Expectations for Data Management

A varied composite of technologies, including Cloud, AI (Artificial Intelligence), Machine Learning among others are helping business, process, analyse, coordinate and act upon ever growing “Three V’s” – volumes, variety and velocity of data that has and is piling up in Company offices after the lockdown. 

New business models too are emerging to disrupt the existing systems. Organisations that view data as an asset will discover innovative ways to optimise business processes, deliver value to customers and build a stronger more competitive advantage in the marketplace. 

Data Collection is about understanding the positive effect some data can have on the business and can offer the ability to create an impact on future trading. 

Managing this data is the result of “connection of the right data”, insights arrived at, and the right people to optimise processes. This increases efficiency and drives innovation. 

What is Data Management? 

Oracle defines Data Management as “the practice of collecting, keeping and using data securely and cost effectively.”

“The goal of Data Management is to help people, organisations, and connected things, optimise the use of data within the bounds of policy and regulation so that they can make decisions and tackle actions that maximise the benefit to the organisation.” 

A lively and robust data management strategy is now becoming more important than ever, as organisations will increasingly rely on Intangible assets to create value.                                         

 This is all well and good. But in essence, in today’s world scene, Data is a kind of capital, which may be considered as a factor of production “in digital goods and service”. 

Technology ahead of the pandemic 

Technology has enabled remote working from home and to be able to connect people with their co-workers without an office environment. 

The pandemic has accelerated the need for customer experiences. McKinsey reported that 92 percent of companies were already planning to change their business models to become more digitally focused. 

We now see a shake up of the business landscape. Today we have Video Conferencing with Zoom, high speed internet access with say 5G network, real time collaborative software, mobile devices and Cloud computing which have enabled many organisations to  digitally focus distributed work environments at speed from home and other places. 

It is the silent revolution of the workplace nobody speaks about because no one knows every aspect of this change. 

Many Companies could not have been able to cope with the unprecedented changes to their business without applying new technology. 

Amazon has applied data science to optimise its logistics operation to meet the unprecedented surge in customer demand as most all transaction in lockdown was online, and people were spending at random. A dual purpose was served as Amazon was able to keep its workforce also safe. 

Some other companies have used machine learning to give Managers performance targets of workers working from home, something unheard of before. 

In the field of Inventory Management, a Stock Keeping Unit (SKU) is the tool which has come in very handy. It is a distinct type of item for sale, such as a product or a service. All attributes associated with the item, type that distinguishes it from another such as manufacturer, description, material, size, colour, packaging, and warranty is recorded. 

It is not only business that is embracing this new technology from their database. Customers are changing their behaviour as well. People who had never bought groceries online, Forrester Research states 41% were buying more things online than they have in the past. 

This is bringing technology posture in line with today’s needs. Will this new habit change? 

Data Responsibility 

What we are seeing are also some key measures for Data Responsibility. This is seen in upholding privacy and data protection. Beside the General Data Protection Regulation in European Union law on Data Protection and Privacy (GDPR), we now have Purpose Limitation. 

This is clearly to specify the purpose for which the data is needed. This is then explained to the people from whom the data will be collected. It is a way to establish safeguards to ensure that Data is used only for the intended purpose. 

What we can expect in the days and months ahead is a massive amount of data coming to an organisation which if unmanaged, would paralyse business. If technology would not sift through it fast enough, to make informed decisions, we would see chaos. This is the best we can expect of life after the pandemic. 

Victor Cherubim 

 

Sustainable Tourism

Sri Lanka wants to attract tourists and is keen to offer a safe and hospitable environment. But it is not desperate to open the country too soon to anyone and everyone. 

As a small nation we have restraints. But at the same time it does not want to experience the distress of being both victim and agent of infection,especially if as anticipated a second wave of the Coronavirus, is under consideration by Health Authorities around the world.It has to think what is best in the interests of its people and for its future economy.

A shortsighted policy without due diligence, or following the current scientific advice is not in the best interest of the nation. 

After the nightmare where we see cruises have become a symbol of ravage that the pandemic has inflicted on tourism, caution is the necessary watchword.

It is well known that the worldwide cruise sector of the tourist industry until January 2020 was worth $150 billion,by its own estimate it is now shedding jobs,issuing debt and discounting furiously simply to survive.

Tourism an unusual industry 

In the present climate we are told tourism is unusual in that the assets it monetises which may be summed up - a different perspective of sun,sea and sand,a view of a pristine archaeology, a holiday relaxation for herbal and holistic ayurvedic treatments, a view of wildlife, a reef with a scenic view of whales as well as corals, does not belong to the tourist trade but is on trust to the nation. 

No Tourist Agency/Operator, no dominant Cruise company, no tourist for that matter, pays for the upkeep of the archaeological heritage of the country or for the enjoyment of the beauty of the landscape. Up to now, the tourist industry lives off it. 

In the case of Cruise Tourism, companies like Carnival, MSC, other lines pay little  or no overseas tax as they are registered under "flags of convenience" in Panama,Liberia or Bermuda and are exempt of local tax regime. These companies and the cruise industry get to enjoy not only low taxes and avoid much of the irksome health regulations because of their flag registration. However, they use all the port and other facility infrastructure, the country location, or its salubrious climate, its coastal beaches, its monuments, its archaeological sites and other facilities for its passengers and crew, at the expense of the country bearing the burden of  maintenance cost and other expense.These tourist carriers may also be polluting the air and sea,eroding coast lines of nations,pouring tens of millions of profit, exporting people into picturesque ports of call, that cannot cope with the extra contingent of tourists. 

What goes for cruises,may also go for most of the travel industry, whether it is air or sea travel. Over time these carriers of tourists, have not contributed to a tax on the use of the tourist destination.

It has been a one way street for these tour operators,who have got away with little or nothing for the maintenance of the scenic or archaeological heritage by providing the tourists they bring,with all the amenities including health and welfare. 

A small number of environmentally minded reformists have tried to develop sustainable tourism in Sri Lanka that creates enduring employment while minimising the damage it does. No one until the Coronavirus pandemic have estimated the cost of providing a service to tourists, which was completely closed down during the "lockdown". The Government had to bear the costs. It is high time that this cost is recovered from the Tourist industry.

The Cost of Tourism

In new developing countries like Sri Lanka,most hotel groups,Tour operators and even National Tourism authorities have all the time until now,continued to prioritise the economies of scale that inevitably lead to more and more tourists being attracted,paying less and less money to enjoy their holidays. No one has quantified the cost,all the time heaping more pressure on the assets of the nation which have hardly been maintained to the standard they deserve,or for the benefit of generations to come.

The virus has given a new impetus,at once both frightening and beautiful of a world with sustainable tourism.                        

The virus has also revealed the danger of reliance on tourism,on overseas employment to sustain some of the economy, of not taking all the action until now to control the drug menace and the mafia.

It has demonstrated in brutal fashion what happens when a country is solely relying on outside sources to support and deliver a standard of living and an economy of an entire country. This reliance has to be addressed if our future generations are to survive.

Will Tourist taxes solve the problem?

The short answer is no, not without addressing the core problem,which is sustainability.

More tourists doesn't mean "better" and responsible tourism.

Mass tourism is on the rise. Tourist taxes are not new. Bhutan,in the Himalayas, has a longstanding policy of charging visitors a daily fee. Japan and Greece are among the countries to have recently introduced "tourist taxes". 

Asking tourists to make a financial contribution to the places they visit should be part of a cultural shift, as the social cost of tourism has been ignored.

In short, we need to put a stop to this and need to levy a Sustainable Tourism Tax on all visitors to our scenic island.

Victor Cherubim

Bird Spotting

This time of the year, nearing summer in the Northern Hemisphere, particularly in England, we can probably identify a variety of bird species by their song or tweet.

 One among other features of being cloistered at home during the pandemic, is the freedom to watch nature in our home gardens. But how many of us have gardens to our homes to have this luxury of bird watching.

 Having a small, but not secluded garden frontage. I felt very amused by accident to be able to spend time during this pandemic, to do not only clearing the winter over-growth on my minuscule lawn and in this process discovered a new hobby -bird watch.

I never would have imagined that after I made my garden tidy of the dead leaves of winter, I found my garden attractive for visitors of a feathered kind.

The key to successful garden bird watching I noted was making my garden attractive to a wide range of bird species, with one particular bird, the Red Robin a daily caller.                                                                                           

Garden bird watching had suddenly become my pastime. Looking out of my desk window for this bird was slowly engulfing a lot of my free time. I was always on the lock out for what the Robin saw in my harden for it to visit so often. It was only after a month of monitoring its movement that I realised that it was in search for insects and worms which I had raked from the bare patches of the soil. 

You cannot get much closer to home than your garden. You cannot get more tempted to try and bird watch by the prospect of sitting in the comfort inside in an armchair. The antic of one species of birds that visited my garden throughout Coronavirus time, was more than relaxing.

Bird interaction 

Of course, throughout the years, I had lived at my address I had witnessed many types of wild birds, particularly, starlings, which we in Sri Lanka call “mynahs,” then the black birds, the wood pigeons, and even seagulls. Strange as it seems, the magpie or known literally as blackbirds were mostly sighted during winter months, the starlings were seen in early spring or early autumn, seagulls were hovering overhead when the weather was sunny, and the wood pigeons were there on neighbouring trees within earshot, with their birdsong like a prayer every morning, walking me up at dawn, rain or shine. 

Garden birdsong, bird call, bird watch, call it what you may, was for me a source of relaxation. It was a great way in which to engage with bird life, more with nature. It was a way to learn to identify the different species as well as to study their behaviour. 

Bird lover 

Unlike my Dad in Ceylon, I was not a pigeon fancier, so my love of the feathered kind was perhaps, being just inquisitive.  I had watched during my formative years back home, how much he cared for their breeding, their grooming, the wellbeing. I can recall the fantails, the nuns with black heads and black tails and the homing pigeons called “homers” who would fly off and return back to their nests. I always wondered what on earth was the fascination for my Dad to have such a close relationship with pigeons.                                

I could now understand that I was told that when he passed away, the pigeon cots were also deserted. There must be some unseen understanding between man and nature. 

Bird Brain 

A researcher from Imperial College, London has developed for the first time a map of a typical bird brain, showing how different regions are connected together to process information. The team discovered that “important to high level cognition, such as long term memory and problem solving are wired in a similar way”. 

Professor Murray Shanahan, Department of Computing, Imperial College, London says:“Birds have been evolving separately from mammals for around 300 million years, so it is hardly surprising that the brains of a bird looks quite different from a mammal, yet birds have been shown to be remarkably intelligent, in a similar way to humans.” 

Do birds help us to stay connected with nature? 

The interaction between birds and people take many forms. Was it natural or possible that the birds came to the aid to console and to comfort mankind, during the pandemic? 

We in Sri Lanka, have seen birds being used, like “mynahs” and parrots to mimic man. We also have seen birds being able to pick a card to pick an outcome. We have seen birds used to charm people. But, the beauty of birds encompasses all these. 

The more I learn about garden birds, the more I learn of conservation of nature. 

Even the smallest of gardens, or a window ledge, has room for birds. Once you attract new ones into your garden, you can add to the engagement of watching them almost daily. studying their movements, how they survive – a lesson for mankind. 

Victor Cherubim

 

Black lives,white lives,all lives

We have heard,in fact seen on our screens,the disheartening,horrible,inhuman way George Floyd died.He was not the first Black person, for we have also watched a decade of deaths that should never have happened. People the world over can rattle a litany of deaths at the hands of the law. Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner and so many more. Each lost their lives, some at far too young an age. 

An Eldery man pushed over by Cops in Buffalo, New York

Days ago, an elderly white man, said to be 75 years old was filmed on video during the end of a Black Lives Matter demo in Buffalo, New York, pushed over by Police. He was we are told, walking up to the Police in full riot gear and was unarmed. He fell down hitting his head on the concrete pavement. He lay motionless on the ground with blood running from his ear. Two Police Officers have now been suspended without pay. New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo called the incident, “wholly unjustified and utterly disgraceful.”   

   In Sri Lanka,three Police officers were suspended by the Police authorities and ordered             investigation into an alleged assault of a 16 year old boy,later found to be with autism.There has           been a public outcry following this incident. 

    Reports since released state the young lad was stop at a roadblock riding a bicycle without wearing      a face mask on 25 May 2020.Police said he was asked to stop but the boy lost control of his bike          and collided with a fish vendor's stall and fell over. He screamed and attempted to run away

    prompting the Police to restrain him. Whether there was restraint rather than assault will be                  deemed to be ascertained after the investigation.

Human-Elephant contact

In our own country, the human-elephant conflict too is on the increase. We are informed that plans are are under way to track wild elephants, using like Coronavirus tracking devices on our mobile phones to staying alert. 

A shocking 407 elephants and 122 humans have died recently. Villagers who have lived and shared their habit with wildlife for centuries, now blame our insensitivity to nature by creating sometimes unwanted massive infrastructure projects over the recent past at the cost of destroying elephant habitats, resulting in animals forced to enter villages in search of food. 

It is easy for me to say about minimising human rights of man and animals is most important today. Life today after thousands dying of coronavirus is not only precious but equally precarious. 

Each lost life, whether man or animal is life lost, life sacrificed at the alter of what we all call, “progress”. Is it progress or is it prejudice? 

How can we help to bring back balance? 

Some may argue killing or snaring an elephant, is survival. But what type of survival is it? We destroy the habitat in nature and call it, by our own name. We destroy the environment by selling sand from our riverbeds and climate change does the rest for us to suffer? 

We do not support diversity and inclusion in society, especially the end to brutality of Black people, who are not black other than the colour of their skin. We create injustice

In society, by keeping living standards different by greed and we then use brutal force to curb a people’s riot. We use double standards, one for us, and one for the weak and vulnerable. 

I agree that some riots are “created,” organised, man-made for ulterior purpose, to disrupt civilised life?”But there is a threshold of tolerance. 

Police brutality 

Police brutality is the wonton use of excessive force usually physical or psychological. 

Police brutality is ugly, but unfortunately is a part of the necessity and most often is a nasty business called “policing”. Law and order has to prevail, but the appropriate and proportionate use of force is always a fine line and in the heat of conflict is often forgotten, but hardly forgiven.

Excessive and untrammelled brutality is never correct policing in any situation

Victor Cherubim 

Getting back to life again?

Everyone’s mind is on the development of a vaccine to control the spread of the pandemic. 

Did you know we do not have to produce a vaccine to monitor any recurrence of the pandemic? 

Research epidemiologists in France maintain that the simplest and easiest way of identifying the presence of this rogue and clever virus, is for humans to be as clever as the virus itself. 

Environmental surveillance 

The suggestion is that sample tests can be made of the bacteria found in the effluent sewage water of towns and cities and you can easily monitor if the strain of COVID-19 is still present and in circulation. This is more like a litmus test if the virus is still around. 

Researchers have demonstrated the potential value of sewage water system monitoring for studying the trends in the circulation and for recurrence of COVID-19.                                          

Pathogens present in the sewage have been studied by microbiologists and waste water screening is a well recognised surveillance tool. 

This could become part of the UK Government’s battle plan to track and trace as well as check recurrence of this pandemic as restrictions are being slowly released. 

When we are uncertain about what to do, we look to the behaviour of others to guide us. They provide us with a signal as it were about our choice of action. This is called herd immunity. The Government having tried both suppression and mitigation policies is slowly but surely wanting to get the economy back to work again, but not immediately. 

Suppression policies 

All around the world suppression of the virus has been the preferred option to mitigation because they deal directly with people’s fears and government’s care of the threat to human lives. 

Mitigation policies address the fear of infection of the virus. But as populations are getting weary of permanent lockdown, the UK and other governments have this week opened up schools and released the strain of staying at home. But they are still cautious not to open the flood gates too soon. 

Pent up emotion, pent up demand 

What we are seeing in the United States after George Floyd and the ripples it has caused in many other countries, governments are wanting to cool things down, especially with the prevalent heat wave in Europe and across the U.S. 

The first thing that comes to mind for an ordinary man is the desperate need to visit the Barber Shop without any further delay, and the same for a woman, to go to her hairdresser. 

Hair has got desperate, it has overgrown, beyond recognition. The barbers and hairdressers have been closed/shut for over ten weeks. Beauty has gone out of the window; maintenance rather than pampering is screaming for attention. 

As many have lost their sense of taste and smell with the viral infection, people around the nation are at long last wondering when they can hope to look presentable? 

Many people feel guilty to break the code of social distancing, but no one has dared to question in Parliament when we will get back to life again? 

Victor Cherubim