3 BT'S
MILLENNIUM
CONTRIBUTION
3.1 BT's Millennium programme will be based on people's
desire that the Millennium Celebrations should lead to
real and lasting improvements in the quality of national life.
3.2 Better interpersonal communication is the key
enabling skill for a better life in the 21st Century (see Annex
4 for evidence). BT is best placed as the leading communications
company in the UK to help people improve their communication skills.
By communications we do not simply mean new technology, although
we are qualified as leaders in this field. We have developed a
significant understanding of how interpersonal communication skills
can be improved and intend to make this freely available to the
people of Britain.
3.3 In January 1995 BT established The BT Forum.
Its brief is to understand the human side of communication. The
need for research into the role of communication in our lives
was clear from evidence published by BT in 1995 of the high economic
and social costs of communication breakdown[10].
3.4 Over the three and a half years since its inception,
BT Forum has engaged in a wide variety of research activities;
consultations, workshops, and conferences. In addition, the BT
Forum team are constantly examining the role of communication
within education, the workplace and human relationships, with
a view to identifying and disseminating models of best practice
and practical material accessible by all.
3.5 The output of the BT Forum[11]
not only supports our analysis of the need for improved communications
and its potential for the Millennium legacy, but also provides
valuable material for education practitioners, opinion formers
and others.
3.6 When people stop communicating—whether
in personal relationships, in the workplace, or in international
relations—things go wrong. When people communicate well,
good things happen. Marriages in which the couples talk to each
other are much stronger and healthier than those in which the
talking has stopped. Workplaces where people communicate with
each other as a team are much stronger—and more fun—than
workplaces where people get stuck in their bunkers. In every aspect
of our lives this is true.
3.7 Through our Millennium programme across the UK,
BT will be supporting a whole range of activities and initiatives
that help people to develop better communication.
3.8 We have already begun. The 'Can Do' Project,
spearheaded by The Scarman Trust and supported by BT and others,
is a major investment in better communication. The aim of the
project is to help local communities help themselves. BT are pledged
to unleash the 'can do' spirit in our communities by helping people
to talk, listen and work together better than ever before. The
first of ten city-regional initiatives was launched in Birmingham
in April 1998. As part of our commitment, BT have provided a free
phone-line for people to call and get involved. The phone-line
enables people to say:
- what they think NEEDS TO BE DONE to improve their
communities
- what they think CAN BE DONE to solve local problems
- what they WILL DO to help change things1a[12]
3.9 We will be unveiling our detailed plans for the
BT Millennium Programme together with a substantial and meaningful
experience in the Dome in September. We are committed to ensuring
that this helps deliver a lasting legacy of better communication
skills, both technological and human, to the nation.
June 1998
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