Microsoft help lobby the Government to change UK attitude to IT
For the last few months Microsoft and in particular their Partnership Manager for SMB, Sarah Hughes, have put together an IT Manifesto which recommends a four-point action plan which, if adopted by the Government, should ensure that ’small busineses continue to grow and contribue to the knowledge economy through IT’. Microsoft propose the creation of a National IT Advisory Service (ITAS) which would include representation from each RDA, and would be responsible for ironing out the barriers to IT adoption and consistent delivery of the four points outlined below. The ITAS should also have appropriate private sector involvement.
These four points are:
Awareness - A national campaign that emphasises the value of IT to Small Businesses. Given high levels of non-adoption, this campaign should provide a call to action that addresses small business IT literacy and helps with ‘my first steps towards IT’.
Connecting supply and demand - Align the delivery of existing initiatives and create new signposting of all public and private sector IT support services including those offered by accountants, IT resellers and government.
IT advisor/ supplier accreditation - Abolish Technology Means Business (TMB)* and properly fund a nationwide scheme of accreditation for IT advisors and suppliers. This needs investment into the promotion of the brand, to ensure it is recognised by small businesses and taken up by the IT industry, as well as, formally recognising already existing private sector accreditations.
Assessing IT needs in a business context - Deliver a properly funded and resourced business assessment tool for IT that is promoted centrally and has properly funded resources to execute its use.
* within the report, Microsoft also noted that ‘TMB has a poor reputation with approximately 500 accredited members across the UK. There are 30,000 Microsoft partners in the UK offering support, advice, consultancy to SMEs. Almost none are TMB accredited’.
The report itself is built up on the feedback gathered from the community as well as the results from some of the work done with regional development agencies. I would hope that Government Ministers take this manifesto seriously and use it as a platform to change the way IT is perceived in the UK - it’ll take a lot of effort from everyone but the message in the report supports a lot of what you and I have been saying for a while now.
If you would like a copy of this manifesto so you can read through it for yourself (15 pages), please drop me an email at susanne at dansey dot co dot uk. I’m sure you can use the document to help spread the word with your local RDAs as well as within your regional groups.
Those who have been involved in the creation of the manifesto should be thanked for their efforts:
- National b2b Centre
- Technology Services Group Limited (Microsoft Gold Certified Partner)
- ITSE Limited (Microsoft Small Business Specialist)
- Yorkshire Forward
- Black Country Consortium
- Wired West
There is also interest from BT and Intel so perhaps this could start the momentum we need?