Daniel Mooney MBCS CITP
Chairs Report 2008-2009
BCS Belfast Branch
STRATEGIC CONTEXT
Members convention
• 19th and 20th May
• First combined Branch and Specialist Group convention
• Announcement of significant change programme which
is underway
BCS transformation programme
1.
We will build a fully integrated IT education system –
addressing and linking the knowledge needs of academics
and practitioners alike.
2.
We will support rewarding career development paths
for all professionals – however and wherever they wish to
work.
3.
We will inform public policy on the role and social
contribution of IT – becoming both an effective partner and a
critical friend to government.
4.
We will empower citizens to gain more value from IT –
moving beyond simple user skills to help them to become
effective information managers.
5.
We will champion the relevance of the global IT
profession – constantly reaffirming our relevance as a
provider of solutions to global economic, social and
environmental problems.
5 strands of work
• delivering more interactive online services using Web 2.0
technology
• creating more relevant and accessible networking
opportunities
• building greater recognition of Chartered status amongst
employers
• enhancing our academic and government involvement
• increasing our public voice and presence in the UK and
internationally
The “New” BCS
• Launches September 2009
• Significant change programme with change in internal
structures, offerings to members, alliances with
“federated partners”
• Significant online presence – “world class”
BCS Belfast Branch
THE LOCAL BRANCH
Branch Strategy Update
• 2007-2008
– Review initiated by previous chair, John Fowler
• Issues attracting sponsors – no sustainable
relationships
• Events were not attracting young professionals –
those interviewed cited no relevance to current
job
• issues attracting new members (1,000 members
of 14,000 ICT professionals in NI)
• Few members progressing to CITP/FBCS
• Absent from local initiatives
Survey of ICT Professionals in
NI
Source: FSAG 2008
The net result..
• We had to work on creating something valuable
• Engaged with external stakeholders to see how they
viewed bcs
Other ICT
related
bodies
Industry
Value?
Government
Universities/
Young
Professionals
Non-member views (07-08)
What do you
get for
membership
fee?
It’s very
academic
I don’t
have a
degree in
CS
Don't see
the point..
BCS?
It’s not
relevant to
my job..
A Maturity Model for a Profession
Derived from the Carnegie Mellon University Capability Maturity Model®
Public
4
Governed
3
Qualified
IT
1
Organized
Developing
Levels
2
Established
Levels
Statutory
5
Other “professions” in Belfast
What was in the attic?
• Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA v4)
• Group Membership – discount for >10
• HQ Staff
– Marketing and Advertising Professionals
– Web Specialists
• Chartered IT Professional (CITP)
• Centre Ground as Professional Body for ICT – no
competition
• Professionalism Programme
The need for strategy
• The Branch needed strategy and direction
• Course of action was plotted against three strands
1. Internal Committee Effectiveness & Building longterm capability
2. Develop value proposition for stakeholders
3. Member events
Value?
Develop value
proposition for
stakeholders
Internal
Committee
Effectiveness &
develop
capability
BCS Belfast Branch
THE YEAR TO DATE
Committee Capability
• Meetings planned in advance and meeting rooms booked
and paid for in Wellington park – aborted after poor
attendance
• Online project management website – www.huddle.net
• Online PM – team discussion, task assignment,
management and tracking and document storage and
online update of documents – HQ pay for license!
Committee Capability
• Migrated Branch Website
– locally hosted to the BCS corporate website – more
corporate look and feel and additional features
including:
• Enterprise scalability and capacity
• Member login from our site
• Event booking facility for future
– Still needs content review
• Tried teleconferencing for remote attendance
Value for stakeholders
Government
Industry
Universities/
Young Professionals
Other ICT bodies
• DELNI
• Invest NI
• Future Skills Action Group (FSAG)
• MOMENTUM
• Group Membership companies
• QUB
• UU
• Focus Groups/Committee Feedback
• itSMF
• NIMTUG
• ISACA and various others
Value for stakeholders
Government
• DELNI
• Invest NI
• Future Skills Action Group (FSAG)
• Professionalism – CITP, FSAG engagement
• BCS supplied student volunteers to Bring IT On campaign
• £2,500 in WHS Smith vouchers for schools
• Going forward - SFIA v4
Added Benefits...
Is the branch becoming more relevant?
Now consulted & Influencing government
activity
Value for stakeholders
Industry
• MOMENTUM
• Group Membership companies
• Momentum Board are considering a joint pilot with BCS,
with funding from DELNI/Invest NI to adopt SFIA v4
amongst member companies – BCS providing electronic
services
• 2 x large local companies have signed up as group
members this year
• 1 x SME considering proposal right now
• 2 x government bodies interested
Added Benefits...
Is the branch becoming more relevant?
Are we increasing members?
How far until the tipping point?
Value for stakeholders
Universities/
Young Professionals
• QUB
• UU
• Focus Groups/Committee Feedback
• QUB – Student of the Year award – Peter Sloan
• UU – Student of the Year award – Debbie Rankin
(Coleraine campus)
– Plans to establish student chapters at both
universities
• Existing student activity brought together
• Students introduced to SFIA and CPD
Value for stakeholders
Other ICT
bodies
• itSMF
• NIMTUG
• ISACA and various others
• itSMF – co-hosting events (will be 4 this year)
• NIMTUG – opportunities to publish events as part of a
shared ICT events calendar
• ISACA (COBIT) – no presence here but providing events
in security and ICT governance
• Dragon Slayers (QUB gaming club) – holds annual
conference
• And we are talking too and seeking more!
Summer in the City 2008
Dragon Boat Race
• 5 teams
– Liberty IT x 2
– Lagan Technologies
– ICS Computing
– Northgate Managed Services
• 16 people and 1 drummer!
BCS Belfast Branch
THE FUTURE
Member engagement
• Develop our website in terms of content review and
additional services already planned – involvement in HQ
extranet pilot and additional members services coming
soon..
– Discussion groups
– Whitepaper submissions and online debates on topics
of relevance
– The focus is on getting you involved
• Local quarterly dashboard on how we’re doing
• Events planned in reasonable numbers to cover the
needs of the profession - SFIA
Events Calendar Plan
Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
P
Strategy & Architecture
Business Change
Solution Development &
Implementation
Service Management
Procurement & Management
Support
Client Interface
Dragon Boating again on 31st July!
X
X
Forward looking
• Financial climate will be a challenge in seeking
sponsorship and group membership – we need to be
realistic – there are ways through though
• Challenge is faced in running events and making it
sustainable series of events across the ICT skills sector
• We have a huge opportunity in the re-launch of the
society
Questions?
Daniel Mooney
Daniel.mooney@bcs.org