Vol 8 Issue 1 2021
Adolygiad Busnes De Cymru
Big Data, Big Results How data can advance your enterprise Pandemic report: Tim O’Sullivan on NHS Wales’ fight against COVID-19 ShipShape VC’s Daniel Sawko wants your startup to harness the power of big data Welcoming a new Dean to UWTSD: meet pioneering Professor Wendy Dearing
Swansea Business School Ysgol Fusnes Abertawe
inside | SOUTH WALES BUSINESS REVIEW
3 Editorial:
BIG DATA, BIG RESULTS
Spring 2021 Volume 8 Issue 1
10
GET YOUR START IN DATA WITH A DATA APPRENTICESHIP
4 The Big Interview: 12 In Conversation:
TIM O'SULLIVAN
6
FUTURE-PROOFING WITH HOZAH
8
Review:
STARTUP CHAMPION DANIEL SAWKO
14
USING DATA TO MANAGE PEOPLE WELL
LEARNING TABLEAU 2020
Alternative formats If you require this document in an alternative format (e.g. Welsh, large print or text file for use with a text reader), please email swbr@uwtsd.ac.uk Fformatau eraill Os hoffech y ddogfen hon mewn fformat arall (e.e. Cymraeg, print mawr neu ffeil tesun i’w ddefnyddio gyda darllenydd tesun), anfonwch e-bost i: swbr@uwtsd.ac.uk
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ISSN 2049-5544 Disclaimer: The articles in this publication represent the views of the authors, not those of the University. The University does not accept responsibility for the contents of articles by individual authors. Please contact the editor if you have further queries. Ymwadiad: Mae’r erthyglau yn y cyhoeddiad hwn yn cynrychioli barn yr awduron, nid rhai UWTSD. Nid yw’r Brifysgol yn derbyn cyfrifoldeb am gynnwys erthyglau awduron unigol. Cysylltwch â’r golygydd os oes gennych gwestiynau pellach. © Prifysgol Cymru Y Drindod Dewi Sant / University of Wales Trinity Saint David 2018. All rights reserved/ cedwir pob hawl. Registered Charity Number / Rhif Elusen Gofrestredig 1149535
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ALL EYES ON CARDIGAN
18
POB LLYGAD AR ABERTEIFI
20
A TEN-MINUTE GUIDE TO BIG DATA WITH NIK WHITEHEAD
22
INTRODUCING PROFESSOR WENDY DEARING
PRODUCTION TEAM Editor: Kathryn Penaluna Editorial Board: Sammy Jones Margaret Inman Nik White Design & Print: UWTSD TEL Department
Editorial: Big Data, Big Results
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Kath Penaluna Editor
Data drives so much of our world invisibly - and if you don’t know how to harness its power to inform, inspire and ignite your business, you can start to feel left behind. Luckily, there are a growing number of data pioneers in South Wales that are leading the way towards a better-informed, data-driven future. In this issue, we’re highlighting just a few homegrown talents using data to make South Wales a hotspot for innovation in investments, tourism and healthcare to name just a few areas of expertise. As an insight into how data can empower businesses, look no further than our interview with Clive Davies, a champion of technology in a traditional market town (p.16). In a similar people-powered vein, we interviewed Daniel Sawko who told us about Ship Shape VC, a new tool that lets startups harness big data to land investors, using less money and time than ever before (p.12). Sarah Brooks of NHS Wales Informatics Service is also evangelical about the difference data can make to supporting a business’ people - see our interview with her on page 14.
CONTACT US / CYSYLLTWCH Â NI Web/Gwefan: www.uwtsd.ac.uk/swbr Email/E-bost: swbr@uwtsd.ac.uk Twitter: @SWBusReview Post: Kathryn Penaluna
South Wales Business Review Adolygiad Busnes De Cymru Swansea Business School Ysgol Fusnes Abertawe University of Wales Trinity Saint David Prifysgol Cymru Y Drindod Dewi Sant High Street / Stryd Fawr Swansea / Abertawe SA1 1NE
On a wider scale, we didn’t need to look far to find inspiration in Wendy Dearing, UWTSD’s new Dean of Institute Management and Health (p. 22), who is using data thinking to advance the link between industry and academia in South Wales. And don’t miss our interview with NHS Wales’ Tim O’ Sullivan, who in our Big Interview tells us about data’s imperative role in the fight against Coronavirus in Wales. Looking ahead, the next generation of data-led trailblazers can be found talking to Hozah founder, Naomi (p. 6), and Bryoni, a Digital Degree Apprentice (p. 10). In our next issue we’ll be delving into the world of digital. If you are interested in contributing, please do get in touch at kathryn.penaluna@uwtsd.ac.uk. Best wishes, Kath Penaluna
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The Big Interview: Dr Tim O’Sullivan SWBR’s Kathryn Penaluna talks to Dr Tim O’Sullivan, Head of Research and Academia at NHS Wales Informatics Service, about fighting the spread of COVID-19 with data. Tell us about your professional background. My first exposure to IT came in the form of punch-cards and FORTRAN 77. This eventually led to a move into medical computing, including a brief stint at UCLA looking at ‘Expert Systems’ (now known as Artificial Intelligence). But my first day in the NHS, the morning after Chernobyl, made a bigger impact. Employed at Brighton Health Authority as a Research Analyst, I was immediately redeployed to work on mapping potential radioactive fallout and dealing with something called ‘the media’. At the time, I’d barely ever answered a telephone. It felt like chaos but expecting the unexpected has always been part of the attraction.
What is your role now? To help sort COVID-19, whilst trying to keep an eye on my day job which combines leading on research and being an academic liaison on behalf of NWIS Information Services Directorate. My team also manages and improves the services we provide to Welsh Health Boards, Trusts, Primary Care, Welsh Government, Public Health and most importantly of all, clinicians, patients and the public - all of whom are increasingly dependent on technology, digitisation and data. These services include provision of health statistics, business intelligence, data warehousing, systems design, standards and strategy advice. Our role and function is being transformed by data science, big data and advanced analytics - there has been much partnership development and Welsh Government investment recently as part of the National Data Resource (NDR) strategy, so we’ve had an influx of new skills, resources and partnerships.
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What initially attracted you to this role? The opportunity to apply skills learned elsewhere and do something useful, varied and challenging. Work pressures are high, but if you enjoy improving healthcare via the use of health informatics, Wales is a great place to work. Everyone seems to know each other - or at least of each other making rapid progress and working across organisational boundaries much easier. The boundary between work and play is also pleasantly blurred at times – everyone should have an element of creative fun in their job.
How has the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic changed your responsibilities? Along with many colleagues, I’ve been working pretty much full time on COVID-19 since the end of February, when I did some crude but sobering worst-case scenario modelling, applying Welsh data to Wuhan survival rates. A few of us also started to pull together a ‘brain-dump’ of our services that might be critical along with new work that might come our way if the pandemic reached Wales. In late February, we shared a possible work programme, which was soon enacted. We had two initial focuses: the first, a virtual COVID-19 Datastore based on our existing Data Warehouse, bringing together and integrating existing and new dataflows likely to be required and exchanged by us, Health Boards, Public Health and other clients during the pandemic. This has quickly expanded and developed into a key resource. The second, the COVID-19 Datahub, was developed to signpost and promote the use and sharing of data via a single accessible product comprised of reports, dashboarding, data download facilities and supporting metadata. The Datahub now has over a thousand registered users and continues to expand in terms of content and functionality.
Since March we’ve also supported a succession of urgent COVID-19 projects and requirements - for example, helping Public Health Wales with disease surveillance, health intelligence data provision to Welsh Government, facilities for more timely mortality recording and reporting, and probably most positively, development of systems for managing and reporting on vaccine deployment.
While working at the NHS, have you noticed any interesting progressions in how the organisation uses data? Historically, expectations of and investment in technology has outstripped our understanding of how best to use information. Data has also tended to reside in organisational silos, with the most useful clinical information locked away. Processes for national data flows and the production of official statistics have also remained largely unchanged for decades and have tended to be dominated by the need to support performance and administration rather than clinical, citizen and broader population health requirements. But with the advance of Once for Wales shared clinical systems; development of powerful Business Intelligence tools that can help unlock data; investment in programmes such as the Value Based Healthcare initiative; the establishment of the National Data Resource with its aim to deliver big data solutions and data science products that can be used by NHS, academic and other sector partners; and investment in academic partnerships such as the Networked Data Science Lab; the profile and awareness of what we do is certainly growing.
What kind of data has been used to track Coronavirus’ impact in Wales? The Datastore now contains or references antigen and antibody testing data, a consolidated mortality data view, hospital and ICU activity capacity and occupancy data, GP Out of Hours data, GP contacts,
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recording and escalation rate, prescribing data, daily Emergency Department data, 111 calls data, Ambulance Incident data, symptom checker data, Modelling Scenarios data and COVID-19 reference and coding data – and vaccination data. Clients can access this via secure Data Warehouse views or, for aggregate data, using the Datahub.
Reflecting on this period, have you learned anything new about how data can be used? Sourcing information from local ‘unstructured’ data sources alongside the centrally defined ‘structured’ datasets that we tend to rely on has been big for us. For example, we have used algorithms to analyse the Emergency Department data to identify patients presenting with severe respiratory or other COVID-19 symptoms. Challenging long established processes and demonstrating the art of the presumed possible has also been rewarding – for example, at the onset of the pandemic and following a request from Public Health Wales, we approached the Office for National Statistics and were successful in pressing for the weekly electronic flow of Welsh death notifications to be made available automatically on a daily basis.
How much has Wales-wide organisational collaboration contributed to the country's robust Coronavirus response? It’s been a critical success factor. People have and are working silly hours, utilising any resources of utility at their disposal to help deliver solutions at pace and across organisational boundaries, united by a common sense of purpose and with refreshingly clear, simple mandates and minimal red tape. I’ve never known a time where we, Health Boards, Public Health, Welsh Government, Welsh Universities, local authorities, the Army, and the private sector have worked so well together.
Do you think the way the public interacts with governmental data has shifted this year? The public’s appetite for clear and insightful data has clearly never been greater, but so many have been drawn to misinformation on social media. Welsh Government, Public Health Wales and others we support have had the tricky job of both publishing the stats and addressing the demand for more transparent sharing of information, especially so the epidemiological, modelling and other evidence used to inform decisions that have impacted painfully on all of us.
It’s been interesting to compare the different approaches taken by the home countries. For England and No 10, ‘next slide please’ became a popular and sometimes teasing meme, perfectly capturing the zeitgeist as scientific advisors and ministers took it turns to bombard the public with PowerPoint slides packed with data and visuals, not always of the highest clarity. Wales and Scotland seem to have taken a less autocratic line. Ministers talk more in terms of insights offered by specific figures and encourage use of web-based resources. The public also ask some pretty good questions of the data!
What’s next for you and NHS Wales in 2021? There’s a longlist! Finishing off the work to support vaccination roll-out, analysing the impact of the pandemic on ‘essential services’, moving the vast amount of data now available in the Datastore and Datahub into the emerging National Data Resource, working with our academic partners to address key post-COVID research questions and outcome studies, taking forward our data science ‘Advanced Analytics’ agenda, ensuring we deliver on day job commitments as detailed in our ambitious three year Integrated Medium Term Plan – but perhaps most importantly of all, preparing to become a new statutory organisation and special health authority called Digital Health and Care Wales. Vol 8 Issue 1 2021 | 5
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Future-proofing with Hozah Naomi Bishop
Co-founder and director of Hozah SWBR speaks to Naomi Bishop, the co-founder and director of Hozah, a fully automated parking payment system. Here, she highlights the importance of looking to the future to secure your business. What value does futureproofing add to Hozah? As a Smart Cities technology company, future-proofing is the underpinning of Hozah’s entire ethos. We believe that certain industries and processes within those industries are behind when it comes to technological advancement. Hozah has approached land management within Smart Cities as a sector and has found that rather than the hands-on, fairly physical approach that’s been taken in the past, you can manage physical assets digitally
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without the need for high-cost physical labour. Thinking about not just what is better to manage city assets now, but what the demands on the Smart City will be in the future is key to creating robust technological systems that will stand the test of time. Data and technology are evolving fast, but by future-proofing you can ensure that what you create is not just fit for market now, but forms part of creating the market of the future.
How does using big data help you in this future-proofing process? I think it’s critical that companies use data and the information it gives them to steer company direction. Data plays a big part in forming patterns, gathering information, and gaining key insight into behaviours. I think to be able to future-proof anything you need to first understand the intricacies of its target market and how it’s currently being
used: where are the areas for improved efficiency, where are there potential gaps in service, what don’t people like and what can you do to change that in the future? By doing that you remain one step ahead and always think about not just what is needed now, but what will be needed in ten years from now.
Do you have a real-life example of when future-proofing through using big data has been a success? We work very closely with local authorities all over the UK. One real-life example of when big data was used to make key decisions was in the implementation of EV charging points nationwide. Most councils have a green agenda and are looking to improve emissions profiling across their towns and cities. Hozah was able to help make key decisions in this regard and future-proof these decisions, helping to
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"I think it’s critical that companies use data and the information it gives them to steer company direction. Data plays a big part in forming patterns, gathering information, and gaining key insight into behaviours." identify the types of vehicles currently in the area. The council needed to decide what EV chargers they needed, where they needed them, and how fast the chargers needed to be. As an existing supplier to the council, Hozah were able to provide vehicle types, emissions profile, length-of-stay, and peak times for cars using city car parks to ascertain the investment required to deploy the best and most efficient EV charging points across the cities. This ensured the most green and efficient methods were used in the car park, forming part of the future Smart City.
and usage. With great power comes great responsibility, and I would say that is certainly true of data provision. It’s crucial that you treat data respectfully and securely. By having good robust data processes from the off, you can future-proof yourself as a business and ensure that you’re able to handle the vastness of big data moving forward.
Do you have any tips for SME owners who are starting to consider using big data to futureproof their own businesses?
When making business decisions, you always have to expect the unexpected. With that in mind, I don’t think anyone was quite expecting the 2020 we had! However, there’s always something on the horizon that has the ability to derail you. In terms of how big data can aid decision-making, I think we’ve seen firsthand the impact that
Know your data and know its boundaries. Hozah was born in the era of GDPR and is incredibly disciplined in data storage
How do you predict big data might influence your business decisions over the next year?
something like COVID-19 can have. So, with that in mind, our future plans are made based on the key behaviour changes we’ve witnessed in 2020, considering which trends we think will form in the future, and where our focus should lie to ensure the future-proofing of the company. Whether that’s automatic solutions, contactless systems or green policies, we can use data to start to understand what we need to do in the immediate future in a post-COVID world, but also for the Smart City of the future.
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Review: Learning Tableau 2020
UWTSD Associate Professor and Senior Lecturer in Applied Computing, Nik Whitehead, recommends this book that enables even the non-specialist data analyst to create high-quality visualisations.
So you’ve got a huge pile of data and you don’t really know what it all means. This is a common problem when dealing with business data nowadays - and spreadsheets just don’t cut it for data visualisation any more. You need something with a bit more oomph for exploring and presenting your data, and historically, this would have been done with a statistical package by a data analyst. But if you can get your hands on this book, then Tableau, a data visualisation application that has been a Gartner Analytics and Business Intelligence Leader for the last eight years, could become accessible to you even as a non-specialist. The book can be approached in two ways. If you just want to learn the absolute basics and play with the software in order to learn, Chapter One will give you all of the fundamental things you need to know: how to connect to your data; how to navigate around the data and select elements for display; how to create bar charts, line graphs, and geographical displays; and how to export your graphics for use
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elsewhere or turn them into an interactive dashboard. The reader is led through a set of clearly-explained and well-illustrated exercises that showcase Tableau’s most basic functions and lay the groundwork for the rest of the book, which looks in greater depth at Tableau’s more complex calculation, forecasting, and presentation capabilities. If you’re interested in how to go beyond the basic graphs, the latter part of the book gives you lots of options. The strength of this book is that while it covers the expected topics of how to produce a wide variety of visualisation types, it also provides an excellent introduction to how to use Tableau’s built-in calculation tools to take your raw data and process it to customise your visualisations. These are often ignored by introductory texts as they require a bit more computational thinking than the rest of Tableau’s highly visual interface, but the book provides plenty of detail and examples to help you go beyond the basics.
For readers who really want to get up close and dirty with their data, the book’s final chapters include a section on using Tableau Prep, a new data cleaning and import tool. Cleaning and processing data can be a bit of a monster, so this chapter, while clearly for more advanced users, does make the import process less daunting. Overall this book does a good job of explaining what is a quite complex piece of software. It’s ideal for anyone tired of having to ask someone else to provide data visualisations and would like to explore their data themselves.
Learning Tableau 2020 (4th Edition) by Joshua N. Milligan, Packt Publishing, ISBN: 978-1-80020-036-4
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Get your start in data with a Data Apprenticeship Bryoni Keighley, a Digital Degree Apprentice working for the NWIS Information Services Directorate Publishing Team, tells us more about her launch into the world of data science. Tell us more about your role. I’m a Digital Degree Apprentice working for the NWIS Information Services Directorate Publishing Team. The Information Services Directorate collects and processes facts and figures that help NHS Wales run effectively, and the Publishing Team produce a range of web apps including dashboards, health maps, and online tools to report them. Health boards and Welsh Government then use this data to monitor, analyse and shape policy and to manage and improve care. As an apprentice I split my time between work and university, working for NWIS four days a week and attending university for one. I’m studying Data Science at UWTSD which includes modules like Data Analysis and Visualisation, Information Engineering and Software Development. Being part of the Information Services Directorate allows me to put the skills I learn to good use in the workplace.
What does an average day of work look like for you? Before COVID-19, I was based in the Swansea office four days a week. Now I work from home, starting with reading through emails and Microsoft Teams channels to get set up for the day. I’m responsible for the development of the Welsh Data Hub, the single point of access for our health and care intelligence products and data, which we developed using Mura CMS. An average day usually involves some sort of Mura work - adding an interactive map to redirect readers to other 10 | Vol 8 Issue 1 2021
websites or putting together a data table for readers to access specific documents directly from the site, for example. Then, I usually catch up with my team in the early afternoon to discuss what we are all working on and what we could potentially be working on together.
What are you hoping this role will lead to?
The Information Services Directorate ensures all the teams work together to share our skills and knowledge, which is hugely beneficial as an apprentice, because it allows me to learn from other teams and colleagues. Some days also involve training, whether that is independent study for my university modules or software training for PowerBI or SQL.
I’m hoping this role will help me develop my skills and experience in data science so I can progress within NWIS. One day I would like to have a seat at the table so I can use my knowledge to contribute to improving the future of patient care. The skills I will gain from this role are invaluable. The demand for these skills is extremely high in organisations looking to improve their business performance by analysing data to make decisions. I’m hoping this role will provide me with all of the skills and experience I need to continue with a successful career in data.
What first sparked your interest in this area of work?
Would you have any advice for someone else entering this field?
I joined NWIS as a Business Development Apprentice, giving administrative support for meetings and projects a few years ago. As I took minutes at meetings, I was party to indepth discussions around the improvement and innovation of the NHS digital strategy programme. My department, along with Welsh Government and Health boards, work together to improve the services we offer for the monitoring and analysis of patient data in order to shape policy and improve the care patients will receive.
Go for it! It’s an exciting field that is always growing and developing. No matter what age or experience you have, if you are interested in data and what it can do then you should put that curiosity to good use and start learning. Don’t be scared of unfamiliar coding languages or software because you will soon pick it up. There are hundreds of videos and learning materials online to help you with just about anything. My Digital Degree Apprenticeship has provided me with so many opportunities to learn and develop, and I’m only halfway through. By the time I graduate I will have developed so much knowledge in data science and the skills that go with it, that the opportunities will be endless as demand is so high. Data will be the driving force of the future, not just in business, but in every aspect of life. Start learning now!
I wanted to learn more about data and information systems so I can contribute to these discussions and improve services. There is an ever-growing demand for data scientists in this increasingly digital world and as a twenty-one-year-old, I have grown up alongside the development of digital.
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"There is an ever-growing demand for data scientists in this increasingly digital world and as a twenty-one-year-old, I have grown up alongside the development of digital."
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In Conversation: startup champion Daniel Sawko on harnessing the power of data SWBR’s Sammy Jones met Ship Shape VC’s co-founder Daniel Sawko to talk about Ship Shape’s vision to empower Welsh startups with early investor knowledge using their innovative search tool. What is Ship Shape? It’s a search engine that helps startups identify the investors most likely to invest in their business. Using a combination of data algorithms and machine learning techniques, it automatically analyses the vast amount of data that's out there on individual investors and narrows that down to show you search results of the investors most suited to your startup.
What does Ship Shape offer to startups? Startups will inevitably have a great idea and be looking to accelerate the development of that idea. Therefore, they will want to build a coalition with like-minded individuals who can help deliver on that vision quickly, including those who want to bring financial capital into the equation, which helps you make those steps forward. There's actually a bit of a gap in investor opportunities in most of the UK - there are grants and innovation funding available at the very start of the journey for startups, but then they encounter something called ‘the valley of death.’ That’s what we call the gap between startup grants and innovation funding and actually being able to jump into being supported by venture capital or angel investors who can fund that first big upgrade. This is an area in which startups in particular suffer because they are pursuing a growth path that has significant capital gaps due to trying to accelerate so quickly. 12 | Vol 8 Issue 1 2021
Why did you want to create Ship Shape? When I was at university I quickly realised network counts for far more than it should. 70% of all investment goes to businesses in London and the Southeast, for example - meaning there’s a lot of human capital in the UK that doesn't have access to financial capital. Another reason is the process of finding an appropriate investor is currently just not scalable as a startup. It's not a problem that you can easily solve - even if you're going about it the second time around, it will take broadly the same amount of time to do it. Our research shows that it takes about 160 days for startups to research their potential investor universe properly and that's far too long. You should be able to work on getting more customers or building a better product in that time period instead.
How does Ship Shape use big data? Our AI is still in development - we’re at a reasonably early stage. Part of the reason for that is that we've not actually researched all the data that we want to yet as we’re under a year old. We've probably got about half of the UK’s individual investors now researched, which has generated hundreds of thousands of individual pieces of data that need to be analysed in a methodical way. It's a lot of data! That's why it takes so long for a startup to go through it themselves, and that’s why you need machine learning. A branch of this we're using at the moment is natural language processing, which enables us to automatically extract the information from a large set of data that then helps us to generate the search results.
Who has developed the AI? We've been collaborating with Professor Xianghua Xie from Swansea University who has developed the machine learning and AI, and we have very talented data scientists in-house who are also working on development. It's really exciting to see, and to understand - on occasion! - what the implications are of the breakthroughs that they're making.
Why did you launch Ship Shape in South Wales? I've been lucky enough to spend lots of time over the last five years in South Wales, and one of the things that struck me was the level of enterprise you see locally. There's actually no difference in terms of the enterprising nature of people in South Wales versus London. For example, UWTSD has an internationally acknowledged reputation for developing entrepreneurial learning and are ranked second in the UK for the number of graduates who have run their own startups for three or more years. Working in collaboration with them provides us with a wealth of expertise, and we in turn welcome supporting their endeavours to celebrate the creativity of the region and drive forward innovation. We all think that London is full of extremely enterprising people, but actually, you find them everywhere. Often the difference is the proximity to networks and to access networks of concentrated pools of capital.
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What’s next for Ship Shape? We launched our platform in late January 2020 and are running a trial period for Welsh businesses. Startups that want to get involved should go to our website and click on the investor search where you’ll be prompted to enter your email address. We’ll get in touch, and from there, you can simply take our platform for a spin! We are offering a discounted price for it, because we're still learning ourselves. Then, we hope to roll out the platform, first to regions outside of London and the Southeast, and eventually to London. Then we’ll look to expand our datasets to include investors in Europe and the US. We are also exploring how we can work in collaboration with UWTSD on initiatives to implement venture structures to encourage more research-led spinouts from the University.
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Using data to manage people well
Sarah Brooks, Organisational Development, Culture and Engagement Lead at the NHS Wales Informatics Service, provides her expert insight into using data to support staff.
Pinpoint helpful data and then act on it By collecting the right data and presenting on a workforce performance dashboard, we can see at a glance how our organisation is doing. Another benefit of collecting data is drilling down into the detail and identifying key themes and putting actions in place to address any areas of concern. On our monthly workforce dashboard, it is easy to see the sickness and absence trends along with staff headcount, turnover, appraisal and statutory and mandatory compliance, this information is presented in easily understandable graphs. The Workforce & Organisational Development (WfOD) team work with the senior management teams to ensure the data is relevant and focus on areas to address such as the top-level reasons why staff are absent. For example, if anxiety, stress, and depression is a top reason, the WfOD team can explore with management what can be done to support on a practical level. As a result of analysing data over recent years and the trends in the NHS, we have implemented a number 14 | Vol 8 Issue 1 2021
of supportive measures such as a Health and Wellbeing group, trained Mental Health First Aiders, wellbeing workshops, staff engagement sessions, coffee and chat sessions and developed wellbeing advice pages on our Intranet to offer more support to staff.
we can identify why the staff member is leaving. Is the reason due to salary? Career progression? Lack of support or training? Relocation? From the answers, we can identify key themes and whether we need to put actions in place to address them.
In previous years, the absence trend pointed to musculoskeletal disorders caused by the way that people were sitting at their desks for long periods of time, so we developed a rolling screensaver based on physiotherapist advice to remind staff to stretch and move. By analysing this multi-level data, we can really think about how we can proactively support our staff and the regular analysis of workforce information will enable continuous improvement and contribute to the successful performance of the organisation.
A few years ago, our exit trends suggested that staff were not progressing as quickly as they would like in the organisation, so we developed a career progression scheme, to ensure that staff could progress through the bands quite quickly when they demonstrated competency. This approach has been a great retention tool. Through our dashboards, we can also view our gender ratio, equality and staff pay bands. At a glance, we can see how demographics have changed over time.
Analyse turnover to retain staff When staff notify us of their intention to leave our organisation, we send an exit questionnaire and offer to undertake exit interviews. From the information collected through the questionnaires and interviews,
When disasters happen, collect useful data to help When COVID lockdowns began, we undertook a comprehensive exercise to collate data on the skills of our staff. We wanted to identify the skills that staff currently had but also the hidden skills that they may not be using within their current
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roles so that we could redeploy staff if necessary. Alongside this activity, staff were asked to complete home working risk assessments to ensure that when our staff were working from home that they were safe and had any equipment or support that they might need. Our staff have also completed the COVID risk assessments to identify any staff that may be at higher risk than others, and then putting measures in place to mitigate risks. Over the last year, another addition to the monthly workforce dashboard was annual leave. Whilst during the pandemic staff have been unable to go anywhere, it is still really important for staff to have a break. We have been able to monitor annual leave on a monthly basis and then drill into the data and find out if teams haven’t taken any leave and why. If it is due to workload, this is escalated to consider how we can address. In a few months’ time, some of the data categories that we are focusing on now may not be relevant and there may be another area of focus that we need to prioritise instead, so we review the categories regularly.
Make sure your data is understandable across t he organisation The workforce performance dashboard is shared and discussed with senior management teams and Directors on a monthly basis. Each director has access to their own staff dashboard. The dashboard is also shared with the Internal Controls group which is attended by finance and procurement colleagues so they can work together to identify any areas to address.
Set up ways to draw from a range of data
It is really key to have a good electronic system in place to help us to understand the data about our workforce, and what it means - not just in terms of numbers of staff, but their skills and competencies too.
Dedicate time to data It is important for anyone who works in workforce to have a good understanding of data now, and to know how we can use that data to benefit staff and the organisation. Data has become an integral part of our roles, certainly in the last few years and we are using data to make much more informed decisions.
In addition, we have the national Electronic Staff Record (ESR) which is an integrated HR and payroll system. ESR has a range of tools and functions which enables employers to enter, store and analyse historical and current information about their workforce. Employees have access to their own data through self-service functionality and can request leave, and view their appraisals and payslips, and managers can access a team dashboard which gives details on their team’s compliance, absence and more. Vol 8 Issue 1 2021 | 15
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All eyes on Cardigan SWBR speaks to Cllr Clive Davies, Mayor of Cardigan and Digital Champion for Ceredigion County Council, about the future-thinking scheme that’s technologically enhancing a traditional market town. Tell us more about this scheme. When was it introduced? Our Smart Town scheme provides free Wi-Fi in poor mobile coverage areas in Cardigan town centre; an opt-in newsletter promoting shops, offers and events in Cardigan; and analytical data about its users. It was developed by a 4CG forum in 2016 after observing how large supermarkets use the same technology to monitor shopper habits. 4CG is a social enterprise that was set up by six volunteers in Cardigan, including myself, in 2010. It is community-owned, and invests in local enterprises to encourage a sustainable local economy. In addition to the analytics captured by the Wi-Fi scheme, we also created a free Cardigan Town app. It provides a wealth of information about the town, and makes use of iBeacons across the town centre to highlight retail attractions and historic points of interest. This app also provides analytical data via Google Analytics.
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What kind of data does the scheme collect?
What benefits have been realised as a result of the scheme?
The combination of data from the Cardigan Town app and free Wi-Fi scheme informs us of traffic levels, footfall, dwell time, visit frequency, whether the user is a tourist, where they are from and what interests they have in visiting the town, the days and times that are busiest or quietest, the parts of town that get busiest, and general use of the user’s Wi-Fi - for example, to browse social media platforms.
Businesses can detect total visits, and so can optimise staffing by time of day. We can analyse visitor dwell time and repeat visit frequency, and then optimise and run tests on things like introducing free parking. By analysing data alongside external factors like weather, we can prepare Cardigan for weekly or seasonal fluctuations by optimising advice on opening venues and events. This data can evidence demand using historical information and even support funding, providing enough justification for the introduction of new facilities.
What insights can be discovered? From this data, we can tell what the unique selling points of Cardigan are, what the most popular shops or hospitality venues are, which elements of our history and heritage are popular, which age groups are downloading the app, and which country or region they are from. During Summer 2020, due to COVID-19 we noticed tourist numbers remained similar, but a slightly reduced number of local people. This data is all very useful to local businesses, and they are sent a monthly email which includes analytics reports.
It’s helpful on a project basis too: we can measure footfall and dwell time before and after events. We have done this with music festivals, food festivals, heritage events, and more. The data helps us inform decision-making in what is otherwise an opinionated environment.
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When it was introduced, was there an instant recognition of the value that this could instil in the town? As part of the installation we asked a number of business owners to host Wi-Fi units on their shop buildings at key locations. In addition, the majority of shop owners opted to receive the monthly analytics reporting email and be highlighted on the app. They have reported the benefits of this and how they have used this information to strengthen their channel to market.
Are there any plans to further Cardigan’s integration with technology? We are continuing to extend the Wi-Fi scheme, adding additional units soon. The Cardigan Town app is also being upgraded in time for Summer 2021 with new features.
In reaction to COVID, a number of businesses have adjusted by creating an online presence. In response to this new opportunity, we are exploring the introduction of a Click and Collect town shop. We are also hoping to pilot and learn from a new town dashboard that uses Internet of Things-sensing devices via LoRaWAN. This can monitor air quality, public bin levels, rat traps, flower beds, anti-social behaviour, vandalism, parking spaces, river level, weather and more. All this contributes to creating a 360-degree picture of our town’s health - almost like a market town Fitbit.
Within half a mile of Cardigan there are solar farms, wind turbines and biodigesters which generate over four megawatts. Overall, we’re striding towards making the town even more engaging, relevant, diverse, adaptive and experiential for all local, visiting and business communities.
With the support of the last of the European Union funds, 4CG also is piloting ways to get Cardigan to closer to becoming a carbon neutral town using local energy generators.
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Pob llygad ar Aberteifi SWBR sy’n siarad â'r Cynghorydd Clive Davies, Maer Aberteifi a Hyrwyddwr Digidol Cyngor Sir Ceredigion, am y cynllun blaengar ei feddwl sy'n gwella tref farchnad draddodiadol o safbwynt technolegol. Beth yw'r cynllun hwn? Pryd y cafodd ei gyflwyno? Mae ein cynllun Tref Glyfar yn darparu WiFi yn rhad ac am ddim mewn ardaloedd yn Aberteifi lle nad yw’r cyswllt ar gyfer ffonau symudol yn dda iawn; cylchlythyr optio i mewn sy'n hyrwyddo siopau, cynigion a digwyddiadau yn Aberteifi; a data dadansoddol am ei ddefnyddwyr. Fe'i datblygwyd gan fforwm 4CG yn 2016 ar ôl gweld sut mae archfarchnadoedd mawr yn defnyddio'r un dechnoleg i fonitro arferion siopwyr. Mae 4CG yn fenter gymdeithasol a sefydlwyd gan chwe gwirfoddolwr yn Aberteifi, gan gynnwys fi fy hun, yn 2010. Mae'n eiddo i'r gymuned, ac yn buddsoddi mewn mentrau lleol i annog economi leol gynaliadwy. Yn ogystal â'r gwaith dadansoddi a wnaed trwy’r cynllun Wi-Fi, crëwyd hefyd ap Tref Aberteifi sy’n rhad ac am ddim. Mae'n darparu cyfoeth o wybodaeth am y dref, ac yn defnyddio iBeacons ar draws canol y dref i dynnu sylw at atyniadau manwerthu a mannau hanesyddol sydd o ddiddordeb
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i'r defnyddiwr. Mae'r ap hwn hefyd yn darparu data dadansoddol drwy gyfrwng Google Analytics.
Pa fath o ddata y mae'r cynllun yn ei gasglu? Mae cyfuno’r data o ap Tref Aberteifi a'r cynllun Wi-Fi rhad ac am ddim yn rhoi gwybod i ni am lefelau traffig, nifer yr ymwelwyr, yr amser y maen nhw’n ei dreulio, amlder yr ymweliadau, a yw'r defnyddiwr yn dwristiaid, o ble maen nhw'n dod a pha ddiddordebau sydd ganddyn nhw wrth ymweld â'r dref, y dyddiau a'r amseroedd sydd brysuraf neu dawelaf, y rhannau o'r dref sydd brysuraf, a diben cyffredinol pobl wrth ddefnyddio’r cyswllt Wi-Fi - er enghraifft, pori drwy lwyfannau’r cyfryngau cymdeithasol.
Pa ganfyddiadau sydd i’w gwneud? O'r data hwn, gallwn ddweud beth yw pwyntiau gwerthu unigryw Aberteifi, beth yw'r siopau neu'r lleoliadau lletygarwch mwyaf poblogaidd, pa elfennau o'n hanes a'n treftadaeth sy'n boblogaidd, pa grwpiau oedran sy'n lawrlwytho'r ap, ac o ba wlad neu ranbarth y maen nhw’n dod. Yn ystod haf 2020, oherwydd COVID-19 dyma ni’n sylwi fod nifer y twristiaid yn parhau'n debyg, ond roedd nifer y bobl leol ychydig yn llai.
Mae'r holl ddata hyn yn ddefnyddiol iawn i fusnesau lleol, ac anfonir e-bost misol atyn nhw sy'n cynnwys adroddiadau dadansoddol.
Pa fanteision sydd wedi'u gwireddu o ganlyniad i'r cynllun? Gall busnesau ganfod cyfanswm yr ymweliadau, ac felly gallant gynyddu’r staff erbyn yr adeg honno o'r dydd. Gallwn ddadansoddi amlder ymwelwyr ac ailadrodd amlder yr ymweliadau, ac wedyn optimeiddio a rhedeg profion ar bethau megis cyflwyno parcio am ddim. Drwy ddadansoddi data ochr yn ochr â ffactorau allanol megis y tywydd, gallwn baratoi Aberteifi ar gyfer amrywiadau wythnosol neu dymhorol drwy wneud yn fawr o gyngor ar agor lleoliadau a digwyddiadau. Gall y data hwn ddangos tystiolaeth o'r galw gan ddefnyddio gwybodaeth hanesyddol a hyd yn oed gefnogi cyllid, gan ddarparu digon o gyfiawnhad ar gyfer cyflwyno cyfleusterau newydd. Mae'n ddefnyddiol o safbwynt prosiectau hefyd: gallwn fesur nifer yr ymwelwyr a'r amser cyn ac ar ôl digwyddiadau. Rydym wedi gwneud hyn gyda gwyliau cerddoriaeth, gwyliau bwyd, digwyddiadau treftadaeth, a rhagor. Mae'r data'n ein helpu i lywio penderfyniadau mewn maes lle gall pobl fod yn bendant iawn eu barn.
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Pan gafodd ei gyflwyno, a welwyd ar unwaith sut y gallai fod o fudd i’r dref? Yn rhan o'r gwaith gosod, gofynnwyd i nifer o berchnogion busnes roi unedau Wi-Fi ar eu hadeiladau siopau mewn lleoliadau allweddol. Yn ogystal, dewisodd y rhan fwyaf o berchnogion siopau dderbyn yr e-bost misol gyda’r adroddiad dadansoddol a chael eu hamlygu ar yr ap. Maen nhw wedi sôn am fanteision hyn a sut y maen nhw wedi'u ddefnyddio i gryfhau eu llwybr i'r farchnad.
Oes unrhyw gynlluniau i integreiddio technoleg ymhellach yn Aberteifi? Rydym yn parhau i ymestyn y cynllun WiFi, gan ychwanegu unedau ychwanegol yn y man. Mae ap Tref Aberteifi hefyd yn cael ei uwchraddio mewn pryd ar gyfer Haf 2021 gyda nodweddion newydd.
Mewn ymateb i COVID, mae nifer o fusnesau wedi addasu drwy greu presenoldeb ar-lein. Mewn ymateb i'r cyfle newydd hwn, rydym wrthi’n archwilio’r syniad o gyflwyno dull Clicio a Chasglu ar gyfer siopa yn y dref. Rydym hefyd yn gobeithio treialu a dysgu o ddangosfwrdd tref newydd sy'n defnyddio dyfeisiau sensitif i’r Rhyngrwyd Pethau drwy LoRaWAN. Gall hwn fonitro ansawdd aer, lefelau biniau cyhoeddus, maglau llygod mawr, gwelyau blodau, ymddygiad gwrthgymdeithasol, fandaliaeth, mannau parcio, lefel yr afon, tywydd a rhagor. Mae hyn i gyd yn cyfrannu at greu darlun 360 gradd o iechyd ein tref - fel rhyw fath o Fitbit tref farchnad.
O fewn hanner milltir i Aberteifi mae ffermydd solar, tyrbinau gwynt a bio-gloddio sy'n cynhyrchu dros bedwar megawat. Yn gyffredinol, rydym yn ymdrechu at wneud y dref hyd yn oed yn fwy diddorol, perthnasol, amrywiol, addasol a hwylus i bob cymuned leol, pawb sy’n ymweld a busnesau.
Gyda chefnogaeth yr olaf o gronfeydd yr Undeb Ewropeaidd, mae 4CG hefyd yn treialu ffyrdd o ddod ag Aberteifi yn nes at fod yn dref carbon niwtral gan ddefnyddio generaduron ynni lleol.
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A ten-minute guide to big data with Dr Nik Whitehead
Need a back to basics explainer of what we mean by, ‘big data’? UWTSD Associate Professor Nik Whitehead, Senior Lecturer in Applied Computing, is at hand to deliver a short guide that will bring you up to speed.
For a total beginner what is big data? ‘Big Data’ is about the tools and techniques needed to store and analyse datasets that are too large to be effectively managed with traditional analysis techniques. This may be because they are so large that it takes days for a normal computer to run a single analysis on them, or because they’re large and have complex structures that are inherently difficult to analyse, like audio and video data.
I own a smartphone, computer and other tech I use every day. Am I contributing to big data? Oh yes. Whenever you visit a website its owners can record when you arrived, when you left, and what you looked at while you were there. When you go
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shopping and present your loyalty card the company records what you’ve bought. When you sign in to a social media site to catch up with your friends the site owners record what you’re posting and who you’re interacting with. When you go to the doctor they will make notes on the consultation that will become part of your electronic health record. With billions of people worldwide doing these things every day a lot of data builds up very quickly.
Who collects big data? Anyone who wants to better understand their data generators. These might be human users, but can also be other companies or even physical objects like power systems or roads. If you are collecting large amounts of data on a regular basis then you’re going to need to use big data techniques to analyse it.
How is it stored and processed? Big data is stored in databases which may or may not be connected to the Internet. If your business is an online retailer then you will store your data in a large database within your organisation or online in the Cloud, where the data is stored by companies like Amazon Web Services or Microsoft Azure. These companies also provide the tools that will let you process and analyse your data, whether than is providing minute-by-minute displays of system status or machine-learning tools that allow you to extract hidden information patterns from deep within your datasets.
What are some of the most common ways big data is used? One of the biggest fields is advertising. Companies like Facebook and Google have used big data techniques to develop
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very sophisticated demographic models, so if you have a product or message that you want to get out to twentysomethings living in South Wales with an interest in jazz and Mexican food they will happily sell you the ability to advertise to that precise group. It’s certainly not the only use, though. Logistics companies track their vehicles so that they can give real-time updates on delivery times. The introduction of smart devices into medicine means that doctors can monitor their patients’ blood pressure or insulin levels in real time, leading to far more personalised medical care.
What are some things I've noticed in the real world that have been driven by big data? Tracking the current pandemic would have been much more difficult without the use of big data techniques. The COVID Symptom Study run by Kings College London and ZOE has over four million
people in the UK involved in reporting any COVID-like symptoms every day via an app on their phone. This crowd-sourced data allowed doctors and scientists to identify that the loss of your sense of smell or taste is a symptom of COVID-19. If you use Netflix or any of the similar streaming services you may have noticed that it will recommend films and series that you might enjoy. This comes from looking at what large numbers of people watch and like, so if you watch The Expanse it might recommend that you watch Altered Carbon because a lot of people who watched one series also watched the other.
What are some things I might see in the future thanks to big data? The big thing of the next five years is going to be more adaption of machine learning technologies. Although fully self-driving cars are still a little way off,
cars will become ‘smarter’ in terms of recognising hazardous situations and helping their drivers avoid them. Banks will use increasingly-sophisticated fraud identification systems, so they will become even better at recognising unusual usage patterns of your credit cards. We’re already seeing virtual assistants appearing on websites to help answer simple customer queries; these are going to become capable of handling much more complex problems without having to ask a human for help. Big data is going to be a big part of business life going forward. We can see some of how it will be used already, but innovators and entrepreneurs are going to come up with things we haven’t considered. Whatever else it is, it’s going to be exciting.
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Introducing Professor Wendy Dearing
Dr Maggie Inman, Assistant Dean, Institute of Management and Health, profiles Professor Wendy Dearing upon her appointment as UWTSD’s new Dean of Institute Management and Health
Can you share with us some of the developments at UWTSD within the Management and Health arena and any plans for the future of the Institute Management and Health?
We are delighted that you have joined UWTSD. Can you tell us a little about your professional background and what attracted you to this role?
UWTSD has and continues to develop an ever-expanding portfolio of health and well-being initiatives designed to meet the goal ‘A Healthier Wales’ as outlined in the Well-being of Future Generations Act. We are working with partners to look at innovative multidisciplinary health, social care, and well-being responses and continue to explore the creation of the Wales Centre for Rural Health at one of its campus locations.
I moved to become Dean of Institute of Management and Health at UWTSD in September last year. It was a key strategic appointment for the University, enabling the Institute of Management and Health to build upon its current portfolio and develop a range of innovative programmes including short and bespoke courses, as well as building on its research capacity in Health Informatics. Until recently I was Head of Workforce & Organisational Development for the NHS Wales Informatics Service (NWIS), a position I held for eight years. I was instrumental in developing the Wales Institute of Digital Information (WIDI), a strategic partnership between NWIS and UWTSD. As co-lead for WIDI I created and implemented the Health Informatics Apprenticeship qualifications that includes Level 3, 4 and ICT degree apprenticeships as well as creating opportunities for NWIS staff to undertake Continuing Professional Development (CPD) via the University, linking industry and academia. I have played a key role within the Welsh Government in developing Health Informatics. With a nursing background (I am still on the register), I hold an MSc in Change and Innovation, and was elected as a Professor of Practice by UWTSD in recognition of my expertise and knowledge in championing innovation within the health and care sector. I am a Fellow of the British Computer Society (BCS) and Leading Practitioner of Federation of Informatics Professionals (Fed-IP). The Dean’s role seemed a perfect opportunity to build on my previous work with WIDI and UWTSD whilst developing new opportunities within the Institute of Management and Health. 22 | Vol 8 Issue 1 2021
Some of the initial developments are focused on building on the expansion of WIDI. A Memorandum of Agreement has recently been signed by UWTSD and University of South Wales, along with a successful joint funding bid that will allow us to really build up the research and development pillar. Some current examples are a Usability and Psychology Research Project Work and the Urology Clinical Trials project. We are now building up our database of potential projects for the next twelve to twenty-four months. We are still expanding the Level 4 to 6 provision; over 150 Digital Degree Apprentices from NHS organisations across Wales are studying Cyber Security & Networking, Data Analytics or Software Development; and we are running our Level 2 to 4 Health Informatics qualifications with over 100 students in attendance. A new MSc Digital Skills for the Health and Care Professions will commence from September 2021 and we started our Wales-wide shared learning network in early February, building on our earlier successful learning events. In addition, we have successfully launched the Blue Light Academy to support our colleagues working in emergency services-related employment. The excellent relationships we have with Welsh police forces, Welsh Ambulance Trust and the NHS are testament to our commitment to the sector.
Join the Blue Light Academy at UWTSD COVID-19 has highlighted the critical importance of the emergency services and the need to ensure there are sufficient, trained staff to meet contemporary challenges. The pressure currently imposed on the sector is unprecedented, and has highlighted skill deficits in key areas. In response to this, the Blue Light Academy (BLA) at UWTSD is supporting the emergency services to upskill staff. As a centre for excellence, it is delivering new professional competency-focused training programmes for all linked to the emergency services, NGOs, and agencies, including those in healthcare, the ambulance service, and police. The Academy is already co-delivering the Police Educational Qualification Framework (PEQF) Degree Apprenticeship for South Wales and Gwent Police Forces as well as MSc Policing (Operational and Strategic Leadership). Debbie Williams, Assistant Director of Learning and Organisational Development at South Wales Police, said: ‘Our partnership with UWTSD has ensured the highest standard of professional police practice, knowledge and education for our officers and leaders.’
Blue Light Academy
Building on this success, new programmes starting in September 2021 include: MA Chaplaincy MA Modern Slavery Studies CertHE Emergency Preparedness and Civil Protection MSc Digital Skills for the Health and Care Professions The skills embedded in these programmes are occupational competences required by employers – they are programmes made for the sector, with the sector. The curricula have been co-developed by UWTSD in partnership with representatives from Welsh Government and a range of public sector services to ensure graduates are equipped with the employability and vocational skills that will future-proof their careers and empower them to make a positive, immediate impact in their workplace. All programmes are suitable for those already working in the sector and take a blended learning approach to allow learners to manage their studies alongside work and home commitments. Most of the assessment is practical and directly related to the learner’s own professional practice.
Contact: Julian Williams julian.williams@uwtsd.ac.uk if you’d like to know more
Image used with permission from NHS Wales Informatics Service
Getting curious with digital what, why & how?
Next Issue Out Autumn 2021 To reserve a copy please visit www.uwtsd.ac.uk/swbr or contact the editor kathryn.penaluna@uwtsd.ac.uk
