, and what it has been used for. An intelligent £10 note could even decide what it can be used for and what it cannot.

It is entirely acceptable that Iceland should have its own currency and Britain should have its. But Iceland is the size of Bristol, so if size isn’t the factor maybe the factor is community?

If a community had its own currently (rather that being like Greece, hostage to the decisions of another)  then an intelligent £10 note could help the economy.

Of course you’d always have choice – you could have an intelligent £10, plus EUR, USD, GBP, etc., but the local intelligent £10 would be really useful for benefits, grants, discounts, tax community services etc.

Imagine paying people in intelligent that could only be used for food, drink, housing and not used for drugs or crime. Would that be a good thing? What if they had EUR, USD, GBP for everything else?

What if taxes raised could only be used for the purposes agreed?

Is the above is the future of Crypto currency?

By TimHJRogers
https://www.linkedin.com/in/timhjrogers/

Bitcoin and Blockchain Jersey
https://www.facebook.com/groups/991338591017738/?ref=bookmarks
#tax #crypto #bitcoin #currency

Whose future is it anyway? - Policy is about what is right in the long-term not what is liked in the short-term.

Whose future is it anyway? - Policy is about what is right in the long-term not what is liked in the short-term.

I enjoyed your article “ Whose future is it anyway” [Connect magazine page 48] and feel motivated to contribute to the discussion.

https://www.bailiwickexpress.com/jsy/connect/issues/february-2018/#.Wpz4SbhbkdU

The implication of the title is that the future belongs to the young. Certainly there is a view that Brexit has greater implications for the younger generation who will live with the consequences of a decision substantially made by older generation who have previously enjoyed the benefits of those arrangements.

RE-THINKING AGE AND PLANNING HORIZON

More and more of us will live to 100 and our economic life is not over at 50. Nor is the valuable contribution that we can make to society ended when we retire. With changes in demographics and health there may be significant future challenges for the older generation who either need care or are not ready to be replaced by the educated and adaptable bright young challengers.

There are real problems for the young including student debt, high house prices, a gig economy and the reluctance of the generations before them to relinquish opportunity and power. However projecting forwards 20, 30 or 50 years the challenges are likely to be climate change (raised sea levels & insurance premiums), health (costs and services), homes (availability and price) and employment (jobs and pay).

The short-termism of fixed-term, part-time, zero-hours, and temp contacts makes planning difficult for all generations. It creates uncertainty albeit that some may see this as opportunity, others will see it as risk.

The concept of planning horizon which is touched upon in the comments like “too many cars” and “not enough variety” and “too expensive” are all factors which are difficult to change in the short term, and relatively easy in the long term.

This surely is the purpose of politics and policy. The ability to make decisions now which will have far reaching and far sighted impact. Nobody is going to be elected for advocating “one car per household” in 2019, but is it not possible to commit to a series of emissions targets supported by no petrol and no diesel cars by 2030?

The challenges you highlight are not going to be addressed by businesses pre-occupied by short-term cash flow, production and profit. The role of government is not to be a business, nor to compete with business, but to address the issues that business cannot. In short business is about profits, government is about policies.

POLICY V PERSONALITY

What worries me about recent referendum, elections, and with an eye towards Jersey’s forthcoming elections, is that politics nowadays is a combination of celebrity and sales with style often being more important than substance.

People vote for personalities not policies. I think a valuable service to the future will be fact checking and a bias away from personality toward policies.

 “Can't decide who to vote for? Find out whose policies you prefer for the election. It’s quick, fun, and sometimes surprising! ” https://voteforpolicies.org.uk/

Current debate is largely short-term and popularist. The debate should not be about the price of a service or the value of an asset now but what we need, want, expect for the next 50 years. Make the decisions based on long-term fact not short-term personal interest.

Some might argue that the price of rejecting a park at the site of the Hospital in order to preserve People’s Park is a short-term decision made by a cohort of well-meaning petitioners. This may have implications for a whole generation who in the future may lament not having a health service in town and a park stretching from parade gardens to the waterfront.

I highlight this not to take any side, but because it is both controversial and unpopular but policy is about what is right in the long-term not what is liked in the short-term. The existing stalemate benefits nobody.

The same is true for the issues raised in the page48 jerseypolicyforum article Connect magazine. To deliver a different future we need to be architects with a vision not bricklayers doing an extension. More of what used to work in the past does not build a future. Henry Ford said “If I asked people what they wanted they’d have said faster horses”

A ROLE FOR JERSEYPOLICYFORUM

I realise that jerseypolicyforum.org will not want to become embroiled in politics in the months leading up to Jersey’s elections. However now more than ever I believe there is a need to discuss and fact-check policies (independent of whoever espouses them).

https://www.bailiwickexpress.com/jsy/connect/issues/february-2018/#.Wpz4SbhbkdU

Has life get any better for Solopreneurs, Entrepreneurs and Start-Ups since 2015?

I met a former colleague today and we got chatting and it caused me to reflect upon the ciChange “think-tank” and a workshop for Solopreneurs done with the Chamber of Commerce in 2015.

Remember the economy was different in 2015, but I wonder how different the issues are in 2018?

THE ORIGINAL IDEA AND INVITATION IN 2015 

With businesses, banks and government downsizing we can expect more people to become “reluctant entrepreneurs”. Indeed we anticipate the current financial black hole will see a significant amount of job shed and a number of people seeking new self-employment.

Moreover digital and global changes with decentralisation and mobility is bringing a shift back to “cottage industries”, working from home, or small shared hubs, like Digital Jersey.

ciChange are interested in independent consultants, solopreneurs and start-ups in Jersey. We’d like to discuss the challenges, pros and cons of setting up and running as an independent, and identify what experiences we can share, where might be able to collaborate and what would make the business of being an independent much easier, better and more rewarding.

Would you be prepared to complete a short survey and contribute to a 2 hour workshop?

We are looking for between 8 and 16 people to offer a spread of ideas, experience and industries. If more people are interested we may, with Chamber of Commerce and Jersey Business run further, future workshops and feedback sessions for the outcomes and progress.

The aim is to conclude with a report to be shared with Chamber of Commerce, Digital Jersey, and Jersey Business in an effort to help startups and solo independent consultants in Jersey.

THE FINDINGS IN 2015

There were 32 respondents to the questionnaire and workshop audience (12) invited to “score” their top 3 issues, and those with the highest score got discussed first.

Score   Theme

9          Coaching / mentoring (Fear?)

7          What government can (and cannot) do (incl tax, socsec, gst etc)

3          Charge rates

3          Legal Start-Up Pack (insurance, accounting, employment law etc.)

3          Startup funding (including incubators)

3          Growth strategy and growth implementation

2          Ability to work with the States

2          Skills level

1          Structured guidance

1          Understanding finance, funding IT

1          Light industry opportunities

0          Market prices / market information

0          Directors responsibilities

We then explored the top 2 in the greatest detail and identified the following broad themes and 20 ideas for improvement (not listed here in the interests of brevity!). 

1.      There was a feeling that social, economic and technology changes combined with increases in bureaucracy mean that more people will be independent and work in loose affiliations and groups in preference to building larger organisations.

2.      There was criticism of some agencies for not being joined-up and at times being critical without being constructive with advice. Guidance in some cases is inconsistent and not coherent resulting in stop-start and dead alleys as people move from one agency to another.

3.      There was concern about guidance and support on issues relating to redundancy and startups, noting that redundancy often produces “reluctant entrepreurs” who need guidance and support.

4.      There was discussion of some form or barter system or credits whereby independents might collaborate, cooperate and help each other, perhaps through forums or sponsored networking events.

WHAT IS THE SITUATION IN 2018

I wonder how much has changed? Is there a need for a joined-up forum, focus-group or support network for Solopreneurs, Entrepreneurs and Start-Ups.

Or are these issues now addressed by the positive steps  and supportive services provided by Digital Jersey, Jersey Business, Chamber of Commerce, Barclay’s Digital Eagle and IoD?

I would be interested in comments and feedback.

SOME USEFUL LINKS IF YOU ARE A SOLOPRENEURS, ENTREPRENEURS OR START-UPS

https://www.jerseybusiness.je/

https://www.digital.je/

http://www.jerseychamber.com/

https://www.barclays.co.uk/digital-confidence/eagles/

http://www.iod.je/#sthash.yS5wWWhJ.dpbs

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tim Rogers is a Qualified Change Practitioner and PRINCE2 Project Manager, with an MBA in Management Consultancy. Past projects have included the incorporation of Ports of Jersey and Operations Change and Sales Support for RBSI and NatWest. He is a tutor/lecturer for the Chartered Management Institute. 

CONTACT

TimHJRogers@AdaptConsultingCompany.Com

+447797762051 Skype: timhjrogers TimHJRogers@gmail.com