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Jumping The Ramp |
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Jumping The Ramp |
Northwest Florida’s merging onto the "Information Superhighway On-Ramp" is experiencing an accelerated pace due, in great part, to goading by Governor Chiles when he read this statement:
"Florida, long a leader in telecommunications, is falling behind in the race to build electronic infrastructure - a failure that could jeopardize all of Florida’s other investments in building a high-value added economy....By comparison (to other states), Florida is still building disconnected back roads that end somewhere in the cybernated Palmetto scrub." "The Digital Deficit", Florida Trend, November 1994.
In response to the Governor’s reaction to this terse and bleak assessment, the state’s Department of Management Services set upon the task to develop and build the Florida Communities Network as an overarching state-sponsored electronic information architecture to link Florida communities together in order for them to share and find information. The aim of FCN is to advance economic development and promote government efficiency. The economic development is supported by FCN serving as the state’s "billboard" on the information superhighway, allowing the global business community access to information about the state’s commerce, attractions, services, and many other elements. Government efficiency is promoted by providing a low-cost, high-speed information distribution system for Florida citizens. The existing SUNCOM phone network would serve as the initial backbone for the infrastructure. Essentially, FCN is a plan to unify and organize information about our state for our internal use and external promotion to the world.
So why this urgency to join the cyber community, how does it affect regional economic development, and how does it benefit the small to medium sized manufacturing companies (there are in excess of 1200 companies in this criteria between Pensacola and Tallahassee) that have little or no ongoing telecommunications requirements? Answers: Competition, Competition, Competition.
The traditional economic factors of land, labor, and capital are being strongly influenced and perhaps even supplanted by information, knowledge and communications in our increasingly information-driven economy. The essence of competitive companies is innovation, both in product and process. So as innovative information gathering becomes a tool for gaining a competitive edge, a premium is placed on the medium that provides this information. Speed, accuracy, and breadth are characteristics of information processing via high-speed networks that places a value-added premium on the means by which it is obtained. The enterprises that best exploit the information mediums have a competitive edge that is undeniably powerful. Moreover, when a state-sponsored architecture such as FCN unifies and organizes this information the end users enjoy an even better advantage. Fortunately, the cost to obtain access to these networks is disproportionately inexpensive given the medium’s potential value to a company’s economic survival.
A strong information infrastructure supports regional economic development in a couple of ways. Competition in the global marketplace runs along a critical life-supporting communications network in order to close distances between buyer and seller. When Northwest Florida seeks to portray itself has a good place to locate a business, those businesses with global interests will place a strong value on an existing information infrastructure whereas companies with only regional or local interests might not. If we want to attract high-technology, globally oriented businesses we must have the appearances and substance to support it. Moreover, regardless of the industry we want to attract and support, as we move away from our reliance upon the military presence, we must have an information infrastructure that can compete with other regions.
Secondly, a strong information infrastructure that is freely accessible by the public supports communications, partnering opportunities, job sourcing, knowledge of assistance programs, and can minimize administrative overhead. One noteworthy Internet resource in the area, Political Internet Consulting, has served has an information clearinghouse for conservative Republican issues and activities. It is a very dynamic forum and provides updated information on Congressman Scarborough’s schedule here in NW Florida as well as text of speeches and roll call reports. Activities of local politicians are also carried and I might add that a lot of the information gets in this forum before the local media.
The Florida Communities Network will have many user selectable areas in the following categories:
In the Community focus the following areas will be available:
In Economic Development Review (Winter 1995), Dean Whittaker states "...the rules by which the development of an economy takes place are changing. No longer is it primarily a process of selling the benefits of one location over another, but rather it is empowering firms to grow and prosper by creating an information rich environment in which wealth creation and employment opportunities can flourish. New industries are being created by networking knowledge-workers with each other and connecting these new entities to others around the globe through advanced communications."
This idea ties in nicely with recent points made by Congressman Scarborough at the Economic Development Council’s April Quarterly Round-Table Breakfast: NW Florida should quit counting on the military for their livelihoods and come up with ways to "bring jobs to this area kicking and screaming", make NW Florida more accessible from Interstate 65, position ourselves as Mexico’s corridor to Middle America, and attempt to mass-market NW Florida as a tourist destination versus each city advertising itself. The realization of these key points will be dependent upon an information infrastructure better than our competitors and more and more of our competitors are blazing down the Infobahn.
Finally, the small to medium sized manufacturing firms are one of the primary areas of focus for enhanced communications infrastructure. Steven Gage is president of the Cleveland Advanced Manufacturing Program (CAMP) and believes that is not the size and degree of technicality of a company that determines its need for Internet benefits. He feels that wherever competitiveness occurs, the Internet can make an important contribution. His CAMP program has assisted small companies that don’t have Internet access by serving as an intermediary. This has allowed CAMP to track down resources, deal with technical problems, and fostering matching of suppliers and potential partners. In testimony before the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Technology, Environment, and Aviation in March of 1993, Gage provided examples of how the global information network could help:
Gage states that regional centers supported by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) can provide an important link to networked information for the companies in their area. The Northeast Manufacturing Technology Center works with Tufts University to provide a special information service called TECnet. TECnet is designed to bring the benefits of collaboration and global networking directly to the small and medium sized companies. By way of a computer and modem link the companies can be connected to federal information sources, databases, and information forums. In NW Florida the Florida Manufacturing Technology Center (FMTC) isn’t presently supported by NIST but is exploring similar information arrangements to reach its base of small to medium sized manufacturing firms. One of the tasks for the FMTC is to provide a "world-wide information web" to all Florida manufacturers. Essentially, this will be a database remotely accessible by either local dial-in or Internet link. The database will enable manufacturers to showcase their manufacturing capabilities in an effort to increase their business. It will enable organizations to locate support services and consultants that can assist them in their operations. It will also serve as a manufacturer-to-manufacturer linkage for collaboration, bidding, bench marking, help, and assistance. Work is presently underway to set this database up.
On the local level, efforts are presently underway in Okaloosa County to network and connect the Economic Development Council offices to the Internet and to provide varied forms of access to both Internet subscribers and local dial up users. Much of the information that is normally distributed by print media will also be available through this service by downloading off the EDC system. Electronic mail options will facilitate communications amongst the users. The EDC will carry mostly information pertaining to local interests but will have links to the Florida Communities Network to tap into information pertaining to state level.
On the subject of print media I might add that the newspaper publishing industry is setting new online publishing standards that will ultimately affect this region. According to Washington Technology (Apr 27, 1995) eight of the nation’s largest newspaper chains announced that they are forming a new company that will act as a "facilitator" to help local newspapers develop electronic products. The company, to be called New Century Network, will help set standards and will facilitate efforts among members to share content. The founders, which together represent 185 daily newspapers are Advance Publications Inc, Cox Newspapers Inc, Gannett Co. Inc. (Pensacola News-Journal), The Hearst Corp, Knight-Ridder Inc, The Times Mirror Co, Tribune Co, and the Washington Post Co.
Moving into this new information realm is an unqualified paradigm shift for doing business. Business cards and letterhead containing e-mail addressees and World Wide Web home page are beginning to spring up. This shift will involve a patient and focused education campaign that will have to contend with diverse understandings of information technology and the Internet. Okaloosa-Walton Community College will have a course added in the fall that will cover Internet. Several of the local access vendors are running classes to new users and their are more and more text resources written in "non-geek" language that help. Additionally, private consulting is an option that some people prefer.
In summary, finding a competitive advantage in this day and age can be a hazardous playing field in the electronic age. As a region we can either sit by the information highway roadside and watch the quick of foot pass us by or we can start accelerating now on the on-ramp and level the playing field for global and regional business. That said perhaps I can bring this into sharper perspective. How do you think you are going to feel when one or more of your competitors has a business card/letterhead with an Internet address on it? That means he has an edge on you in the information game that could mean the difference between survival or being just another road-kill on the information superhighway.
Scott Jackson
Mindlace Media & Photo
Mindlace.com
E-mail
850-217-7994
