TECHNOLOGY ACTIVISM

We have been on the awareness mode of technology for over two decades now. It’s knowledge and usage doesn’t seem to have taken the quantum leap, which was dire necessity to be in trade. We remained to be satisfied with increasing the user base for all and sundry. We became recipients of technology on the one end and got on to the cheap service mode on the other, from here or at their location in Western Europe and Northern America. Some technology evangelism also got peppered recently but that has not made any headway, as far as the results are concerned. We are struggling with the conventional IT technology, disruptive technologies and the overall gamut of cyber security. Where do we go from there? What are the risks involved?

The world finally landed in the lap of technology full, complete and comprehensive. With life becoming touch less, nearly movement less and forced to maintain distance even when together, the only out to deliver, is to bank on technology. Added to that is the economic despair, now even the bottom of the finance barrel has to the scraped. The wasteful and superfluous use of technology and fat budgets with built in unaccountability is not going to come back. Price discovery was something unheard of, in their professional life and the imaginary was explained with another imaginary, what is euphemistically called as quality. If this quality issue has really been sorted out, then why is qualitative technological change missing in such a conspicuous manner.

Is this an acceptable situation? The whole country is struggling with technology and ones who don’t accept are ashamed to do so. One heart to heart talk will make their predicament known. When livelihood and welfare can happen only mediated by technology and life too, given the existential crisis we are facing, what can be the roadmap? It can be said with certainty that technology will make a marked difference if used in an imaginative, innovative and robust manner. This has been the global experience. Who will bell the the cat? It has bee a bit too long, whatever might be the sector. It’s high time Technology Activism has to start in this country.

Its the high tech professionals with immense expertise at their command and a burning desire to change, would be the actual harbingers of it. Technology of emergent nature, will be displayed for projects & sectors and expertise, information, process and mechanism to make it happen will be on display. Any discussion can transpire at the shortest notice. One Disruptive Technologies Studio can be created, both physical and virtual. Only people with demonstrated capability can and should become Technology Activists. It would be a noble and a free service to the nation and also forcing the powers that be to digitally transform, purposefully, in everybody’s and nation’s interest. The activist professional would be an advisor / consultant / SI / vendor, all in one, to show direction, supervise and guide. More importantly, provide the confidence, of pulling off success out of nothing , which should slowly become the norm.

TECHNOLOGY ACTIVISM CAN ONLY BRING THE COUNTRY BACK ON RAILS.
Sanjay Sahay