GUEST COLUMN:
Dr John Davies MBE
CEO
SudoCyber
When people hear the word cyber, too many still assume the conversation is about firewalls, code and people in technical jobs speaking a language nobody else can understand. That assumption is not only wrong, it risks making digital skills feel more remote than they need to be. The real opportunity is to help people understand technology well enough to use it with confidence in the work they already do.
At SudoCyber, we are based in the old post office in Brecon, in the heart of Bannau Brycheiniog. There is a certain irony in running a 21st century communications company from a 250-year-old building that was once the epicentre of communication in the region, but I like that narrative. It says something important about Mid Wales. Digital capability does not have to sit in a city centre or on a large technology campus. It can be built from a market town, close to the businesses, communities and young people who will use it.
Technology is moving shockingly fast. As soon as organisations catch up with one development, another tool, platform or system appears. There will almost always be a technological way of solving a business problem, but that does not mean people will feel confident walking into work the next day and using it. That is where a major opening exists for Mid Wales: to build digital confidence alongside digital infrastructure, so that businesses across the region can make practical use of the tools now available to them.
Our work is about accelerating capability development in people. We use people and technology to help organisations think about how they can create operational advantage from digital tools. That might be through workshops, work with individuals or groups, or self-paced learning through our online platform. The aim is not to turn everyone into a cyber specialist. It is to help people get past the automatic reaction that says, “I’m not very technical,” and into a position where they can make sensible decisions about technology.
I hear that phrase all the time, including from people who work in technical companies or security operation centres. It has become almost automatic, and it is not helpful. Once people decide a subject is too technical for them, they often step away from it before they have had the chance to understand what it could do for their organisation or career.
That is why digital skills should be understood as a people issue, not simply a technology issue. If you say “cyber” to young people, many assume you are talking about a career in IT. In reality, cyber reaches much further than that. It involves human behaviour, law, data privacy, GDPR, psychology, malicious behaviour, vulnerability and organisational response.
Cyber crime brings the police into the picture, but it also brings in lawyers who may prosecute or defend cases involving malicious use of computers. A cyber incident inside an organisation may quickly involve HR teams, communications teams, managers and governance structures. Yet very few people in those areas see cyber as part of their world, partly because the name itself can push them away.
For Mid Wales, that creates a real opportunity to broaden the conversation. We can show young people that digital knowledge is not a single narrow route into the IT industry. Some will become technical specialists, and we will certainly need them. Others may use digital or cyber capability in law, HR, policing, health and social care, education, project management or business leadership.
The same applies to people already in work. Awareness training on its own is not enough. Many organisations put staff through annual training, people tick the boxes, sign the form and go back to their desks without changing their behaviour. What we should be aiming for is appreciation. People need to understand the threats, the vulnerabilities and the benefits of a technology, so they can make a risk decision that is appropriate for their business and their role.
Different generations will need different approaches. Young people who have grown up with digital systems often do not carry the same fear of technology. They may not know how systems work inside a company, but they are often willing to try, test and work things out. Those already in the workplace may need a different kind of introduction, one that connects the technology to the business knowledge they already have.
Mid Wales has done this kind of outreach before. Superfast broadband workshops took support into town centres and community spaces, giving businesses a clearer appreciation of what connectivity could do for them. A similar approach will help people understand AI, cyber and digital adoption more broadly, taking practical support into the places where businesses and communities already meet.
We want Mid Wales to build digital opportunity, and so our collective approach is to stop treating digital skills as something separate from ordinary working life. The people who need support are not only specialists. They are the butcher in a village, the farmer’s son setting up an online business, the HR manager responding to a cyber incident and the young person deciding whether they can build a future here. If we help those people see digital capability as part of their own work and ambition, Mid Wales will be building a skills base that reflects the region rather than one imported from somewhere else.
John talks about this and more on the Unlocking Mid Wales podcast. Listen here:
