Request a free audit
Take advantage of our complimentary, no-obligation complete audits.
Social media audit Problem definition workshop ISO/SOC readiness
WeAreBrain’s 5th Anniversary Digital Time Capsule
For our final tribute to our 5th anniversary, we decided to create our very own digital time capsule where some of our team and founders share their hopes and plans for WeAreBrain and the world at large in the next 5 years. Of course, we wanted to do this time capsule thing right and took to Google to find out what should be in a time capsule. As it turns out, there are some rules you should adhere to when creating your message to future you.
Throwback Thursday
Much like the popular social media practice of sharing pictures of yourself when you were young and beautiful, a good time capsule needs to have something from the day you created it. We wracked our brains and we decided to include this image of our founders’ calendars. It’s not to boast how busy they are but rather to show that we still probably spend too much time in meetings and not enough time innovating. So we hope when we take a look at this digital archive in 5 years time we’ve found a better way to manage meetings and work time #livingthedream.
The Greatest Hits of 2019, so far!
The next item you need to include in your time capsule is a bunch of mementoes from that year. So we decided to share a few links to our top performing articles, as well as one of our most recent job specs (because we’re pretty sure in 2024 the types of jobs people do will be very different) and then just for fun we’ve included this trailer for the Game of Thrones’ final season because, it’s like the best series ever made with the best special effects ever and we just can’t wait to see how it’s aged in the short 5 years between now and then. So without further ado here is our 2019 mixtape:
- A DevOps Engineer’s Job Spec
- Creating Your Custom Font Kit
- Big Data and RPA
- How Ownership Breeds Excellence
- Game of Thrones Season 8 Trailer
What we hope the future looks like
The next very important element of a good time capsule is a wish for the future. Sharing the things you hope will have been achieved by the time you have a look at your time capsule again.
Female Empowerment
It’s no secret that we have championed the cause of female empowerment and gender diversity in our business. We are passionate about seeing more women in leadership positions and more women break into the tech field. Currently, statistics globally show that only 24% of senior management jobs globally are held by women and according to Computerscience.org only 12% of engineers are female. These statistics are not only a product of a gender-biased system that is taking some time to correct itself, but it is also due to the way we educate children. To some degree, many education systems still operate under the archaic notion that there are boys subjects and girls subjects. While in primary school, statistics show that two-thirds of children have a keen interest in science. By the time they reach middle school the number of girls losing interest in these subjects drops on a 4 to 1 ratio. This statistic isn’t representative of a girl’s disinterest in the subject but rather the way science, IT and maths courses are framed as boys subjects. With this being the status quo in 2019, we realise bias and inequality will not disappear in 5 short years but we hope at least for the following things:
- The number of women in senior management positions double
- More tech companies develop programs for girls and women to break into the field of engineering, so this number begins rising more steadily and at a greater pace
- Education systems are interrogated thoroughly and gender biases are removed entirely from the culture of schools
Changing the Climate
Climate Change is real, you need only go online and find a reputable news station or publication to show that natural disasters have increased in magnitude and frequency. The Earth is hotter and some scientists say it’s already too late. So what’s to be done? Well, we’re a never-give-up kind of bunch so in our small part, we are going to continue to pursue any and all kinds of renewable and reusable technology. We are committed to lessening our footprint on this Earth, whether it is through what we build or projects we support like the Black Jaguar Foundation and Mission Possible Foundation. We hope that more people start taking this seriously. We believe the solution to apathy around climate change is a groundswell. Grassroots movements forcing a change in attitudes from the government to big business to your next-door neighbour who doesn’t recycle. We hope everybody gets on board and soon.
AI
It is no secret that people are afraid of AI. Whether it’s the fear that has been created by pop culture that ultimately has condemned sentient AI to murderers and destroyers of humanity, or it is a simple fear that in 5 years time you’ll be out of a job because a machine will be able to do it better.
What we hope for the future is that people learn to work with, embrace and love AI like we do. That they see the potential AI has to make lives better. This can only happen through understanding. So we’re asking those ‘in the know’ to share what they understand about AI with everyone who’s willing to listen.
A message to future us
The final item you should have in your time capsule is a message to your future self about what you were doing that worked, that made a difference. So to all our future Brainiac selves: you helped us build a business on solid and inspiring values. These values have helped us grow, course correct when needed and to really interrogate why we made and continue to make certain decisions. We’re glad having a team like you made it so easy for us to find and define these values.
So in closing, future Brainiac, endeavour to always be kind and curious. Approach people and projects with an open heart and an inquisitive mind. Do not be afraid to make bold decisions and back a crazy idea if you think it will work. Own your work, it represents the smartest and brightest part of you so always be proud of what you do. Get creative, in every way possible, try new things and expose yourself to new experiences. This will make you better at what you do. Stay humble, arrogance is an ugly characteristic in anyone. Besides, when you see only your opinions you’re likely to miss a greater vision beyond your own. We hope if you follow this advice you will continue to be a better human.
Happy anniversary to us!
Elvire Jaspers
Working Machines
An executive’s guide to AI and Intelligent Automation. Working Machines takes a look at how the renewed vigour for the development of Artificial Intelligence and Intelligent Automation technology has begun to change how businesses operate.
