Is your tech development responsible?

Guided self-assessment tool
This tool is applicable for all technologies. Think of tech in the broadest sense: AI, biological life sciences, autonomous vehicles, etc.

The three sections of the guided self-assessment

See

The first section
gives an overview.

Reflect

The second section
is focused on in-depth reflection.

Act

The third section
gives practical support for continued tech development.

Click the symbol for more information about the exercises, examples and helpful tips.

A summary of results and all information entered in the tool and can be downloaded in PDF format.

Guided self-assessment

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Enter a short description of the tech development you are assessing.

Helpful tips:

  • Tech development refers to a project or an overall process of inventing, developing, innovating and distributing new technology. It may also mean applying existing technologies in new ways or implementing new technologies in an organisation.
  • Feel free to use abbreviations and technical terms, as you will be the only one who sees the results.
  • Keep it short, 2-3 words are sufficient.

Example:

  • Development of a patient-centred decision support system
  • User-friendly IoT (internet of things) for the construction sector
  • An autonomous forestry machine

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Enter a name for the guided self-assessment. This allows you to save your data at any time and resume the assessment later.

Helpful tips:

  • The name of the guided self-assessment should not be the same as the description of the tech development.
  • The name will be used to save the information. It will give you the opportunity to take a break and resume the self-assessment later. Remember to use the same computer and browser.
  • All data will be automatically saved while using the tool. All information is stored locally on your computer. No data will be distributed online, and no one else will have access to the information you enter in the self-assessment tool.

Examples:

  • Decision support1
  • IoT Construction
  • Forestry machine

What does ‘responsible tech development’ mean to you?

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Begin the guided self-assessment by considering the meaning of responsible tech development. Use the digital whiteboard to paste and display your notes.

Helpful tips:

  • Don’t spent too much time on this exercise. The purpose is to gather spontaneous thoughts as they come to mind.
  • If you conduct the guided self-assessment as a group, it might be a good idea to take a moment to deliberate individually before sharing your notes and thoughts with one another.
  • You can move, edit, and delete all the notes on the digital whiteboard.


Add note

See

The first section gives an overview. It is short and consists of multiple-choice questions. The themes recurring throughout the guided self-assessment are introduced here.

Section one - See

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Answer the multiple-choice questions.

Helpful tips:

  • The purpose is to get a quick overview of the fundamentals, stakeholders, positive and negative impact, and practical implementation of the tech development.
  • Don’t spend too much time on these questions, there will be in-depth exercises later.

Reflect

The second section is focused on in-depth reflection and is the most extensive part of the assessment.

Reflect – step 1 of 3

Fundamentals

This step focuses on the fundamentals of the tech development.

Summarise the goal of the tech development

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Describe what the tech development is expected to achieve. Keep in mind that the goal can consist of several sub-goals such as business benefits and efficiency, and solutions to a societal challenge.

Examples of goals:
  • Solution to societal challenges
  • Realising the UN Sustainability Development Goals
  • Business case and competitiveness
  • Improved health and improved working and living conditions
  • Protection of human rights
  • Improved efficiency

Summarise facts and assumptions

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Describe the factual basis for the tech development. Is it possible to describe where the facts originated? Sometimes it is not possible identify distinct facts – if this is the case, describe how the assumptions were formulated. Another alternative is that the tech development primarily is based on past experiences. If so, try to describe the key practices and procedures for the present tech development.

Examples on references for facts and assumptions

  • Factual reports such as descriptions of technical specifications, accounting of available resources, descriptions of past experiences.
  • Scientific studies, research documentation and systematic reviews.
  • Best practice or conventional wisdom, i.e. proven and documented know-how on how to complete tasks and solve problems.
  • Assumptions, for example about future changes in supply and demand.

Short description of key ethics and sustainability concepts

Click a specific word to read more about the concept.

Do you want to expand on your earlier thoughts and ideas?

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Now you get another opportunity to contemplate on the meaning of responsible tech development. Use the digital whiteboard to move, paste and display your notes. The notes you wrote earlier have been moved to this board.

Helpful tips:

  • You can edit the text on previous notes.
  • Add, move, or delete notes as you like.
  • Consider sorting the notes into different groups.
  • Maybe the description of key ethics and sustainability concepts offered new perspectives, triggering you to change something?

Keep in mind:

  • This is not the final exercise. You have a number of additional exercises to complete before you are finished with the guided self-assessment.
  • The purpose of this exercise is to document your thoughts about responsible tech development.

Sum up your thoughts and reflections
Fundamentals

Reflection

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

In your own words, reflect on the fundamentals of your tech development. For example, consider addressing the following:

  • Does your goal, along with the given facts and assumptions, provide a solid foundation to work on?
  • Will your tech development be based on ethics and sustainability?

Helpful tips:

  • Go back to your thoughts and ideas about responsible tech development. Can you incorporate any of these thoughts and ideas into this reflection?

What has to be done

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Your reflections may reveal that something must be done to establish a solid foundation.

Helpful tips:

  • Each action is entered in a to do-list. You will work more with this list later.

For example, consider the following:

  • Does the goal have to be more clearly formulated?
  • Do facts or assumption have to be documented?

Do you want to change your earlier answers?

Fundamentals

Our tech development is based on... Yes Partly No Don't know
… a clearly stated goal
… reference material that presents facts and assumptions
… integration of ethics and sustainability throughout the process

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

These are your earlier answers regarding stakeholders and impact. You can change your answers now if you want to.

Reflect – step 2 of 3

Stakeholders and impact

This step is focused on stakeholders and how they might be affected.

Write down aspects you need to consider from a life cycle perspective

A product or service affects individuals and the environment throughout its lifetime. Life cycle stages include design, acquisition of raw materials, manufacturing, distribution, use, recycling, reuse and final disposal

Click the picture below to read about the life cycle perspective.

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Click the picture below to read about the life cycle perspective. Then note what you consider important regarding your tech development.

Helpful tips:
For example, consider the following:

  • How is data managed (collected, shared, processed and protected) throughout all life cycle stages?
  • Are you working with personal data (or other types of information) that must be handled in a certain way?
      What will you do with the information and data when the product or service is no longer in use?
  • Animal welfare and sustainable livestock production, for example if you in any stage use animal products or conduct tests on animals.
  • Is there a risk of pollution at any stage?
  • Is the working environment safe? Does it promote good health for all workers?
  • Are natural resources used sustainably throughout the various stages?
    • Do you have a plan to minimise negative environmental or climate impact?
  • What is your main source of energy? Is the energy used efficient throughout the various stages?
  • Do you need to consider any specific aspects when choosing materials? Is the use of raw materials minimised throughout the stages?
    • Is the amount of environmentally harmful substances minimised?
    • Can you incorporate easy reuse and recycling while designing your product or service?

Throughout the life cycle of our tech development, we will have to consider...

illustration livscykel

Stakeholders who may be affected

 

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Identify stakeholders who may be affected by the tech development. Keep in mind that some may be affected in the short term, while others may be affected in the long term. Sometimes they may be affected in both the short term and long term.

Helpful tips:

  • Bear in mind that the impact may be positive or negative (and sometimes both).
  • Remember that a product or service affects its environment throughout the entire life cycle, from the initial idea until it has served its final purpose. Consider who will be affected in each life cycle stage.

Example
Professionals

  • Project managers, principal investigators, civil servants and labourers.
  • The person who is ultimately responsible may be the CEO, CTO, head of operations or the operations manager.
  • Other individuals who may be affected include subcontractors or people whose work is facilitated – or becomes more complicated – as a consequence of the tech development.

Tech users, and those indirectly affected
  • Tech development may impact a wide range of individuals. Examples could be a patient in a high-tech hospital, a resident in a nursing home, a child playing an online game or a passenger in public transport.
  • Vulnerable groups include the economically disadvantaged, racial and ethnic minorities, the uninsured, children, older people, the homeless, and those with chronic health conditions. Other examples are individuals with impaired or reduced decision-making ability, e.g. due to dementia or intellectual disability.
  • Examples of people who are indirectly affected include other patients with the same disease as subjects enrolled in a life science tech development project or relatives (such as partners, children, or parents), those who reside near the geographical location of the tech development, i.e. where the tech is used or produced.

Decision-makers and tech researchers
  • Examples of tech development financiers are companies, venture capital firms as well as research and innovation funding bodies.
  • Decision-makers may be politicians at national or local level, public authorities and other formal legal bodies.
  • Tech development research is for example conducted at universities and within agencies and research foundations.

Society
  • A citizen is someone who is part of society in any way. Citizens may have views on how tech is used or opinions on whether tech is advantageous or risky. Taxpayers may have different views on how public funds should be distributed.
  • Future generations of people not yet born may be affected by tech development taking place today.
  • Nature, animals, and plants. In this case, nature refers to the environment (largely) uninfluenced by humans, including plants, animals the landscape, etc., as opposed to humans or human creations.

Professionals Yes No Don't know
… the person managing tech development work
… the ultimately responsible person
… the personnel producing the tech product or service
… a person affected in their occupational activity in some other way
Tech users, and those indirectly affected Yes No Don't know
… individuals
… people belonging to particularly vulnerable groups
… indirectly affected people
Decision-makers and tech researchers Yes No Don't know
… financiers
… decision-makers
… researchers
Society Yes No Don't know
… citizens and taxpayers
… future generations
… nature, animals and plants

Others who are affected:

Add stakeholder

Describe the impact on each stakeholder

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Below is a list of the stakeholders you identified in the previous exercise.

Is the impact on the stakeholder predominantly positive or negative? Mark the best option. Describe how each stakeholder is affected and be as specific as possible.

Helpful tips:

  • Impact can be short-term and in long-term.
  • Is there an impact on integrity or autonomy?
  • Is there a social, environmental and economic perspective?
  • Impact can be positive or negative (and sometimes both).
  • Remember that a product or service affects its environment throughout the entire life cycle, from idea until it has served its purpose. Consider who will be affected through each life cycle stage.

Examples:
Examples of positive impact

  • Reduced climate impact, increased biodiversity.
  • Improved health and well-being, higher quality of life, less pain, increased life expectancy.
  • Respect and recognition.
  • Better use of resources, higher efficiency, greater precision.
  • Good occupational conditions and economic growth.
  • Opportunity to solve a work assignment in one´s own way, in agreement with pre-stipulated conditions and quality requirements.
  • Increased innovation and competitiveness.
  • Combining economic profitability with environmental considerations and social commitment.

Examples of negative impact
  • Impact to integrity, such as invasion of privacy, exploitation of vulnerability or failure to treat people with dignity and respect.
  • Displacement effects, such as diminishing resources to a group due to introduction of new technology which might not be accessible to that particular group.
  • Negative environmental impact, such as increased greenhouse effect, contaminated water or destruction of natural habitats.
  • Harsher working conditions, bad occupational health or poor animal husbandry.
  • Deteriorating accessibility or increased exclusion.

Påverkan, fortsättning

De som listats nedan har markerats som ”vet ej”.
Ni vet inte om dessa påverkas av teknikutvecklingen. Om ni behöver ta reda på mer information kan det noteras som en åtgärd lite senare i självutvärderingen.

Describe cost - benefit

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Describe cost in relation to expected benefit from the tech development

Helpful tips:

  • Consider other ways to achieve the same effect, but at a different cost.
  • Will the person or group bearing the (monetary or intangible) cost of tech development also reap the benefits? Benefits can be financial or a range of intangible advantages, such as improved employee safety, customer satisfaction due to enhanced product offerings, faster delivery or reduced environmental impact.
  • Go back at the goal of the tech development that you wrote down in an earlier exercise. Reflect on costs in relation to efficiency in the context of target achievement.

Example

  • One of the desired goals of a tech development project is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. To be able to assess costs in relation to expected future benefits, it is useful to have a rough estimate of the anticipated CO2-reduction based on a range of various interventions.

Sum up your thoughts and reflections
Stakeholders and impact

Reflection

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Reflect upon stakeholders and impact.

Helpful tips: Aspects to consider:

  • Is it possible for individuals or specific groups to use new tech to their advantage? Does this possibility vary between individuals or groups?
  • Involvement: the possibility of influencing decisions before it is too late, especially for those who might be affected.
  • Are there any conflicts of interest, e.g. between different groups or between humans and nature?
  • Are there certain groups that need special attention or consideration during the tech development?
  • How do you prevent potentially harmful impacts on individuals, the public or the environment?

What has to be done

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

After reflection, you may determine that an action may be necessary for a responsible approach to stakeholders. Use the box to write down required actions. Enter one action at the time and click “add action”.

Helpful tips:
Every action will be added to a list. You will return to this list later.
If you have ticked “Don’t know” in the stakeholder-list, you may need more information about that particular stakeholder to determine how to proceed.

Do you want to change your initial answers?

Stakeholders and impact

We have an assessment of... Yes Partly No Don't know
… stakeholders who may be affected and particularly vulnerable groups
… positive and negative impact on the stakeholders
… potential conflicts of interests
… cost-effectiveness

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

These are your initial answers regarding stakeholders and impact. You now can change them as necessary.

Reflect – step 3 of 3

Day-to-day practice

The final step focuses on organisation and daily tech development work.

Are these statements correct?

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

To what extent are the statements correct? Tick the best alternative.

Helpful tips:

  • The answers will be used to draw infographics illustrating responsibility in approach, organisation, participation and how the results are put to use.

Organisation – The organisation supports responsible tech development Not at all Completely
It is clear who is responsible for the daily work and who is liable if something goes wrong.
It is possible to highlight shortcomings and deficiencies regarding ethics and sustainability. When such a deficiency is identified, it is addressed.
Employees are aware of and comply with laws and regulations.
The organisation acts responsibly in times of transition and change, and when sudden and unexpected events occur.
Participation – The tech development is a participatory process Not at all Completely
People with different values, interests and ideals are involved and included throughout the tech development work process.
Knowledge about the stakeholder’s needs and circumstances is gathered and incorporated throughout the work process.
Results – Making use of the tech development and the existing knowledge and experience, and implementing the results Not at all Completely
Knowledge and experiences from the work are applied going forward.
It will be possible to implement and make use of the results of the tech development.
The tech development will be monitored to determine how it is put to use and how it works in practice.
Approaches and attitudes – Ethics and sustainability are integrated throughout the tech development process Not at all Completely
Values relating to ethics and sustainability are taken into account in decision-making.
Values relating to ethics and sustainability are frequently discussed and kept up to date.
Tech developers are aware of ethics and sustainability and a take a responsible approach.

Day-to-day practice

Infographics of your answers

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Each circular sector shows the extent to which you have a responsible approach to implementing one aspect of the tech development.

Helpful tips:

  • Swipe the mouse pointer over a circular sector to see which statement it applies to.
  • A completely filled-in circular sector indicates that you consider your work within that area to be fully satisfactory (for example that values relating to ethics and sustainability are frequently discussed and kept up-to-date).
  • A partly filled-in circular sector indicates that more effort is needed to fulfil the responsibilities within that specific area (for example that employees are not sufficiently familiar with laws and other regulations).


Organisation

The organisation supports responsible tech.

Participation

The tech development is a participatory process.

Results

Making use of the tech development, benefiting from the existing knowledge and experience, and implementing the results

Approaches and attitudes

Ethics and sustainability are integrated throughout the tech development process

It is clear who is responsible for the daily work and who is liable if something goes wrong.
It is possible to highlight shortcomings and deficiencies regarding ethics and sustainability. When such a deficiency is identified, it is addressed.
Employees are aware of and comply with laws and regulations.
The organisation acts responsibly in times of transition and change, and when sudden and unexpected events occur.
People with different values, interests and ideals are involved and included throughout the tech development work process.
Knowledge about the stakeholder’s needs and circumstances is gathered and incorporated throughout the work process.
Knowledge and experiences from the work are applied going forward.
It will be possible to implement and make use of the results of the tech development.
The tech development will be monitored to determine how it is put to use and how it works in practice.
Values relating to ethics and sustainability are taken into account in decision-making.
Values relating to ethics and sustainability are frequently discussed and kept up to date.
Tech developers are aware of ethics and sustainability and a take a responsible approach.
Does not apply at all
Applies to some extent
Applies for the most part
Applies completely

Sum up your thoughts and reflections
Day-to-day practice

Reflection

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Describe the day-to-day practice of your tech development.

Helpful tips:
Go back to your earlier reflections on responsible tech development. Can you reuse any of the ideas or wording in your reflections?
Reflect on how ethics and sustainability is integrated throughout the practical day-to-day work. Some examples for inspiration are listed below.

Approaches and attitudes
What does the decision-making process look like, e.g. when initiating a project, considering an investment or choosing between two different alternatives? Is there a formal (or informal) process in place to incorporate ethics and sustainability in the decision?

Are ethics and sustainability discussed at workplace meetings, at meetings with contractual partners, in communications or in personal progress dialogues? Are ethics and sustainability discussed occasionally or on a regularly basis? How do you make sure that it happens?

Is there any employee training in ethics and sustainability? Do they learn about ethics and sustainability any other way? Do the tech developers discuss a responsible approach and attitude?

Organisation
Is there a clear division of responsibilities? Do the individuals who have been delegated responsibilities fully understand their undertakings and the consequences associated with their responsibilities? Do the employees know who is responsible?

Is there a way for individuals to call attention to shortcomings in ethics and sustainability? Is everyone aware of what to do when such a situation occurs? Are employees or tech developers afraid to raise such issues? How are cases of neglect and shortcomings handled?

How are employees, tech developers and co-workers made aware of relevant legislation and regulations? For example, do some employees have special expertise in ethics and sustainability? Is it possible to consult with external experts? Are training activities organised?

How can the organisation incorporate ethics and sustainability in times of transition and change, e.g. when the organisation expands, refocuses or loses profit? What happens if there is a sudden or unexpected change in business or external conditions? How can practices be adapted to unforeseen results or societal changes?

Participation
Who is involved in ethics- and sustainability-related reflection and decision-making for your tech development? How are the processes tailored to include a range of stakeholders, e.g. to integrate gender and diversity perspectives (such as age, ethnicity, class or levels of power)?

What efforts are made to incorporate a wide range of values and perspectives? Which people and groups are involved? Why have they been specifically chosen? How are they involved? For example, are they involved in focus groups, costumer surveys, contacts via social media or personal dialogues?

How do you meet the needs of different individuals based on their different circumstances? Are new products, platforms, programs, and services designed to suit as many people as possible? Do they reflect the diversity of the population? Can people of all ages and functional abilities make use of the tech development in different situations and under various circumstances? How are the results of the tech development made available? Can it contribute to increased physical or practical access? For example, how could someone who does not have a computer or smartphone use the new tech?

Results
How are knowledge and experience communicated and put to use? How is feedback given to the stakeholders participating in the tech developing process? Are the results shared with all everyone involved or affected? Do you have processes and outreach activities? How will you disseminate the results and draw on the lessons from the tech development?

How can the results (a product, service or new knowledge) be implemented? Are there enough resources (time, knowledge and budget) to disseminate the results to users and to day-to-day operations?

Will there be follow-ups on how the results (product, service or knowledge) are implemented and applied?

This must be done

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

Your reflections may indicate that an action is needed to make day-to-day practices responsible. Use the box to write down required actions. Enter one action at the time and click “add action”.

Helpful tips:

  • Every action will be added to a list. We will return to this list later.

Do you want to change your initial answers?

Day-to-day practice

We have ensured that… Yes Partly No Don't know
… ethics and sustainability are incorporated throughout the process
… the organisational management supports responsible tech development
… the tech development assumes stakeholder engagement
… knowledge gained during the process is utilised and the results are implemented

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

These are your initial answers regarding day-to-day practice. You now can change them as necessary.

Act

The third section ties everything together and gives practical support for continued work with the tech development

All your reflections and identified actions

Proceed as follows for this exercise:

To sum up the guided self-assessment, your reflections and the number of actions identified in each section are listed below. This page presents your earlier reflections.

You have reflected on whether your tech is based on a stable foundation, how stakeholders are impacted and day-to-day practices for responsible tech development. Read through your reflections and consider whether you want to go back and add something.

Your reflections in earlier steps in the guided self-assessment have shown:

Reflection on fundamentals:

Number of identified actions:

Reflections on stakeholder impact:

Number of identified actions:

Reflection on day-to-day practice:

Number of identified actions:

Do you want to add any additional reflection?

Overall assessment

On DATUM we completed a guided self-assessment of the tech development of
PROJEKT.

The self-assessment was carried out by the following person(-s):

Our overall assessment is that:

>

It is not possible to carry out the tech development responsibly. For this reason, we decide not to proceed and discontinue the work.

The tech development will be responsible if we carry out the actions we identified in the guided self- assessment.

The tech development is responsible. We will continue the work and activities that ensure responsibility, ethics and sustainability, but at this point there is no need for further action.

Proceed as follows:

You will now conduct a final, overall assessment to determine whether your tech development is responsible.

Tick the alternative that best matches your overall assessment.

Helpful tips:

  • Review the information presented on the previous page showing reflections and the number of identified actions.

The guided self-assessment is now complete

All answers and infographics are saved in a pdf-file.
Don´t forget to save it!

Sparar...

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Guided self-assessment tool

On DATUM we completed a guided self-assessment of the tech development of CATEGORY

The self-assessment was carried out by the following person(-s):


Our overall assessment is that:

✓