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The Weakest Link: Preparedness
Preparedness
The five main dimensions of collaboration, communication, and knowledge sharing preparedness
include:
- InfrastructureInfrastructure integration, agility, and scalability, as well as availability, redundancy,
and reliability, for communications as well as for knowledge management and sharing.
While at first, this may seem like a lot, it is really quite feasible as today's technology
can do a lot for the required infrastructure. In fact, the infrastructure requirements
can be split in two main logical considerations:
- IntegrationEnsure a single integrated and extensible operational network environment providing
infrastructure integration, agility, and scalability, as well as integrating everyone
and every collaborator, on permanent basis.
- AvailabilityEnsure network availability, redundancy, and reliability, using the existing and expanding
Internet base, with the existing cable, wireless, microwave, cellular, and satellite
infrastructures, backing it up with with flexible, easily deployable wireless broadcast
(e.g. WiMax, 3G) antennas with power backups, so that where a communication infrastructure
becomes inoperative, another one can quickly replace it. In summary, one network and
protocol with multiple redundant channels and technology, with easily re-deployable
units.
- CollaborationIntegrating Main collaborating beings operations, including public services, media,
contractors, health care, government, military, and coordination, in the middle of
a crisis and emergency, is a problem that is seriously constrained and limited by
integrating their collaborative operations on a permanent basis. With a common and
integrated redundant network environment, integrating collaborator contribution and
operations is a functional and strategic issue but not a resource or an infrastructure
one.
- KnowledgeA knowledge and information classification and sharing network requires a technical
management operation, that is a working group with appropriate infrastructure support,
managing the knowledge sharing environment and coordinating operations with/between
collaborators and participants. This operation could be, but does not have to be centralized.
Manned and operated by knowledge management, sharing, and communication professionals,
this operation is key. One of the justification that many have today, still, for setting
up their own network (e.g. health, military, etc) is knowledge and information security,
confidentiality, and privacy. Their concerns are real and need to be addressed adequately.
For example, in addition to normal network, system, and application security, all
shared information should be encrypted at all times, only to be selectively decrypted,
according to resource entitlement, as well as detailed classification, and contexts.
As well, all information access should be logged and traced with related entitlement,
classification, and context information. All shared information is considered private,
valuable, sensitive, strategic, and proprietary unless otherwise specified by the
respective owners. As well, knowledge and information are only shared according to
owner classification, which can change at any time. All shared information can be
accessed, modeled, managed, processed, transformed, shared, and published according
to specified entitlement, classification, and context. This is crucial as collaborator
respect is a prerequisite to collaboration. The information owners decide what, how,
when, why they wish share and providing them with the greatest protection is key to
their willingness to share and contribute. Confidentiality and trust are key communication
factors, especially for collaboration. The knowledge sharing and communication platform
has to support collaborator respect by all possible means. Such a platform is feasible
today, but it is not something that can be just quickly thrown together, in the middle
of an emergency, not any more than an integrated reliable network. In other words,
a permanent solution is required to ensure preparedness and minimize crisis and emergency.
- TrainingWith a permanent operating platform, network, and infrastructure, training and exercise
is on-going, both in dedicated specialized exercises and in normal everyday operations.
The world is not a quiet place, events, crisis, emergencies happen every day, every
hour, and every minute. An adequate integrated, efficient, reliable, and resilient
collaboration, communication, and knowledge sharing infrastructure, is a priceless
tool, at any time.
- PropagationWhile ideally, an integrated entitlement secure universal knowledge sharing and communication
platform should be available to serve everyone on the planet, reality imposes a much
more progressive and pragmatic path. In fact, the proposed solution should first be
implemented in a single location, first as a pilot project, and then progressively,
as a city wide project, before being propagated to other cities and areas. A lot of
the required infrastructure is already existent, even the proposed redundancy is being
developed already in many areas. The integration of the different collaborators is
somewhat of a political and strategic issue but offers advantages that far outweigh
the costs, it is very reasonably resolvable. The main effort required is setting up
and integrating the knowledge sharing platform. There again, the solutions already
exist and are simply waiting for application and integration.
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