Arnold Schwarzenegger's ascent to governor of California
may help kick-startthe IT industry, says Colin
Beveridge.
I’ve got tremendous hopes for the new governor of
California, and I honestly believe that Arnold Schwarzenegger may
very well be the long-promised saviour of the UK IT industry. Yes,
really.
Even at a relatively safe distance of many thousands of miles,
good old Arnie can probably help us to break free from the rusty
shackles of the technology downturn that has bedevilled us all for
the past two or three years.
Why do I feel like this? And what relevance, you may wonder,
does the recent Californian election even remotely hold for the
embattled IT market in dear old Blighty?
Well, I have a couple of reasons.
First, much of my new-found confidence for the IT sector is
based upon evidence that the global credibility gap seems to have
finally bottomed out.
It looks like people are ready once again to abandon harsh
reality and to buy into a fantasy lifestyle - the ideal scenario
for an IT upturn.
After all, in such a bizarrely beguiling world where a
politically inexperienced actor, without any clearly defined
policies, can so easily win the confidence of millions of
supposedly sophisticated voters, should those of us in the IT
community possibly fail to regain the confidence of our business
budget holders?
If The Terminator can reach elected high office without
apparently breaking sweat, shouldn’t we be able to get the business
case for that vital new e-mail system signed off without too many
problems?
Secondly, and perhaps more seriously, I strongly suspect that
there will be a measurable upswing in Californian business
confidence following the installation of yet another high-profile
popular movie actor in Sacramento.
An upswing that will, sooner rather than later, ripple through
to the UK economy and reinforce those green shoots of recovery that
have already been bravely popping their heads above the grey
parapets of downturn.
In the past couple of decades much emphasis was rightly placed
on the wide-reaching influence of Silicon Valley on the rest of the
technology world.
The nascent entrepreneurs of Silicon Valley prospered in the
days of former actor Ronald Reagan’s governorship and presidency,
and paved the way for the rest of the IT world to ride extremely
high on the coat-tails of the consequent Californian explosion.
Of course, like most other historical bonanzas, the early boom
years of the Valley eventually gave way to a balancing period of
doom and gloom. Such is the cyclical nature of life.
But, just imagine, for a moment. What if the cycle of technology
boom and bust has now begun to move round again, back to the boom
phase - on the back of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s recent election?
If my theory is right, we can forget about pinning our
collective hopes on the false prospects of our own IT upturn being
driven by local UK government initiatives, such as e-government or
the NHS IT strategy, and recognise instead the true influence of
the Golden State on our fortunes.
Perhaps, at long last, the only way is up. Or, to coin yet
another well-worn post-electoral phrase - things can only get
better.
Thanks to Arnold, we’ll be back...
What do you think?
Do you sense an upturn for the UK IT industry?
Tell us in an e-mail >> ComputerWeekly.com
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Colin Beveridge is an independent consultant and leading
commentator on technology management issues. He can be contacted
atcolin@colin.beveridge.name