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Show Me The Money

Written by Marcos Ferrer on . Posted in Articles.

Last month we posed a quiz, as we continue to build robust requirements for a National and Global Identity System. We “hid money” in this quiz, and now we’re going to try to find it! Here is the list of stakeholders we gave last month:

Citizens

Businesses

  • Banks
  • Credit Card Companies
  • On-Line Sellers
  • Airlines
  • Hotels
  • Disney (takes fingerprints, did you know?).
  • Retailers
  • More along the same lines….

Government

  • Law Enforcement
  • National Security
  • Immigration
  • Customs
  • Internal Revenue
  • Labor Department
  • Unemployment Agency
  • More along the same lines…
  1. What might be wrong with the above list? First – note that it is not only citizens with a stake, but all individuals. If you were being arrested, how would you feel if the police identified you improperly? If you are an illegal alien, you still need to work (and we need you). What is to be done? Second – what about non-business, non-government institutions? Are non-profits different? Are some organizations not even characterizable simply as non-profit? Third – identifying individuals, businesses, governments and other institutions may not be sufficient. Do all stakeholders have the same needs and goals? Are there categories based on identity “needs” more useful than the institutional ones we have chosen? How is local law enforcement different from homeland (I hate that word) security or immigration?
  2. What might it cost to ignore the errors/omissions/assumptions, if any? We know the answer to this, because existing ID systems have NOT identified and addressed all stakeholders and their needs. The cost is exactly the situation we have now – a world of rampant identity theft (1 in 20 may be affected each year), in which law enforcement is almost powerless, a world of unjust convictions and misuse of DNA evidence, a world of constant privacy violation with little or no recourse (the price of fame is constant media pecking, a disincentive to achievement).
  3. What concepts or categories might help with analyzing this list, regardless of any problems so far? Identity needs for criminal convictions are different from those for purchases, for charitable giving, attendance at private social events, and hiring a handyman, etc.
  4. If you, as a BA, can even begin to address such questions, what is your earning potential? I can only speak for myself – since realizing what I was capable of, and getting my CBAP so others would know too, my income is now well into six figures, and my ability to get work and promotions is vastly improved. How are you coming along?

FOR NEXT MONTH:

To reassure ourselves that we REALLY understand the stakeholders, we will try to list the “identity transactions” that might occur in society, and we will try to match these transactions to the kinds of stakeholders we are aware of so far (individuals, businesses, government, and other organizations).

 How many identity transactions can you think of, or how would you elicit such a list?

Potential answers will be discussed next month, and incorporated into the case study. The best reader response will be acknowledged next month (send a picture with your response!) and will undoubtedly receive a large raise in the near future, just for rising above the pack!

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