GENERALS, DEVELOPMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIAL MEDIA

This week,  Finnish Generals had a joint event together with their spouses. Some of the topics were the development of information technology, social media and their opportunities to the national defense. Helsingin Sanomat newspaper wrote about the same topic on Saturday (3.12) by Anna-Stina Nykänen anna-stina.nykanen @ hs.fi. (in Finnish)

Nykänen calls for transparency in the Defence Forces network functions, both nationally and internationally. As she herself mentions, this has not been a secret even now, but for some reason the message has not reached all stakeholders. What shall we do with this challenge? For example, by this kind of blog entries. The possibilities are mutual.

The Defence Forces will monitor closely and constantly learn more about how information technology is developing beyond 2020. All of the inventions is not been yet even invented! According the Moore's Law new generation of information technology is created every eighteenth month. This is still true according to Gartner Research. The question is: when to jump to the hype cycle? Tax payers' money should not be throwed to all high-risk projects.

Because of the above-mentioned reasons, it is important for the Defence Forces to evaluate and explore new technologies, both nationally and internationally. One example of this is the cooperation with NATO C3 Agency in the field of future C2 systems http://www.nc3a.nato.int/news/Pages/111121-Finns.aspx. In this way we can better ensure e.g. the seurity and safety of Finnish soldiers participation in international crisis management operations. Another example is software designed radio and waveforms studies http://www.eda.europa.eu/Otheractivities/SDR/ESSOR. At the same time it is important  to have national co-operation with Finnish universities and with industry.

Social media, its technologies and practice patterns are of huge importance for the Defence Forces : how to improve the interaction with recruits prior to the military service and during the military service with their families, and how to use mass collaboration with our reservists? Here, I think Metcalfe's Law creates a common ground -   http://tekniikkataloustulevaisuusblogi.wordpress.com/tag/metcalfen-laki (sorry, in Finnish)

Happy Independence Day to all the readers and congratulations for promotion and reward.