May 02 2008
Editorial - BSI standard for the web
The BSI has released a new specification that’s aimed at helping companies better manage their websites, but did anyone ask why they bothered, and what the hell do we need a standard for a website for anyway?
When I first heard about a BSI standard for websites my reaction was unprintable, what the web needs like a hole in the head is a BSI standard for web sites. I then read the list of the businesses who have worked with the BSI on the specification and I became even more apoplectic.
The snappily titled “Publicly Available Specification 124: Defining, implementing and managing website standards” standard - aka PAS 124 - supposedly “brings together the very latest thinking and sets out a framework for how companies can effectively apply standards to their websites”
Simon Lande, CEO of Magus, commented: “As the web continues to develop as a
critical business medium, so does the importance of maximising website effectiveness. But our experience shows that businesses are actually reducing the impact and value of their web presence, despite the millions invested each year, because they are not implementing website standards successfully.”
The specification is organised around what is described as “the three key processes of effective website management: defining, implementing and managing website standards.”
The specification then goes on to list the key business benefits for managing websites within the PAS 124 framework as:
- Brand protection – reinforcement of the brand online by ensuring consistency of brand presentation and messaging; protection of the brand and company reputation by ensuring a consistent, high quality user experience.
- Risk management – minimisation of online risk through compliance with legislative requirements; securing appropriate protection of intellectual property under a defined legal jurisdiction.
- Improved financial return – protection of investment in web-related projects by ensuring quality and performance is maintained; reduction of development and maintenance costs; provision of access to the widest possible market, by ensuring compliance with accessibility guidelines and compatibility with target user platforms; and optimisation for targeted customer acquisition due to the effective localisation of content.
- Improved workflow – reduction of time to market for web projects through streamlined development and maintenance processes; communication and enforcement of best practice across web teams and the organisation as a whole.
- Performance measurement – provision of objective targets against which performance can be tracked and measured.
Which is all very worthy, but I can hardly see the rest of the World beating a path to our door because all our websites now conform to “a standard.” This has to be the biggest waste of time I have seen in years. It’s called the World Wide Web, and it already has a body called the W3C http://www.w3.org/ that looks after standards, and if anyone has been “Raising the standard of websites worldwide” as the press release puts it, it’s them not the BSI.
So who developed this tosh? According to the release the specification was developed by “UK web compliance expert Magus, in collaboration with BSI British Standards. It was reviewed by a Steering Group of independent experts from across the industry and put out to public consultation. The Steering Group included experts from Shell, Unilever, the Institute of Directors, Interbrand, SDL, The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), and The Localization Industry Standards Association (LISA).”
The web is not about standards like this. 90% of the website innovations thought up over the last ten or so years would fail at the first hurdle, if they had to comply with something like this. Where are the sections that deal with innovation, and style, and fun, and thinking out of the box? Where are the sections that deal with web 2.0 and web 3.0? I’m surprised there isn’t a whole section devoted to PCI DSS. This really really really makes no sense at all..
If you must take a look at the standard you can find it here http://www.bsi-global.com/en/Shop/Publication-Detail/?pid=000000000030169993 and it’ll cost you £85. The W3C standards are available for free, I wonder what Tim Berners-Lee will make of this?
by Marcus Austin (Web Editor)
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Response to Editorial - BSI standard for the web
Regarding your editorial http://www.internetretailing.net/news/comment-bsi-standard-for-the-web I would like to clarify what appears to be a fundamental misunderstanding.
"What the hell do we need a standard for a website for anyway?" I agree with you - and that's exactly what PAS 124 is NOT.
There are many standards out there, covering brand, SEO, accessibility, legal, plus all the "code-level" standards produced by the W3C, to which you refer.
- Used properly they deliver many benefits of course; better user experience, improved operational management, high search ranking etc.
However, what anybody building a complex website will certainly agree with, is that organisations are confused by the mass of standards, and are struggling with how to use them to best effect.
So that's what PAS 124 addresses - put simply, it is about the processes for using these standards for maximum effectiveness.
- Which of these many standards does my organisation need ("Defining standards")
- How do I roll them out on my website(s) ("Implementing Standards")
- How do I manage them across a complex web presence on an ongoing basis, and ensure compliance ("Managing Standards")
- Plus the Annexe to the PAS includes a helpful listing of all the categories of website standards.
The public consultation covered a wide range of expertise; developers, users, specialists in SEO, legal & accessibility etc, about 50 organisations in all.
A lot of useful "unbiased" thinking has gone into the PAS, which will be helpful to the industry, and I think it is a shame to dismiss it as you have, for the wrong reasons (i.e. believing it to be a new standard).
And, yes, the W3C standards are available for free, but that's code-level information for developers. PAS 124 addresses completely different issues. If an organisation had to commission a consultancy to advise them on the best practice process for defining, implementing and managing website standards across a complex web presence, they would have to fork out a lot more than the £85 which BSI is charging!
Regarding PCI DSS - yes, you could do a whole section, or even a whole PAS on that, but security was out of scope.
- Where related standards exist they are referenced in the document (e.g. PAS 78 which is dedicated to accessibility.)
“What will Tim Berners-Lee make of this” He’s probably delighted that someone has taken the time and effort to help people get the most out of all the web standards (inc. W3c ones) that are out there.
Suggest your readers get the introduction (free!) to the PAS here and make their own minds up: http://www.magus.co.uk/pas124
Simon Lande
www.magus.co.uk
simon.lande@magus.co.uk
Are these operational, rather than customer-facing?
When I read this I assumed that the standards related to 'web operations' and managing the service? ie not the stuff the customer sees. If so then of course there's a benefit - to businesses of course.
Years ago I introduced ISO9001 to the BBC's online operations, very much to structure and manage a set of new skills and processes to that business. The IT folk have ITIL and BS15000 to guide the service the offer - yet in a modern, multichannel business there's no "quick start" for senior managers to get a grip on the efficiency, effectiveness and management of t'Web.
So, I can see the point, but I haven't as yet seen the PAS itself. If any more pecunious reader _has_ read these (or Magus would like to send a copy to the pauper's entrance at IR Towers??) then it'd be good to hear from them.
Still, the picture you've painted of a 1984-style, conformant web will stay with me for a good while :)
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Ian Jindal