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Nicola Haywood-Alexander, an experienced NHS chief information officer and co-founder of Tech4CV19, joins the expert group that advises the health tech agency and its clients
Reporter: Stacy Clarke – News
Highland Marketing has welcomed a new member to its advisory board of respected NHS IT leaders and health tech industry professionals.
Nicola Haywood-Alexander, a chief information officer and digital transformation adviser, who has worked in both the NHS and the wider public sector, has joined the expert group that provides advice to the health tech agency and its clients.
 Nicola Haywood-Alexander Nicola is also co-founder of Tech4CV19, a volunteer group of digital health and care leaders working with industry bodies to make sure tech companies can support the health service through the coronavirus emergency.
One of the advisory board’s current concerns is how to maintain the NHS and care sector ‘pivot to digital’ during the Covid-19 crisis as it starts to resume routine activity, and Nicola will bring a fresh perspective to its debates.
Susan Venables, co-founder and client services director at Highland Marketing, said: “We met Nicola through our own involvement with Tech4CV19 and were immediately impressed by her commitment and determination to make a difference to the NHS.
“Tech4CV19 is looking to identify the role that tech can play in supporting the health and care system and to make sure that companies with innovative solutions can put them in front of policy and decision makers.
“That aligns perfectly with Highland Marketing’s long-standing ambition to find “health tech to shout about” and to communicate it to the NHS. We are looking forward to working with Nicola as the service emerges from the Covid-19 crisis and looks to reset, not just to recover, for the future.”
 Highland Marketing Advisory Panel Nicola was CIO at Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust prior to her recent decision to embark on healthcare entrepreneurial activities to help move digital transformation at pace in the area of greater need. She has spent most of her NHS career in Yorkshire, where she was digital director at South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw integrated care system, and CIO at Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust.
Before moving into the NHS, she worked in the higher educational and research, local and regional government and engineering sectors
Nicola said: “This will be a great opportunity to engage with other colleagues and contribute to the thinking and understanding, and to shape the new direction digital healthcare is taking. I’m especially keen to maintain momentum around designing and delivering solutions that are patient centric and data driven.
“Highland Marketing is the most influential PR and marketing company in the sector, so I had no hesitation in accepting the invitation to join its advisory board. I am sure it will be a great vehicle for promoting those discussions and helping to shape future thinking.”
The Highland Marketing advisory board meets regularly to discuss issues around healthcare IT. It also acts a sounding board for the agency’s content, marketing and PR teams and for strategic clients.
Reporter: Allan Roach – News
Statkraft, Europe’s largest producer and a developer of renewable power, has pre-qualified as new supplier for the Re:fit Energy Performance Contract framework. The Norwegian state-owned energy company can now provide public organisations in the UK with fully funded behind the meter solar solutions. Re:fit is jointly owned by the Greater London Authority and Local Partnerships and helps public organisations to save time and money, by avoiding lengthy procurements.
“We are so proud of being part of the framework. It’s a great example where Statkraft can deliver what matters,” says Alex Goodall, Head of UK Solar – Markets, responsible for Statkraft’s fully funded solar turnkey solutions for private and public sectors. “Statkraft can provide a funded off-balance sheet solar solution, without incurring any type of land lease. This efficiently helps to lower bills and carbon emissions for local councils, government departments, the National Health Service, universities/colleges and schools. We support public organisations with the renewable energy revolution, reducing CO2 in response to the climate emergency.”
Statkraft’s offering
Statkraft will offer solar power purchase agreements (PPAs) that fund install, maintain and insure any solar PV and storage solutions, on or near sites. It would be a private wire (“behind the meter”) PPA, regardless of whether the public organisation leases or owns these buildings and/or sites.
Given that the proposition is capex free/fully funded by Statkraft, the consumer would be able to achieve PnL savings from day one, in the region of approximately 30% on delivered power. The solution is also lease-free and off-balance sheet, e.g. does not constitute an operating lease under IFRS16.
This funding approach is very suitable for public sector customers, as the generated renewable electricity is paid for via the PPA. This ensures that public sector funding and any savings generated, are used to support front line services.
About Re:fit
The renewed Re:fit framework is live from April 2020. It has a capacity to deliver up to £1.5 billion of public sector energy improvements, over the next four years. In the past eight years Re:fit has been a successful tool for public organisations to provide tailored energy renewable and efficiency solutions. The programme will help to provide lower bills and CO2 emissions for local and/or government authorities.
The renewed Re:fit framework is jointly owned by the Greater London Authority and Local Partnerships, a joint venture between the Local Government Association, HM Treasury and the Welsh Government. It helps public organisations in England and Wales to save time and money while at the same time enabling the public sector to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
Reporter: Stuart Littleford – News
The UK based, leading medical software company, Lexacom, has been awarded a place on the new NHS Shared Business Systems (SBS) Digital Dictation, Speech Recognition and Outsourced Transcription Framework.
This award will allow NHS trusts and other healthcare organisations to directly access Lexacom’s portfolio of software and hardware. This comes at a time when NHS organisations require market leading solutions to assist their critical work during ever more complex and unprecedented times. 
“In the coming months, the backlog of nonCovid-19 patients is going to place a further strain on UK healthcare administration. Lexacom is proven to increase efficiency and speed up turnaround times of referrals, letters and other documents. NHS trusts require quick answers as soon as possible and Lexacom provides the security and accuracy that medical professionals need. Our solutions can also be instantly accessed and embedded into existing admin systems and can be used remotely. This will be essential for future working practice,” said Dr Andrew Whiteley, Managing Director, Lexacom.
Lexacom is the UK’s leading supplier of digital dictation, speech recognition and transcription software to primary care, with over 60% of practices using the software and continues to improve the links between primary and secondary care. “This award further strengthens the long-standing relationship we have as a trusted and approved partner within the healthcare sector and we are proud to be recognised for this,” said Dr Whiteley.
For further information, please contact sales@lexacom.co.uk or see www.lexacom.co.uk.
Reporter: Stuart Littleford – News
Peers have launched a new inquiry to ask what lessons for our public services can be learned from the coronavirus pandemic.
The House of Lords Select Committee on Public Services, set up to examine the transformation of public services to ensure that they are fit for the 21st century, will look into what the COVID-19 experience can tell us about their future role, priorities and shape.
The inquiry will focus on key areas including:
- Integration of services;
- Inequalities in access and outcome;
- Relationships between local and national services; and
- The role of civil society (private sector, charities, volunteers and community groups) during the pandemic.
Baroness Armstrong, chair of the committee, told GPSJ:
“COVID-19 has presented our public services with one of the gravest challenges in recent history, and we have seen heroic efforts from frontline staff to ensure our communities are supported during lockdown.
“However, the crisis has also highlighted some fundamental weaknesses in the design of public services, such as the lack of integration between health, social care and other services. The Committee will explore how the lessons from coronavirus can inform public service reform.” 
The pandemic has already encouraged radical thinking in some areas, such as the establishment of numerous community initiatives to support people during lockdown – schemes which have seen collaboration across the voluntary sector, NHS and social care providers, police; local authorities and community services to ensure that the needs of local communities are met.
The crisis has also demonstrated the ability of government to increase the capacity of public services quickly when necessary – as seen in the NHS.
Baroness Armstrong added: “The pandemic has shown what’s possible, but how can government and leaders ensure that the transformation seen in some services remain once the crisis is over?”
The committee is due to hold its first public evidence session on 3 June.
The committee’s Call for Evidence is here.
 ProGuard+ arriving in Spain Reporter: Allan Roach – Sponsored
Evolve Scientific Products (ESP) based in Chesterfield has announced an international order for its ProGuard+ multi-surface cleaner. A surface cleaner that provides long-lasting effective protection against the Covid-19 virus that could make moving towards an end of lockdown safer and securer for everybody, particularly those in key professions.
Mark Nolan, Director of ESP told GPSJ: “We are so proud of ProGuard+, a cleaning agent developed over the last 30 years here in the UK. Originally the product was designed to act as an anti-mold agent, but with technological developments and refinements it’s now recognised as an eco-friendly multi-surface cleaner that kills then protects against bacterial infections and germs. ProGuard+ attacks surface biofilms then coats the area with a positive electrostatic charge that repels any nasties for up to 4 weeks.”
“The product can be used as a general cleaner on any surface but also due to its formulation it can be used on areas such as door handles, banisters, lift buttons, and general touchpoints by just spraying and leaving. The coating wraps itself around such points giving long-lasting protection. Other such toxic disinfectants become obsolete once dry allowing infections to re-contaminate and spread.
 ProGuard+ Available in a premixed 750ml Spray, Concentrate and Santising wipes Pro Guard offers a great cost-effective way to not only clean but protect areas for hours, even weeks. This is proving to be a great success in hotels, nursing homes, public transport and general meeting areas. ProGuard+ is also a deodorizer leaving a fresh scent behind from its nontoxic formula.
“We are of course keen that this product is used to help the UK’s fight against the virus, but currently most of our orders are for export, particularly Spain, Eastern Europe and the United States. This is good for the UK economy during this shutdown but it would be nice to have more interest here in Britain,” he continued.
ProGuard+ uses a unique electrostatic cleaning technology that has been developed by UK scientists over the last 30 years to provide the highest level of long-term protection that no other SINGLE product can deliver. Safe to humans and animals, plant-based, non-toxic, non-corrosive and biodegradable ecologically sanitises to hospital-grade standards. Neutralises odours without leaving residual chemical smells. Suitable for food preparation areas and taint free. It removes biofilm formation on 99% of surfaces.
Tested to: ISO9001, ISO13485, EN1276 (MEDICAL GRADE)
“ProGuard+ A revolutionary all-purpose cleaner that replaces the need for multiple conventional sanitisers, disinfectants, enzymes, bleaches and biocides!”
For further information please visit: www.evolve-sp.com
Or email: info@evolve-sp.com
 Reporter: Graham Jarvis, Freelance Business and Technology Journalist for GPSJ – News
There is nothing better than being able to walk out of the house to exercise in the park, the countryside or even to stroll by the sea. Just the ability to go outside gives us a new sense of perspective, and enables us to maintain our health and wellbeing.
Even now that lockdowns are being eased in several countries around the world, including to some degree in the UK, social-distancing can still be a lonely experience. We are disconnected from the friends and family that don’t live in our home. People are taking precautions to be more guarded and are still fearful that they could become infected with Covid-19. When you look around, you can see the concerned expressions on people’s faces, and the reality is that our ‘new normal’ is unsettling.
Come together
People need to talk to family and friends, to meet new people, to organise support for our individual and collective health and wellbeing. This brings to the forefront a key message: A shared crisis, such as a pandemic, is potentially a shared opportunity to use technology and online community apps to connect. After all, as social-beings we need connection and contact with other people at work, at home and to engage socially.
Leepse is the new community app which was created to provide users the opportunity to engage and meet like-minded people, during these social-distancing times. Just having a connection with others can make a huge difference to our self-esteem, our ability to feel loved and valued and to our competence in day-to-day life.
Community matters
Gabriel Mulko, co-founder of Leepse, adds: “Social-distancing and self-isolation hurt, a lot. We realise we can’t go to the office to work, we can’t play football, and in some countries we haven’t been able to go for a run or hang out in the park. Prior to the lockdown, we would socialise with people we enjoy and each interaction supported our health and well-being.
Dramatic rise in suicides: www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8320473/Suicides-England-Wales-rise-deeply-concerning-11-cent-4-620-deaths-2019.html
We’ve seen that the most vulnerable are hit the hardest. The elderly, or less tech-savvy population group aren’t using social platforms, which only isolates them even more. Great things come from hard times, and we hope that tech executives will work towards building technology adapted to these groups, much as Leepse is doing for all ages.”
Lockdowns take away the key thing that most of us take for granted, albeit for the greater good: our freedom to go where we want, when we want and to do what we want without having to justify it. Mulko believes that’s what hurts people the most, sometimes without them knowing it. He adds: “Would they have gone out a lot more if it wasn’t restricted? Maybe, maybe not. But the mere fact that we haven’t had that option and some people still don’t, is overwhelming.”
The loneliness that many people are feeling, including young singletons who can socialise or date, as Mulko suggests, exacerbate our everyday issues. “Socialising with people makes us forget about our struggles, our fears and our insecurities. Communing with others allows us the freedom to stop looking into ourselves”, he explains.
Uncertainty’s impact
Mulko is right to underline that as humans, we often hate uncertainty. Some people can cope with it and even thrive with it, but there are many of us who can’t, for whatever reason, tolerate it – including those on job furlough schemes, ironically designed to protect employment, but suggest to employees that they could still lose their job.
You only have to look at the airline industry, with companies such as Virgin Atlantic and British Airways, to realise that the economic impact of lockdown is going to be potentially quite severe. British Airways is set to cut around 12,000 jobs, and Virgin Atlantic is to cut at least 3,000 jobs. So, the potential issues that people are facing will inevitably impact their health and wellbeing in some way, shape or form.
Mulko adds: “Humans love to know everything about anything. Is it going to be sunny tomorrow? Are we going to Uncle Joe’s birthday party Saturday? Planning helps to make most people feel comfortable and relaxed. While we can survive not knowing when we’ll see Uncle Joe, we can’t survive not knowing when our next holiday is.” He says a sizeable number of people dislike their jobs to a certain extent, and yet they’re still working hard every day, every week, of every year. But this is to bring them closer to the goal of working towards holidays and vacations, a time for rest, relaxation and time with family and friends.”
At the moment the uncertainty is about whether travel and tourism, and the impact on the hospitality industry, will be able to return to full operations this year. This brings about many unanswered questions. Will people have to self-quarantine once they return home? Will they need to have a Covid-19 test hours before they fly to their destination? These restrictions will further reduce the amount of people taking holidays this year, leading to financial stress about whether or not they will be able to get their money refunded and the cost to wellbeing and health long term.
Enabling conversations
While apps alone won’t solve these issues, they can enable people to talk through these issues by using them – perhaps even to find solutions or a common ground to boost morale. Mulko explains: “Socially speaking, before Covid-19, people were combining online and offline interactions. With the lockdown, the online interactions are filling the communication gap to make up for the lack of physical contact and real-life interactions. Based on user activity, we can tell apps and online communities like Leepse are doing a great job of connecting people across a variety of topics. We also see an increase in public figures providing content and pushing existing online communities for support.
For International Nurses’ Day on 12th May 2020, members of the British Royal Family, including HM Queen Elizabeth, made calls to nurses to thank them, and shared a video of the event. The Queen, who made her first public broadcast on wireless in 1940, broke ground once more at the age of 94 by allowing , as The Telegraph put it, “the first broadcast of audio from an all-family video call to thank nurses for their very important work.” It was the first Zoom engagement by the Royals as a team. The video keeps the moments shared available for posterity, while bringing cheer during the pandemic.
“The lockdown and the self-isolating effects are an opportunity for us, as app creators, to build strong online communities that can act as a safety net during difficult times. The trend we’re seeing is that the apps that are captivating people’s attention are the entertaining ones. Yes, online therapies are also seeing an increase in usage, but the real winners are the ones providing a moment of escape from all the trauma. People need to laugh, relax and think of talk about anything else, but COVID-19.”
Sense of belonging
Mulko also reminds us that we’re in this pandemic together. So we can help each other with the support of online communities to get through it. With apps such as Leepse, he suggests we can “feel closer to people who before were strangers to us. For the first time ever, we have a common shared experience with every human being on this planet.” What is key to him is that communities provide a sense of belonging, which is why Leepse communities are personalised to give users a feeling that they’re in a safe space and amongst peers – people that could potentially become offline friends too, when the crisis is over.
“We give Leepse users an opportunity to meet people they could have met if it wasn’t for the COVID-19. Users are now able to socialise with new people who will make their lives more engaged, and who they could meet when the crisis is over, at a distance of course” he explains, before adding:
“We’re given an opportunity to do all the things we always wanted to do, guilt-free: Reading books you’ve been stacking on the shelf, learning a language you’ve always wanted to learn, being watch the TV shows you’ve always wanted to watch, and those long baths that you never had time for before. This is how you make the lockdown as enjoyable as possible.”
People can also survive the pandemic, lockdown, self-isolation and enforced quarantine by remembering it’s good to talk to new people, and the opportunities haven’t ended because of Covid-19, but are showcasing new ways to engage and connect online.
Talking hasn’t changed
Perhaps this is why Mulko believes that the crisis hasn’t changed much some aspects of our lives: “There is not a single thing that is good to do in lockdown that is not good to do when we aren’t. When you read newspaper headlines and articles, it sounds like the pandemic has changed the world, but it’s simply wrong.
It’s always been good practice to exercise at home, to go for a walk, to talk about your struggles, to connect with like-minded people.” For these reasons it’s good to talk to people during the Covid-19 pandemic – online and offline where possible within social distancing rules. Talking and connecting is more important than ever to preserve and promote health and wellbeing and online supportive communities offer this ability to everyone isolated and social-distancing during this pandemic.
Reporter: Allan Roach – Sponsored
Universal Partners FX (UPFX) is delivering foreign exchange services, at zero profit to the company, to all organisations bringing in vital COVID-19 equipment. This service is listed by The Crown Commercial Service, the official procurement body. The founders of UPFX, Dhaval Patel and Oliver Carson, introduced the extraordinary measure to give practical support during the current crisis. They are believed to be the only FX company offering this service.
UPFX has created a special team, who prioritises COVID-19 payments. No fees are added to these transfers and it can mean extending credit limits to facilitate faster transactions.
Many UPFX clients were protected by forward contracts coming into the lockdown, meaning they had certainty over the rates they will pay during this time of high volatility. However, UPFX could see that some were struggling, and this was delaying vital supplies reaching hospitals.
Dhaval Patel, co-Founder and Director of UPFX, explained; “We could see that foreign exchange issues were slowing down the procurement process. Those delays meant that medical teams weren’t getting vital supplies in time (including PPE and hand sanitiser), which could lead to loss of life. 
In addition, with sterling rates moving over 10% in a short space of time, many UK businesses saw increased costs on imports. By forward buying, our clients saved that 10% and that value translated to more vital supplies being available to those on the front-line.”
Pai Skincare, a natural and ethical cosmetics company, created a hand sanitiser especially for coronavirus and have donated 8,000 units, so far, to schools. UPFX converted $150,000 and EUR 170,000 for them in March.
Sarah Brown, the Founder of Pai Skincare explained; “We are a global business. There has been so much volatility in the markets with Brexit and now Covid-19. Universal Partners has kindly provided their service at cost during the Covid-19 crisis, as we are providing essential items related to Covid-19.”
JAG UFS, a logistics solutions company, has brought in 10 x 747 aircrafts carrying PPE (including 10 million face masks in each aircraft) to supply NHS Scotland & Wales.
UPFX has been forward buying on $7million for supplier payments.
Gary Wilcox, the CEO of JAG UFS commented; “UPFFX has been instrumental in the PPE deliveries, allowing us to forward buy on currency. During so much uncertainty, they have really added value to our business and to the NHS in Scotland and Wales.”
UPFX has also donated care packages to local hospitals. These include additional hygiene supplies and snacks.
UPFX is renowned for their extraordinary growth. Founded in 2017, they achieved a turnover of £113m during their first year. In 2019 their turnover had grown to £945 million with £2.8 million profit
Oliver Carson, the co-founder of UPFX concluded: “We’ve been extraordinarily successful, and it was time to give back. This virus has affected all our lives, we’re pleased to be able to play our part in the work to fight it.”
Reporter: Stuart Littleford – News
As a result of the increasing pressures being placed on the Adult Social Care system as a result of COVID-19, Knowsley Council has allocated funding and agreed system changes to enhance its support for care providers across the Borough.
These enhancements recognise the increasing demand on services, higher than usual staff absences amongst care providers due to COVID-19 and the additional costs being incurred across the entire system. The Council is extremely grateful for the support of frontline social care staff and wants to ensure that those working in this sector feel as valued as they possibly can at this time.
Councillor Sean Donnelly, Knowsley Council’s Health and Social Care Cabinet Member for commented: “Care workers really are the unsung heroes of the health and social care world. They work incredibly hard to provide important care and support for our residents when they need it most. The pressure on the system currently is incredible and organisations and individuals really are struggling in the face of the significant challenges arising from COVID-19.
“We have been working closely with our care providers to understand their challenges and do what we possibly can to support them during this difficult time. This is why we have today announced some practical and meaningful changes which we hope will help providers to continue to deliver such a valuable service. We also want all workers within this sector know just how much their contribution is valued.”
The Council has announced that it will:
- Increase payments permanently by 7% to all domiciliary care providers – to ensure that workers across the private care sector are paid at least the National Living Wage rate
- Increase payments by 5% to all providers until the end of June 2020 (with the option to extend by a further three months if the crisis continues)
- Make further payments to all providers to meet the costs of sickness absence across their workforce during the COVID-19 crisis
- Make changes to the payments system in order to get money to providers even more quickly
The Council is hopeful that these changes, which will be implemented with immediate effect, will provide crucial additional support for a system that is already under significant pressure. The cost of these measures is expected to be in the region of £2.4 million in 2020/21.
Councillor Donnelly added: “COVID-19 presents an unprecedented challenge for us all. There is no magic wand to wave and we will be dependent on Government support to help us to meet these costs, but there is a real will to do what we can in Knowsley to look after those who most need our help. And if that means ensuring the people and organisations delivering some of that care have some more support practically and financially then we will do what it takes to do just that.”
 VC Professor Shearer West Reporter: Stuart Littleford – News
An online fundraising appeal to support coronavirus (COVID-19) research and ease student hardship has been launched by the University of Nottingham.
The University is at the forefront of global efforts to understand and control the coronavirus pandemic, with a multidisciplinary team working to find the best vaccine to combat COVID-19, discovering vital new treatments and protecting the world against future outbreaks that could save many thousands of lives.
The University is also supporting students at home, in the EU and internationally, for many of which the coronavirus pandemic has created overwhelming hardship.
Professor Shearer West, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Nottingham told Government & Public Sector Journal: “The world has dramatically changed for us all in such a short period of time. I am incredibly proud of the many ways our community is leading the fight against COVID-19.
“Our talented researchers are undertaking essential work to protect us against future outbreaks and develop new treatments to care for those suffering from the disease. Meanwhile our Student Services team is providing urgent support to help ensure the students hit hardest by the financial impact of the pandemic can continue their studies.
“Nottingham is in a unique position to help tackle the pandemic, but access to flexible funding is essential.”
Annually the University allocates over £300,000 to support students through times of hardship and crisis, but is already seeing unprecedented need. More than 200 students have so far applied for emergency financial assistance directly as a result of the pandemic, with 60 requests for help based on anticipated hardship which cannot be supported at this time.
Professor Jonathan Ball is the Director of the University’s Centre for Research on Global Virus Infections.
 Professor Jonathan Ball He said: “We bring together virologists across veterinary and human virology. The University of Nottingham has a leading vet school and a leading medical school – this rare combination allows us to fully understand the dynamic interplay between animal and humans that allows deadly spill over events like the coronavirus outbreak to occur.
“Working with active clinicians means our ideas and inventions can be rapidly progressed to help prevent and treat current and future virus outbreaks.”
Donations of all sizes will have an immediate impact on the University’s response to the crisis, filling gaps in funding to ensure that clinical trials can continue, that supply lines keep moving, and that researchers are able to work at both speed and scale.
Find out more and donate by visiting the University of Nottingham’s COVID-19 research effort fundraising page.
Further information about the work being undertaken across the University can be found on the University’s Response to the Coronavirus webpages
 Reporter: Stacy Clarke – Advertorial
A leading emergency soft FM specialist has launched a disinfection and testing service that aims to deliver industry-leading Covid-19 protection and help employers reduce the anxiety of staff and clients as workplaces reopen after lockdown.
The three-step process, developed by SafeGroup Services Ltd, involves a premises deep clean and a revolutionary Covid-19 (Coronavirus) treat and protect service. It also includes, for the first time, Covid-19 testing of treated surfaces to allay the predicted fears of staff and customers as they return to the workplace.
The service is being taken up by organisations and companies across the public and private sectors, including schools and care providers, where a wide range of stakeholders, some in high risk groups, need assurance that all efforts are being made to make premises safe.
Cygnet Healthcare, which provides mental health care, is one customer. Regional Facilities Manager Craig Keates said: “Our environments are high risk. SafeGroup provides the best in market disinfection services that we need 24/7 and our staff and clients have full peace of mind.”
Schools see the service as a way to underpin other measures to make classrooms Covid-19-secure, such as social distancing, by greatly reducing the risk of transmission from person to surface to person, while tackling the concerns of parents, pupils and teachers.
SafeGroup Chief Executive Office Steve Broughton said: “Our Covid-19 Back to Business Clean and Safe service is a comprehensive cleaning and disinfection response to the major challenges facing businesses as they leave lockdown and reopen their premises.
“They recognise they have a duty of care to ensure their workplaces are safe and clean. They are having to address the very real wellbeing and mental health concerns of their employees and customers.
“They also want their workplace to have long-term protection against Covid-19 so staff and customers have peace of mind over the weeks to come. Our Back to Business Clean and Safe service delivers all three.
“Businesses and FM providers alike know they don’t have the in-house expertise, technical capability or capacity to carry out disinfection to the standard customers, staff and regulators expect, which is why interest in our new service has been intense.”
During the pandemic, SafeGroup has provided Covid-19 decontamination services for a wide range of businesses, including facilities management providers, hospitals, care homes, schools and manufacturers.
One of them is London Stansted Airport. Nick Henderson, the airport’s Business Continuity and Resilience Manager, said: “We needed to respond quickly to reassure passengers and staff that decisive action was being taken on their behalf. SafeGroup’s decontamination service has been an important component of our strategy.”
The new Back to Business Safe and Clean service is tailored to deliver a complete package of technically advanced cleaning and disinfection services to support businesses as the government seeks to phases out the Covid-19 lockdown.
Step 1 – Deep Clean: a full and thorough mechanical clean of premises using professional techniques and chemical products to create a clean and fresh workspace. Staff and employer organisations, including the CIPD, have emphasised the need to carry out deep cleans as part of a Covid-19 return to workplace strategy.
Step 2 – Treat and Protect: SafeGroup is treating premises with a revolutionary broad spectrum anti-microbial chemical treatment proven to be greater than 99.99% effective against Covid-19 and which provides surface protection against the virus for up to 30 days. It is delivered as an microfine electrostatic spray, maximising coverage.
Step 3 – Testing: SafeGroup will collect multiple test samples and arrange to have them analysed for Covid-19 at a scientific laboratory, with results returned within 72 hours. The testing process is the same as the one used by Public Health England.
All three elements will be carried out to an exemplar standard, including the use of full microbiological PPE where necessary.
SafeGroup Strategic Business Director Chris Macdonald said: “Covid-19 has reframed the response to workplace cleanliness. Our discussions with businesses tell us that they see making sure employees having confidence in workplace hygiene standards as being a critical priority as the Covid-19 lockdown is phased out.
“This is a key reason why we’re offering the Covid-19 testing service and why it has been enthusiastically welcomed by customers. It gives businesses scientific evidence that workplaces are Covid-19-free. Combined with the long-lasting effectiveness of our disinfection treatment, staff can be confident everything is being done to keep them safe.”
SafeGroup expects its Back to Business Clean and Safe service to be particularly attractive to business services providers, like banks and insurance companies, operating large office spaces, as well as government agencies and retailers.
The service is also ideal for service organisations that have been working hard to protect against Covid-19 throughout the pandemic, including hospitals, care homes emergency services and transport providers.
For more information, contact SafeGroup: backtobusiness@thesafegroup.co.uk
Tel: 0800 668 1268. www.thesafegroup.co.uk.
Reporter: Allan Roach – Advertorial
Over ninety-two percent of midsize businesses use at least one cloud-based application. And the majority of enterprises expect at least half of their management infrastructure to be cloud-based. Cloud-managed networking, often provided “as-a-service,” is rapidly growing in popularity.
What is cloud-managed networking?
Cloud-managed networking is commonly used when referring to the ability to manage Wi-Fi, wired and SD-WAN network infrastructure as a cloud-based service. This service is typically hosted in the cloud by a 3rd party as a subscription-based purchase model.
An immediate benefit is the cost and time savings achieved by eliminating the need for hardware and the resources needed to host traditional on-premises services. And because there’s virtually no ramp-up time, cloud-based solutions provide significant time-to-market and time-to-value that help businesses achieve a competitive advantage. These same benefits apply to managing a network infrastructure. Cloud-managed networking, which refers to the ability to manage network hardware and software using the SaaS model, is also increasing in popularity. In fact, Gartner research states that the adoption of cloud-managed networking is expected to double by the end of 2023.
Here, we highlight the key benefits of cloud-managed networking:
- Centralized Visibility & Control – a single location for Wi-Fi, wired, and WAN networks, devices and clients
- 24/7 Anywhere Access – perform management, monitoring and control from any device at any time
- Stable & Secure Platform – avoid legacy maintenance and redundant configurations to ensure uptime
- Significant Resource Savings – over deploying and managing appliance based on-premises solutions
Presented by Aruba and European Electronique.
To learn more, please visit: cloud-managed-networking.com/ee/
 Colonel Tom Moore (left) with General Mark Carleton-Smith, CGS – (photo courtesy of the MoD) Reporter: Stuart Littleford – News
Hero fundraiser Colonel Tom Moore is to be knighted, following a special nomination from the Prime Minister.
Col Tom, who celebrated his 100th birthday last month, is to be recognised for his extraordinary fundraising achievements after capturing the hearts of people across the country.
The Second World War veteran became a national hero after raising £33m for the NHS – a Guinness World Record – having walked 100 laps of his Bedfordshire garden.
Following Col Tom’s amazing charity feats, the Prime Minister personally recommended Col Tom be exceptionally honoured to Her Majesty the Queen.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said:
“Colonel Tom’s fantastic fundraising broke records, inspired the whole country and provided us all with a beacon of light through the fog of coronavirus.
“On behalf of everyone who has been moved by his incredible story, I want to say a huge thank you. He’s a true national treasure.”
Col Tom’s honour, which has been graciously approved by Her Majesty the Queen, is due to be formally announced tomorrow.
The Government is also set to give further details on plans for how frontline heroes, who have been fighting coronavirus across the country, will be honoured in the coming months and how the public will be able to play their part.
A Government spokesperson told GPSJ:
“We know there is huge appetite to say thank you to all those supporting the nation during this emergency and doing incredible things day in, day out, up and down the country.
“We will ensure these unsung heroes are recognised in the right way, at the right time.”
 Sascha Giese, Head Geek™, SolarWinds By Sascha Giese, Head Geek™, SolarWinds
Imagine being able to design a digital version of just about anything in the real world, infuse it with data, and use the knowledge it provides to create or improve its real-life physical entity. This is the concept behind “digital twins,” which first emerged in an industrial and manufacturing context. Since then, it has grown to describe the creation of digital replicas of physical devices, entities, people, processes, and places. By creating a digital twin, activities such as product development may be cheaper and quicker, and performance may improve.
The Endless Possibilities of Digital Twins
Today’s digital twins are more than simulations—they use real-world, real-time data to power replicas. As such, the growth in technologies such as the internet of things (IoT) have helped accelerate their use. It’s an exciting concept, and as our capacity to build more powerful and complex IT systems has increased, so has the ability to develop digital twins for bigger and more complex use cases.
These use cases include testing aircraft engines and landing gear components using sensors on real-world equipment to generate the data necessary to make performance and durability predictions. In Formula 1, teams use digital twins to measure a huge range of informative data points to improve reliability, performance, and safety. Some organisations also use them to support their software development process, improving efficiency and reducing time to market. These uses all add up to a growing market; and according to Grand View Research, this market will be worth more than US$26 billion by 2025.
Applied to the government across the board, the scope is truly enormous. Imagine the possibilities, for instance, of creating a digital replica of an entire city and using this replica to plan transportation infrastructure. This is particularly important in the current era of rapid transportation technology changes and the need to change public policy to improve the environment over the long term. The emergence of autonomous vehicles, for example, is a transportation concept in which no one has much experience. As a result, digital twins are likely to become an important planning and prediction resource for government bodies needing to understand, predict, and maximise the benefits of this rapidly emerging trend.
As Gartner put it in its “Hype Cycle for Digital Government” report last year, “In the midterm, governments will use digital twins for automated command-and-control operations that will require fewer staff to respond to incidents. Over time, digital twins will be used to test scenarios related to policy and legislation. That’s when this technology becomes truly transformative.”
One day, we may see entire government functions and infrastructure created as digital twins. Artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data, and IoT will contribute to the development of more complex, accurate, and reliable digital twins. Some expert commentators predict digital twins will be used to understand, predict, and manage public health issues. In the longer term, we may all possess a digital twin of our own bodies, which will be used as a preventative healthcare tool and to help us recover from illness and injury. Clearly, the principle will be of interest to those with the job of funding and delivering public healthcare systems, which are already stretched thin by a growing and ageing population.
Don’t Run Before You Can Walk
Despite the potential of digital twins, there are various technology and process hurdles to overcome. Securing data from the real device to the network, from the network to the digital twin, and from the monitoring stations viewing this data is tremendously important. If the data can be viewed, copied, interrupted, or manipulated and reinserted surreptitiously, then serious problems are likely.
There’s also the issue of cost. Creating the infrastructure, whether done securely or not, represents a duplication of efforts and budget, which begs the question of whether the investment will reduce costs sufficiently to pay for the new twinning technology. Similarly, scaling digital twinning to a large environment—particularly when security is critical—requires a large and highly available network on which you can communicate reliably and store the twins’ data.
In practical terms, however, governments have been increasingly committed to the study, development, and use of digital twins. In the U.K., for example, organisations such as the National Infrastructure Commission have argued strongly in favour of creating a digital twin of our national infrastructure. This work was taken forward by the Digital Framework Task Group (DFTG) and others with the objective of developing the National Digital Twin programme, which has since delivered an initial roadmap. Clearly, there’s much more to come, and future generations will work with and benefit from digital twins on a routine basis. It’s yet another exciting and transformative digital trend to watch closely.
www.solarwinds.com
The Bill takes back control of UK borders and paves the way for a new points-based immigration system
Reporter: Stuart Littleford
The Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill 2020 introduced on 5 March will have its Second Reading in the House of Commons today (Monday 18 May) just six months since the British people voted to introduce a points-based immigration system.
This represents an important milestone in paving the way for the new immigration system that will deliver for the UK for years to come and puts an end to the European Union’s rules on free movement.
The Bill signals the Government’s commitment to delivering a fairer and skills led immigration system, attracting people based on the skills they have, not where they are from.
The Home Secretary, Priti Patel told GPSJ:
“This historic piece of legislation gives the UK full control of our immigration system for the first time in decades and the power to determine who comes to this country.
“Our new points-based system is firmer, fairer, and simpler. It will attract the people we need to drive our economy forward and lay the foundation for a high wage, high skill, high productivity economy”
This is a once in a generation opportunity to build a future that works for the whole of the UK and for employers to focus on upskilling and investing in the workforce this country has. 
This Bill gives the UK flexibility and control over its borders so it can attract top talent from around the world to complement the skills already here.
Talented doctors, nurses and paramedics from all over the world are currently playing a leading role in the NHS’s efforts to fight coronavirus and save lives and we thank them – and all our NHS staff – for the work they are doing.
Our new immigration system will make it easier and quicker for medical professionals around the world to work in the NHS through a new fast-track NHS visa.
Further information on the points-based system will be detailed in the Immigration Rules published later in the year.
 Real-Time Payment Notifications provide real-time updates on card acceptance transactions
Payment specialist allpay limited, has launched Event Driven Payment Analytics. Real-time payment notifications now provide instant updates on card acceptance and payment transactions.
Teejay Townsend, card acceptance product manager allpay explains: “We are now offering this new feature to update organisations instantly on payments made over the internet, via our mobile app or over the phone. This is of particular benefit for bill payers, as it prevents them being chased needlessly for payments they have already made.
“Previously, a payment information file (PIF) would be sent to the receiving organisation within 24 hours but for urgent, time sensitive payments for court fines or eviction notices for example, this may be too slow or even too late. Real-time notification could also stop tenants being charged for rent areas if they have already paid too and, it is also helpful when paying deposits, as systems and customer balances can be kept up to date as bills are paid. PIF files will still be available as usual the next working day.
“Real-Time Payment Notifications cover successful payments, declined payments and refunds. In addition to providing a better service to customers, the implementation of Event Driven Payment Analytics can cut the resources required to recover late payments, as staff are acting on the most up to-date information.
“Event Driven Analytics is now available for a small one-off fee and low monthly cost. We hope this new real-time payment notification service will be helpful for government organisations and housing associations taking regular payments, to ensure that they are always able to respond to the most up to date information available for the benefit of their users.”
For more information please see: www.allpay.net/our-solutions/credit-debit-cards/real-time-notifications/
 New edition of a biography of Alexander Wilson throws new light on how and why the ‘Alec Wilson’ of the BBC series ‘Mrs Wilson’ was thrown out of MI6 during the Second World War.
The book reveals he could have been unfairly discredited because of mistakes by the country’s intelligence agencies.
Professor Tim Crook of Goldsmiths, University of London has painstakingly researched every aspect of the life of the multiple bigamist, spy writer and Intelligence officer over 13 years.
The Secret Lives of a Secret Agent was the foundation of the BBC dramatization along with a short memoir written by Wilson’s third wife Alison.
Professor Crook has shared his royalties equally with the different parts of Alexander Wilson’s families.
They have acknowledged that his ‘years of patient research,’ made them ‘aware of each other’s existence’ and enabled them ‘to become united as one strong and loving family.’
The first edition in 2010 revealed the extent of Wilson’s successful spy writing career producing a series of novels that was the James Bond of the 1930s, and his connections with the Secret Service.
Three years later this led to the release to the National Archives of a file outlining how his career in MI6 came to an ignominious end.
In the second edition published this week he reveals:
- Alexander Wilson probably faked the burglary of expensive jewellery from his London home in 1942 so he could raise money to pay for expensive antibiotics that saved the life of his third wife Alison- played in the series by her granddaughter- the award-winning actress Ruth Wilson.
- MI5 and MI6 probably made a mistake when deciding he had faked intelligence reports that the Egyptian Ambassador in London was running a network of agents collecting intelligence.
- Professor Crook says that it is just as likely the Ambassador and his staff had pretended to run a network when they knew their phones were being listened to and that Wilson was translating and reporting what he heard accurately.
- Crook’s research indicates the Egyptians were plotting their independence from Britain, and other files in the National Archives suggest the Ambassador, Hassan Nachat Pasha, was gathering intelligence from different sources in London.
- Crook highlights evidence British intelligence most likely unfairly hounded Wilson to make sure he never obtained any future official or responsible employment thereby plunging his young family into poverty and destitution. One of his sons ended up in a children’s home for a period, and Alec and Alison Wilson were being pressured to put up another for adoption.
- The MI5 report condemning Wilson for making up the Egyptian Ambassador reports has been withheld for ‘security sensitivity’ despite repeated FOI challenges by Professor Crook.
- The secret MI5 report was produced by MI5 intelligence officer, Alex Kellar, who was working with the KGB traitor Anthony Blunt, then in charge of MI5 agents spying on embassies and diplomatic legations in WW2 London.
The new edition of the biography provides a true and comprehensive profile of each of the four wives of Alexander Wilson: Gladys, Dorothy, Alison and Elizabeth and their respective families.
It reveals how he formed and managed the bigamous relationships over many decades and explores the emotional cost and hurt these would cause the women and children in his life.
He wrote in one of his novels that ‘I simply could not live without female companionship.’
The new book reveals he most probably embarked on his first bigamous relationship after boarding an ocean-going ship sailing out to British India from Liverpool in October 1925.
It was in The City of Nagpur, bound for Karachi, that he first met the touring actress, Dorothy Wick, who would become his second wife, and the mother of his third son.
They would live as man and wife in Lahore (now in present day Pakistan) from 1928 to 1933 and then in London until 1941 while his first wife Gladys and their three children remained in Southampton.
He would meet his third wife Alison at MI6 in 1940, marry her in 1941, and live in London with her and their two sons until his death in 1963.
In 1955 he met and married a fourth wife, Elizabeth, with whom he had a son in the same year. It’s believed they lived parallel lives in London for two years when only two miles separated them from his other home with Alison and her two sons.
The Secret Lives of a Secret Agent, Second Edition also investigates why a much-loved man with the epitaph on his grave from Othello that ‘he loved not wisely but too well’, behaved the way he did.
The clues may lie in his 28 published and unpublished novels carefully analysed by Tim Crook.
 Professor Tim Crook. Photo: Marja Giejgo 2018 Professor Crook says:
‘My involvement in this extraordinary story came about in 2005 because my friend and colleague at Goldsmiths, Richard Shannon, asked me to help his father, Mike, unravel mysteries about his father’s past.
The ensuing research odyssey has resulted in two books, many articles and a three-part BBC television dramatization.
Most importantly, it has brought the many families of Alexander Wilson together with a resolve to find out as much as they can about the full story of his work in intelligence.’
Professor Crook has asked his MP James Cartlidge to formally request the Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary to investigate if MI5 and MI6 are prepared to ‘exercise their discretion to release to the National Archives any information and files that can assist the Wilson family to understand the mysterious and traumatic events of more than 70 years ago.’
Professor Crook argues that the television series, and second edition of Wilson’s biography demonstrate an intense public and historical interest in releasing information about a significant popular novelist of the 20th century, with a unique and controversial record in British intelligence.
Contact Professor Tim Crook at t.crook@gold.ac.uk
For more details on Alexander Wilson visit the Alexander Wilson Estate website at: alexanderwilsonauthorandspy.com
There is an extensive interview with Professor Crook describing the research project and discussing new issues in more detail at:
alexanderwilsonauthorandspy.com/2018/11/15/interview-with-professor-tim-crook-biographer-of-alexander-wilson/
Professor Crook pursued Freedom of Information applications against the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for the release of the MI5 investigation into Alexander Wilson’s phone-tapping of the Egyptian Embassy during the Second World War.
The Information Tribunal (First Tier) said in 2016 it did not have the power to order disclosure, or its transfer to the National Archives at Kew, but it did say:
‘The report was written during the Second World War. Ordinarily, as Professor Crook indicates, it might have been expected that the report would have been transferred to Kew. It is, however, plain that this has not occurred. Having regard to the age and subject matter of the information, we are puzzled by this fact.’
A further review by the Foreign Office was requested by Professor Crook via his MP, but in 2018, the former FCO Minister Sir Alan Duncan said that it remains ‘security sensitive.’
The Secret Lives of a Secret Agent: The Mysterious Life and Times of Alexander Wilson Second Edition by Tim Crook is published by Kultura Press.
Publisher: Kultura Press
ISBN: 9781908842060
Number of pages: 248
Dimensions: 234 x 150 mm
Edition: 2nd Revised edition
Price: £15.99
 The race is on to find a vaccine to COVID-19 and big data analysis is at the forefront of data modelling trends of the pandemic.
The Crown Commercial Services office has selected Bridgeworks to offer the NHS and qualifying medical research organisations data management services over the next twelve months, at no cost.
Bridgeworks letter to the Cabinet Office: bit.ly/3a6z2Pb
 By Graham Jarvis, Freelance Business and Technology Journalist for GPSJ
The Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic is spreading rapidly throughout the world and scientists are racing to find a vaccine. Big Data analytics, data visualisation and artificial intelligence are also being recruited to track the spread of the virus. This is with the aim of helping governments and public authorities to make better decisions about how to prevent and reduce the infection rate. The virulent nature of the COVID-19 means that time is of the essence.
For example, ZDNET reports that “The Center for Systems Science and Engineering”, at John Hopkins University, is running an online dashboard that tracks the spread of the deadly coronavirus, as it makes its way across the globe…The data is visualised through a real-time graphic information system (GIS) powered by Esri.”
For the livestreamed dashboard, data is collated from the World Health Organisation (WHO), as well as from centres for disease control in the US, China and Europe. This is for the purpose of showing all confirmed and suspected cases of coronavirus COVID-19. It also records the number of recovered patients and deaths.
Improving contact tracing
Big data can also be used to make contact tracing more efficient. In Indonesia, for example, there is no time to wait for a vaccine that may be at least 18 months away. So, in the meantime, the country’s government and health authorities need to be able to “record the applied medication, treatments and the patients’ responses to find out statistically which treatment is the most effective”, writes Alexander Senaputra, Technical adviser for PT Geoservices, in the Jakarta Post on 17th March 2020.
He adds: “This approach is similar to efforts being made to find a cure for cancer in countries with advanced medical systems. This is where all patients’ data — especially those who recover — are taken and processed by algorithm to find something in common that gives doctors a lead about the best medication.”
Data analysis can be deployed to track the average time is takes patients to recover whenever they are receiving treatment. They can also use the data to predict how many more beds are required following a spike in COVID-19 infections, leading to an increased number of patients needing hospital treatment.
China: Big data and AI
In China, the epicentre of the origins of the global pandemic, artificial intelligence and Big Data has been deployed in its cities. Shawn Yuan, writing for Aljazeera on 1st March 2020, says thermal scanners were introduced to spot people showing the symptoms, such as a high temperature. These temperature checks can be used to inform passengers, transport and health authorities to ensure that preventative action can be taken to reduce the spread of the virus.
The belief is that the development of technology can enable the authorities to fight the disease in a way that was not possible during the SARS outbreak in 2003. However, much depends on the quality of the data that’s collated and how it’s defined. Data also needs to be collated from a wide variety of sources, shared and backed up.
The obstacle: latency
However, latency and packet loss can make the synchronisation of databases inefficient and slow networks can reduce the accuracy of ‘real-time’ data. With accurate real-time data, everyone will be able to get back to normal as soon as possible, and to speed up the march towards finding a vaccine against the coronavirus. However, a lack of real-time data modelling could lead to the wrong decisions being made – including over when to reduce lockdown measures in order to kickstart the economy in each country across the world. Some countries have begun, at the time of writing of 20th April 2020, to take these tentative steps. The results are being closely watched.
David Trossell, CEO and CTO of Bridgeworks, reveals the types of data that are crucial to decision-making: “Key data to help form this decision has to include at least: number of infections, number of deaths, number of survivors, number of tests, outcome of tests, drug trials, locational data – on a global basis!” In other words, governments, scientists and health authorities across the world should ideally share this data to beat back the virus.
This kind of data is so invaluable it’s important to protect it against ransomware and get the data together in a timely manner to ensure accurate data analysis. Trossell adds: “Intelligence is at the heart of decision-making and that is driven by data. Big Data. Not so long ago, we were all talking about Big Data in the 4 key pillars, Velocity, Veracity, Volume and Verity each is key, but if we want to look at this on a global basis the velocity is going to play a key part.”
Data security
The preservation of data is essential, and this isn’t just about real-time data. To enable the right decisions to be made, there is also a need to be able to analyse historic data. All the data the scientists, government, health authorities and other interested parties generate now could be useful in the future – helping to prevent a future pandemic. “Unfortunately, we’ve already seen cyber-attacks on medical organisations just when they are distracted elsewhere”, says Trossell before advising: “Offsite air-gapped back-ups are critical; the more the merrier in my mind, and with the right technology this is now highly possible.”
“The problem with off-site air-gapped data storage, and also where data has to be transferred across any distance between organisations, is one that many see as impossible to implement in an efficient way is due to latency and packet loss.” However, one way to achieve this is by deploying WAN data acceleration solution such as PORTrockIT.
Data accuracy
There are also concerns about data accuracy. “As we‘ve seen in the UK, daily data information figures can be skewed because of the lack of velocity in the data: sometimes these cover a period of number of days, sometimes the time between events and central reporting can be over 5 days, which makes the decision of how and when to lift the lockdown problematic”, he comments.
Trossell adds: “So, if we’re going to combine big data analysis with AI, we’ve got to meet the 4 pillars of Big Data, especially the velocity pillar; and to crack the latency problem we need a different approach to transporting data not only efficiently but securely.”
The issue of data accuracy is exacerbated by different governments and authorities using different data models, making a bit like comparing apples and pears. Trossell explains: “This has always been the problem with any data and digital in particular. A common reporting format would be extremely useful for the electronic gathering of data – perhaps it is something the WHO should look into for the next emergency – as we all know there will be others.”
Trossell concludes that the pandemic is likely to change the way people work, with more people continuing to use technology to work from home. Yet, he claims we are very social beings and that lack of contact with others is causing many mental health concerns.
UK Cabinet Office
Meanwhile, joining the fight against COVID-19, Bridgeworks has written to the UK’s Cabinet Office to make its PORTrockIT products available free of charge for a year to “any Health Organisation or Medical Research Establishment engaged in this COVID-19 work.”
In the letter, the company says: “PORTrockIT massively accelerates the transfer of vast quantities of data over a very long distance, in a manner that is unique and which overcomes the problems of latency, packet loss and congestion on the line, in a way that no other organisation in the world has come anywhere near matching.”
The solution uses machine learning, artificial intelligence and parallelisation to mitigate wide area network (WAN) latency and packet loss. While this can’t change a scenario where poor quality data leads to poor decisions, it can make real-time big data analysis more accurate and enable voluminous amounts of data to be shared, backed up and transferred across the globe – making it quicker and easier to conduct research and collaboration against COVID-19.
- SolarWinds IT Trends Report 2020: The Universal Language of IT examines the evolving role of technology in business and the breakdown of traditional IT siloes
- Less than 25% of budgets dedicated to emerging tech, instead prioritise cloud and hybrid IT
- Tech pros cite need to upskill across security, APM, and non-technical and interpersonal skills
SolarWinds (NYSE:SWI), a leading provider of powerful and affordable IT management software, today released the findings of SolarWinds IT Trends Report 2020: The Universal Language of IT. This year’s annual report studies how the breakdown of traditional IT siloes has affected technology professionals across on-premises, cloud, and hybrid environments. While the survey data was gathered before the COVID-19 (or Coronavirus) pandemic elevated technology professionals as essential workers, the findings are underscored by this challenging period of remote work and increased burdens on the IT environments keeping global organisations operating at full capacity. The study reveals a new reality for tech pros where roles have converged yet budgets remain focused less on emerging technologies and more on infrastructure, hybrid IT, expanding their charter from operations to optimisation.
The “universal language of IT” encapsulates the evolving role of technology in business, and the tech pros’ responsibility for ensuring overall uptime, availability, and performance as well as greater partnership with leadership to drive business success. As cloud computing continues to grow, tech pros say they are increasingly prioritising areas like hybrid infrastructure management, application performance management (APM), and security management to optimise delivery for the organisations they serve. With the convergence of IT roles in response to the interconnected nature of modern IT environments—and now the need to support a new or larger remote workforce—tech pros are also setting their sights on non-technical and interpersonal skills to ensure teamwork and communication with business leaders increases their fluency in the universal language of IT. Skills development is needed across both technical and non-technical areas to remain successful in today’s environments.
“For years we’ve been talking about hybrid IT and what it means for tech pros; in our seventh year of the IT Trends Report, we see the effects of hybrid IT in breaking down traditional siloes and bringing core competencies across on-premises and cloud environments together,” said Joe Kim, executive vice president and global chief technology officer, SolarWinds. “Especially now, when organisations worldwide are facing new challenges and uncertainty, we must take this reality seriously, focusing on skills development and readiness in key areas like security, cloud infrastructure, and application monitoring. While IT continues to be a main driver of business importance, tech pros have an opportunity to help reassure the business and focus on effectively communicating performance now and into the future.”
“More than ever before, technology professionals must work alongside business leaders to meet organisational goals while also investing time and energy into cultivating the necessary skills to drive business success,” added Kim. “At SolarWinds, we focus on enabling the tech pro with easy to use, affordable products, but we also understand our customers often need more from our partnership. That’s why we also make meaningful investments in providing a wide range of training resources—many of which have been virtual since their inception—and an online user community where they can connect with their peers. We have many ways we do this: our Customer Success Center, MSP Institute, SolarWinds Academy, our THWACK® community of over 150,000 registered members and yearly virtual learning event, THWACKcamp™, our bi-annual customer event SolarWinds Empower MSP, and educational digital programming like SolarWinds Lab™ and TechPod™. Each of these avenues serves to help make life easier for tech pros so they can drive even more success for the businesses they support.”
2020 Key Findings
SolarWinds IT Trends Report 2020: The Universal Language of IT explores priority areas tech pros manage in a world where roles have converged, and how this reality is affecting skill sets across IT departments and in non-technical areas. Key findings show:
Tech pros are focusing less on emerging technology like artificial intelligence (AI) and edge, and more on hybrid IT and security.
- The top three technologies influencing organisations’ staffing needs (by weighted rank) are:
- Cloud computing (i.e., SaaS, IaaS, PaaS) (53%)
- Security and compliance (55%)
- Hybrid IT (37%)
- Only a collective 18% name emerging technologies—like AI, edge, microservices, and containers—as the biggest influence on staffing needs.
- This makes sense when you consider organisations aren’t allocating their budget to emerging technologies—particularly as this year’s budgets are reevaluated in the face of economic challenges. Nearly two-thirds (62%) indicate their organisation’s tech budgets allocate less than 25% of their spending to emerging technologies.
Today’s hybrid IT reality has created a universal language of IT where tech pro roles and siloes converge, and complexities are exacerbated by flat to shrinking budgets and a lack of qualified personnel.
- With the convergence of technologies and responsibilities, the top three ways tech pro roles have changed over the past three to five years are:
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- Increased work week hours (55%)
- Added IT staff (37%)
- Increased on-premises responsibilities (33%)
- Assumed additional non-IT responsibilities (i.e., presentation skills, public speaking, business writing/planning, justification of time/budget) (33%)
- At the same time, tech pros are experiencing barriers to successfully supporting their organisations, including:
- Lack of budget/resources (37%)
- Currently offered IT management/solutions lack features/functionality to meet my needs (27%)
- Poor management/lack of direction (10%)
- Unclear or shifting priorities (10%)
- What’s more, nearly one-third (29%) of respondents believe tech pros entering the workforce today don’t have the necessary skills to manage modern, distributed IT environments.
Many personnel and skills issues relate to growing areas like APM and security and compliance.
- Fifty-five percent of tech pros/teams/IT departments are spending more time managing apps and services rather than infrastructure and hardware. This represents a monumental shift in the strategic importance of applications to modern organisations.
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- This trend will likely to continue to rise: according to Gartner®, by 2022, as many as 60% of organisations will use an external service provider’s cloud managed service offering, doubling the 2018 figure. Gartner also predicts the ongoing effect on skills: by 2020, 75% of enterprises will experience visible business disruptions due to infrastructure and operations (I&O) skills gaps, which is an increase from less than 20% in 2016.
- When organisations adopt cloud and/or SaaS technologies, 66% use network traffic analysis/network app analysis, 64% use user experience monitoring, and 43% use log analysis as their top three approaches. When it comes to APM tools, 40% use a mix of native tools (provided by the cloud service provider) and third-party tools.
- For 73% of tech pros, at least 10% of their daily responsibilities include IT security management. At the same time, the top three areas of security skills management tech pro organisations are prioritising for development include (by weighted rank):
- Network security (49%)
- Backup and recovery (35%)
- Security information and event management (SIEM) (29%)
- Similar to the way the universal language of IT has affected IT departments, compliance policies have resulted in 53% of tech pros adding additional IT staff.
- Compliance policies with the greatest effect on IT departments include:
- GDPR (96%)
- PCI DSS (23%)
- Other (13%)
Tech pros need to develop nontechnical skills to operate within the universal language of IT reality where cross-functional and business-level communication is necessary.
- The nontechnical skills tech pros feel are most critical to successfully manage today’s modern IT environments include:
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- Project management (69%)
- People management (59%)
- Budgeting/finance (55%)
- Interpersonal communication (55%)
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- These results are echoed by CIO’s annual State of the CIO Survey, which revealed the top skills needed for digital transformation were strategy building (40%), project management (32%), and business relationship management (25%). These critical interpersonal skills become more important as tech pros increasingly communicate and collaborate across previously siloed IT functions.
- According to the LinkedIn® 2020 Emerging Jobs Report, the demand for soft skills like communication, collaboration, and creativity will continue to rise across the SaaS industry.
- Despite the budget and skills issues tech pros report, 86% of surveyed tech pros say they’re comfortable communicating with business leadership when requesting technology purchases, investing time/budget into team trainings, and the like.
To explore and interact with all of the 2020 findings, please visit the SolarWinds IT Trends Index, a dynamic web experience presenting the study’s findings by region and additional insights into the data, plus charts, graphs, and socially shareable elements. This year’s study features an interactive component where visitors to the web experience can see how they compare to the results.
The findings of this year’s United Kingdom National Government report are based on a survey fielded in December 2019, which yielded responses from 49 technology practitioners, managers, and directors from public-sector small, mid-size, and enterprise organisations in the United Kingdom. All regions studied in 2020, as reported on the SolarWinds IT Trends Index, were North America, Australia, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, and the United Kingdom, with 983 respondents across all geographies combined.
Additional Resources
Past SolarWinds IT Trends Reports
WPS, the award-winning parking solutions provider, is continuing to deliver essential maintenance and installation work for customers within key sectors such as healthcare and utilities to ensure 24-hour availability of essential parking infrastructure.
 Simon Jarvis Simon Jarvis, Managing Director of WPS in the UK, says that while some other parking system providers have ceased operations, WPS is working with clients on a case-by-case basis: “Where our support is needed, and when appropriate planning and safety measures are in place, we are continuing to work with our clients to keep their infrastructure efficiently operational,” he says.
“As well as social distancing and providing PPE equipment, we are cordoning off working areas, and putting up signage as appropriate to inform the public why we are there. For more involved works, we are also providing welfare stations meaning engineers have their own separate washing and toilet facilities,” he explains.
Erik Dijkshoorn, CEO of WPS Group, stresses that different clients across the world are taking a varied approach to the current crisis, and ‘one size fits all’ doesn’t apply: “There is a wide diversity of opinion amongst our clients as to how they can best support local priorities and we can support them in achieving this,” Erik explains, “and there is no ‘right or wrong’ way of managing our way through the current crisis.
“It is our job to be as agile and flexible as possible, and I am immensely proud of how our field teams have worked safely and gone above and beyond to ensure our customers’ needs are properly and carefully supported through this genuinely uncharted time.”
The range of car parks that are operational is varied. In the UK, while some shopping centre car parks have closed, others remain open to accommodate supermarket shoppers. There are town centre car parks that have opened their barriers while others are keeping their barriers down to both help discourage people from coming into town, and to ensure there are ample spaces available for the people that genuinely need them. Different hospitals are also having to meet the challenges of parking at this time in diverse ways according to their location and situation.
 Erik Dijkshoorn “Hospital car parks are of course critical because NHS staff need to be able to park close to their work and patients also need to be able to depend on the same infrastructure.” adds Simon. “It is an extremely stressful time for both groups and it is important that parking provision is not compromised and does not add to their anxieties.”
To further support key worker parking provision, WPS is working with JustPark in the BPA NHS Car Park Finder initiative to provide key workers with free parking nationwide. Using the integration capabilities recently recognised with a 2020 Parking Technology Award, JustPark and WPS are working together with WPS customers’ sites that use ANPR technology:
To further support key worker parking provision, WPS is working with JustPark which has collaborated with other members of the British Parking Association to launch www.nhs-freeparking.co.uk and help NHS staff and critical care workers find free parking nationwide. Using the integration capabilities recently recognised with a 2020 Parking Technology Award, JustPark and WPS are working together with WPS customers’ sites that use ANPR technology:
“By collating key worker car number plates and integrating those into the systems of ANPR-equipped car parks, we can provide a system where barriers automatically open to allow key workers to park for free.”
“It’s not business as usual,” says Simon. “But we are doing a significant amount of usual business to support customers who need us.”
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