Government industries urged to create an IT culture

There is a growing need for governments and individual companies to manage rapid changes by effectively utilizing information technology and a growing knowledge base for them to share in the benefits provided by emerging global economy.

However it is also clear that the greatest pitfalls and complexities posed by using information and communications technology (ICT) as a tool concerns people. Hence, there exists a socio-technical problem of creating a proper culture that fully incorporates knowledge at all levels of social organization and productive endeavor.

These are two major lessons learned from the presentations during the recent conference on the Knowledge economy: The Role of Information and Communication Technology organized by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) through the National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST).

The need and rapidity of such changes was amply shown in the keynote address of President Estrada where he gave instruction to update Executive Order No. 125 issued on July 1999 endorsing the National Information Technology Plan for the 21st century or IT21 to respond to recent industry developments. To complement this plan, President Estrada likewise underscored the role of reactivated and expanded E-commerce Promotion Council to consolidate efforts on and lead in E-commerce related activities.

Meanwhile, Science and Technology Secretary Filemon Uriarte has given the NAST the main task of creating an IT culture to help promote a knowledge economy where generation and exploitation of knowledge play the predominant part in the creation of wealth.

"With K-economy being founded with human ingenuity and skill and a commitment to innovation through research and development, there is no alternative way to prosperity than to make learning and knowledge-creation of prime importance," he said. There is also a need to shift production capacities to knowledge-based industries that are delivering fastest growth rates worldwide, he added.

During the synthesis, Apolinario D. Nazarea, executive council member of the NAST, concluded that the knowledge economy differs from traditional economy in several aspects:

• The economics is not of scarcity but rather of zero marginal cost. Unlike most resources that deplete when used, information and knowledge can be shared and actually grow through global research;
  
• The effect of location is erased using appropriated technology and methods, virtual market-places and organizations can be created that offer benefits of round-the-clock operation and global reach;
  
• Laws, barriers and taxes are difficult to apply on solely a national basis. Knowledge and information "leak" to where demand is highest and the barriers are lowest;
  
• Knowledge-enhanced products or services can command price premiums over comparable products with low embodied knowledge or knowledge intensity; and
  
• Human capital competencies are key component of value in a knowledge-based company. These characteristics, said Nazarea, because they are different from traditional economy, require new thinking and approaches by policy makers, entrepreneur and knowledge workers.

"To do so requires leadership and risk taking against prevailing and slow-changing attitudes and practices of existing institutions and traditional business pragmatics," he added.

He likewise mentioned some policy implications arising from these developments:

• Traditional measure of economic success must be replaced or at least supplemented by new ones. Such measures must be put together by government and private stockholders;
  
• Economic development and policy must focus not on the "jobs created" but rather looking into future, on infrastructure or sustainable knowledge enhancement that attracts knowledge-based companies; and
  
• Develop regulations and taxations for information and knowledge training and embodiment at a level compatible with international practices looking more and more future knowledge-based industries rather than traditional industries.

Business, on the other hand, have to recognize the importance of knowledge to their bottom line; develop new measures of corporate performance based on knowledge and eventually, annual corporate reports that contain intellectual capital acquisitions; systematically enhance organizational learning and knowledge through new organizational arrangements and processes; provide a technology infrastructure to enhance knowledge creation and sharing; and encourage the sharing of knowledge through effective organizational settings of business practices.--- Philexport News and Features