Intructor’s name
Cyber sphere is very important because of the growing number and severity of cyber-attacks; it can result in economic loss, loss of data and loss of reputation for the SMEs. UK economy depends on the cyber-infrastructure in various aspects social, cultural and economic. Cyber threats and cyber-attacks were in 2010 ranked among the four top national risks (Government’s National Security Strategy 27). UK is one of the countries with the most cyber power. With the growing number of users of internet, purchasing and buying things on the internet, doing business, communicate every SME can be affected by cyber threats. Office for National Statistics (2015 n.p.) release the data where it is obvious that the protection of cyber sphere is absolutely needed. Every day 87% of adults access the internet, 61% of all, use social networking, 76% of adults were purchasing goods or services online. In the last year, 86% of the households in the UK had internet access. In today’s world, making business without the internet and information communication technology is unimaginable. In the information era the vast economic loss can be done with the cyber-attacks.
Office for National Statistics (n.p.) has reported of 2.5 million cybercrimes committed in the country in one year. The fact is also that many attacks go unreported and that the real number is much higher since the statistic is provided only for individual attacks not for the corporate losses. With more and more cyber-attacks the protection of small business cannot be ignored. According to the Cyber Streetwise campaign by questioning over 1.000 SMEs in the country, 32% of revenues of small and medium sized companies are put at risk because they have inadequate cyber protection. By losing the data companies can suffer financial and reputation damage. Only a small percentage (16%) of the business said that improving cyber security is their top priority. The research showed that many small companies are vulnerable because of the wrong perceptions of cyber threats. Around 24% also believed that cyber security is too expensive to implement and a proportion of 22% did not know how to implement the cyber security (Cyber Streetwise n.p.). Government’s Information Security Breaches Survey (3) reported, on average costs of the worth security breach which was around 65.000 and 115.000 pounds which can have a huge impacts on the business. Another survey by the Federation of Small Business found that in the time frame of one year, 41% of its members become a victim of cybercrime.
The strategic opportunity means that the business can detect challenges and opportunities in a changing environment. Ambition of opportunity will involve also listening to the consumers and prediction of their needs in the future. By including cyberspace into the SMEs with the right protection this is possible. By defining the weakness and strengths in the cyber sphere and knowing the shortcomings the strategic opportunities can be achieved.
The compound annual growth rate is a useful means of measuring the growth over time period. The financial dictionary (n.p.) defines the compound annual growth rate as “annual return calculated based on each year’s previous balances where each previous balance includes both the original principal and all interest accrued from the previous year.” It includes the initial investment value to the ending investment value. In cyber space this would mean, how much has been invested in the cybersecurity workforce within the sector. CYBER’s CAGR inside the critical manufacturing means the demand for qualified and educate persons and availability to provide cyber security. UK economy depends on the cyber infrastructure. Cyber security includes process and technologies with which we conduct the business, commerce and private digital lives in a safe environment. The UK cyber market was in 2013 worth 2.8 billion and prediction for the 2017 is at 3.4 billion. The enterprise sector is responsible for 48% of this market and the SMEs contribute to it around 19%. The prediction for the growth of the Cyber CAGR for UK has been estimated at 7.5% in the segment of SMEs & consumers by 2017. The compound annual growth rate of 5.7% will be seen. The CAGR growth rate will be the highest among SEMs on the market of cyber security (Pierre Audoin Consultants, 42-46).
Clean tech
Clean technology is composed of a diverse range of innovative services and products with the optimization of usage of natural resources and negative impacts on the environment and creating the value by lowering the costs (Ernst & Young 2). In the clean technology the renewable energy and infrastructure for it need to be provided. Industry can contribute to the sustainable development and the economy in the future. The importance to use clean technology in the UK is the fact the country is one of the leading world’s economies and should be an example to the others. With the emerging consequences of global climate change and overall global pollution steps toward sustainability and clean technology are a logical next step. With the usage of renewable resources, carbon reduction and energy security the country and SMEs will have the leading start to be successful, competitive, and provision of economic growth also in the global market. To reduce the climate change consequences the use of renewable energy such as solar, wind, geothermal and other potential clean technology need to be supported.
The clean tech matters in the UK because of the environment in which SMEs is working. The trends of costs of energy, security concerns and concerns over natural resources and environmental regulation and laws on one present opportunities for the companies and on the other side risks that cannot be overlooked. To be globally competitive and to achieve sustainable development those concerns need to be taken into an account. With the interconnected and ever smaller world the competition is rising and with the use of clean tech SMEs can have the opportunity to evolve in this sector. The demands of the population and citizens are also in the line of more clean and environmental friendly use and production of energy, products and services. Some countries are already better in the clean tech, but the UK is not far behind and it is still a global leader in this area. Investment in the green technology can bring profits in economic revenues, bigger consumer market with ethical and moral conducting of business, and opportunity in the global market where many states are behind the UK development in clean tech.
The clean tech is in its early ages of development and the UK has the means to be one of the leading producers of the clean technology. Opportunities lie in the offshore wind, waste management, energy sufficiency, and biomass and emission reduction. The strategic opportunity with economic growth, more available jobs and better health for all with less pollution can be focused on the offshore and onshore wind, solar, biofuels, biomass, hydro, geothermal, fuel cells, nuclear, energy sufficiency, energy storage, monitoring and measuring, waste and waste management, emission reduction and marine tidal. The strategic opportunities are possible in these areas, but so far competitive advantage has not been used. A strategic opportunity with the clean technology could be seized with the policy barriers change, capital investment and infrastructure development. The opportunities of economic growth, domestic job creation, energy and natural resource security and independence and carbon reduction still wait to be fully used (Ernst & Young 7-23).
Clean tech CARG prediction for 5 years for the UK was at 21.6%. The predictions for the UK are higher than for the other European countries (Global Cleantech Center 10). CAGAR is just a term that serves as an indicator to tell how much has something grown over a period of time with assumption that it grew staidly. The clean tech CARG is therefore measure of the growth of the clean tech in the country over the exact period of time. In the five year term more the clean tech sector will grow for more than 20% in the UK. The clean tech CARG has been growing in the UK and it was in the year 2014 ranked on the fourth place of Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index – RECEI (Global Cleantech Center 4-16).
References:
Cyber Streetwise. Are you doing enough to protect your business in 2016? 2015. Web. 5. Feb. 2016.
Ernst & Young. Cleantech and the UK Growth Opportunity: Time to Deliver. 2010. Web. 5. Feb. 2016.
Financial Dictionary. Compound Annual Growth Rate. (N.d.). Web. 5. Feb. 2016.
Global Cleantech Center. Global Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness and Resource map. 2014. Web. 5. Feb. 2016.
Government’s Information Security Breaches Survey. 2015 Information Security Breaches Survey. 2015. Web. 5. Feb. 2016.
Government’s National Security Strategy 2010. A Strong Britain in an Age of Uncertainty. 2010. Web. 5. Feb. 2016.
Office for National Statistics. Internet Access – Households and Individuals 2015. 2015. Web. 5. Feb. 2016.
Pierre Audoin Consultants. Competitive Analysis of the UK Cyber Security Sector. 2015. Web. 5. Feb. 2016.
