DTW (Digital Transformation World)
Martin Brynskov, Chairman of Open & Agile Smart Cities, hails Open APIs as an important building block for smart cities
23 Apr 2019
Martin Brynskov, Chairman of Open & Agile Smart Cities, hails Open APIs as an important building block for smart cities
Martin Brynskov, Chairman, Open & Agile Smart Cities, and keynote speaker at Digital Transformation World 2019, talks about a sustainable approach to creating a smart cities market based on common and open standards that facilitate and structure data exchange
How would you describe Open & Agile Smart Cities’ (OASC’s) strategy for digitally transforming cities globally?
OASC brings together cities and communities across the globe to cooperate and exchange knowledge on how to best address digitalization. In this endeavor, OASC is a neutral partner that supports cities by means of a minimal approach based on common and open standards that facilitate and structure data exchange within and between cities as well as third parties. We call this approach OASC Minimal Interoperability Mechanisms – or MIMs in short.
What targets does the organization have to guide this strategy?
Our member cities have currently approved three OASC MIMs – Context Information Management, Data Models and Ecosystem transaction Management. Our objective is to help cities and their providers to implement the MIMs and to further drive the development of the roadmap based on the voices in the OASC Council.
How can TM Forum help to achieve those digital transformation objectives?
As an association of telecom operators and ICT companies with a focus on open standards (Open API & Smart City Frontrunner Programs), TM Forum already plays a crucial role in shaping global business practices. TM Forum’s pragmatic approach to developing APIs driven by demand, shared data models and marketplace enablers represents a supply-side vision complementing OASC’s demand-side strategy.
What are the key challenges to overcome in developing this ‘open and agile’ approach for OASC’s network of cities, and how are you addressing them?
Cities are eager to be open and agile, but the city departments often lack knowledge about open standards for data exchange or are overwhelmed by the sheer number of standards that are available to support cities and communities and how to best apply them, especially in procurement of isolated services.
In terms of a platform model for cities, what is the best approach and why?
The optimal approach is to have a set of core common elements, expressed as principles and common interfaces, ultimately as exemplified in the indispensable original first three OASC MIMs. These loosely coupled core mechanisms can be implemented and orchestrated in endless ways. The success to tackling the complexity of cities and communities is to keep the common ground to an absolute minimum.
What role do APIs play in an ‘open and agile’ smart city approach?
APIs – and more specifically – Open APIs, allow data to flow in a standardized format. Hence, Open APIs are an important building block for all smart cities and communities.
A diverse workforce is defined as one that is made up of individuals with a wide range of characteristics and experiences, such as race, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, ability and sexual orientation. What are the biggest challenges your company faces in promoting diversity and what initiatives does it have to become a more diverse and inclusive workforce?
Especially for OASC, as an international smart city network, a diverse workforce is crucial for the success of the organisation. We are a young organisation (founded as an NGO in 2017) with an international and open mindset and our workforce reflects this.
As a leader, what are you doing on a daily basis to address diversity?
OASC works to ensure a minimal common ground in order to cater for diversity on all levels. One city cannot join alone but must come as a national or territorial network of at least two cities or entities. This is a fundamental requirement to ensure both diversity and collaboration locally as well as globally. And we believe that this is ultimately the most powerful feature of OASC: to cater for diverse ways of harnessing common, global forces of digital technologies.
In terms of the wider societal impact of digitization, what are you looking forward to over the next decade?
Just sharing data isn’t creating a sustainable smart cities market, this is clear by now. Many governments, from the local, national and international level, have put policies in place without much effect. But we’re facing a new wave where mixed data spaces are emerging, with multi-sided contributors and consumers in complex value networks.
In terms of the wider societal impact of digitization, what concerns you?
Cybersecurity and data protection of citizens and businesses has to be a primary focus point for governments. But just as important is the need to retain local economic development and generally a way towards the future in which they feel is in line with their identities. Depending on the context – cities and communities are very different – the concrete implementations may vary, but reaching global consensus on some core mechanisms is crucial in order to avoid a fragmented world which will favor only the few and the strong.
To meet more digital leaders and read about their transformation journeys, go to https://www.tmforum.org/face-digital-leadership
How would you describe Open & Agile Smart Cities’ (OASC’s) strategy for digitally transforming cities globally?
OASC brings together cities and communities across the globe to cooperate and exchange knowledge on how to best address digitalization. In this endeavor, OASC is a neutral partner that supports cities by means of a minimal approach based on common and open standards that facilitate and structure data exchange within and between cities as well as third parties. We call this approach OASC Minimal Interoperability Mechanisms – or MIMs in short.
What targets does the organization have to guide this strategy?
Our member cities have currently approved three OASC MIMs – Context Information Management, Data Models and Ecosystem transaction Management. Our objective is to help cities and their providers to implement the MIMs and to further drive the development of the roadmap based on the voices in the OASC Council.
How can TM Forum help to achieve those digital transformation objectives?
As an association of telecom operators and ICT companies with a focus on open standards (Open API & Smart City Frontrunner Programs), TM Forum already plays a crucial role in shaping global business practices. TM Forum’s pragmatic approach to developing APIs driven by demand, shared data models and marketplace enablers represents a supply-side vision complementing OASC’s demand-side strategy.
What are the key challenges to overcome in developing this ‘open and agile’ approach for OASC’s network of cities, and how are you addressing them?
Cities are eager to be open and agile, but the city departments often lack knowledge about open standards for data exchange or are overwhelmed by the sheer number of standards that are available to support cities and communities and how to best apply them, especially in procurement of isolated services.
In terms of a platform model for cities, what is the best approach and why?
The optimal approach is to have a set of core common elements, expressed as principles and common interfaces, ultimately as exemplified in the indispensable original first three OASC MIMs. These loosely coupled core mechanisms can be implemented and orchestrated in endless ways. The success to tackling the complexity of cities and communities is to keep the common ground to an absolute minimum.
What role do APIs play in an ‘open and agile’ smart city approach?
APIs – and more specifically – Open APIs, allow data to flow in a standardized format. Hence, Open APIs are an important building block for all smart cities and communities.
A diverse workforce is defined as one that is made up of individuals with a wide range of characteristics and experiences, such as race, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, ability and sexual orientation. What are the biggest challenges your company faces in promoting diversity and what initiatives does it have to become a more diverse and inclusive workforce?
Especially for OASC, as an international smart city network, a diverse workforce is crucial for the success of the organisation. We are a young organisation (founded as an NGO in 2017) with an international and open mindset and our workforce reflects this.
As a leader, what are you doing on a daily basis to address diversity?
OASC works to ensure a minimal common ground in order to cater for diversity on all levels. One city cannot join alone but must come as a national or territorial network of at least two cities or entities. This is a fundamental requirement to ensure both diversity and collaboration locally as well as globally. And we believe that this is ultimately the most powerful feature of OASC: to cater for diverse ways of harnessing common, global forces of digital technologies.
In terms of the wider societal impact of digitization, what are you looking forward to over the next decade?
Just sharing data isn’t creating a sustainable smart cities market, this is clear by now. Many governments, from the local, national and international level, have put policies in place without much effect. But we’re facing a new wave where mixed data spaces are emerging, with multi-sided contributors and consumers in complex value networks.
In terms of the wider societal impact of digitization, what concerns you?
Cybersecurity and data protection of citizens and businesses has to be a primary focus point for governments. But just as important is the need to retain local economic development and generally a way towards the future in which they feel is in line with their identities. Depending on the context – cities and communities are very different – the concrete implementations may vary, but reaching global consensus on some core mechanisms is crucial in order to avoid a fragmented world which will favor only the few and the strong.
To meet more digital leaders and read about their transformation journeys, go to https://www.tmforum.org/face-digital-leadership