Portfolio Recommendation

An E-Portfolio Recommendation for the Royal Navy.

In order to successfully introduce an E-portfolio system to the Royal Navy it is necessary to understand three key points.  The infrastructure available to RN personnel, the target audience and its various needs,  and most importantly, the raison d’être of the eportfolio from the perspectives of those who should use it. 

The first consideration is one of infrastructure and the limited broadband access available to warships and personnel on operations across the globe.  The eportfolio of choice should be easy to operate, low bandwidth hungry and capable of being cached while still offering the necessary functionality.  

Secondly, the Royal Navy eportfolio requirement, while not yet set, is most likely to be institutionally focused, designed to deliver confidence to line managers and coordinators alike that the individual is capable and competent.  The training and learning planning function must be accessible by both the sailor and the line manager.  Here the line manager and the sailor are of comparable importance in considering the design emphasis of the chosen eportfolio.  The workplace for the sailor is an increasingly complex environment, where the understanding of the political environment is as relevant as the technical.  Sailors and their commanders often have to make complex decisions where the consequences can have significant impact on international affairs.  Therefore the Navy Management Board requires agile and flexible sailors capable of operating correctly in the harsh environment of the sea first time every time.  This requirement could be considered the Operational Requirement.  

The need to learn and reflect on ones performance is central to both the operational and the Long Life Learning agenda.  However careful consideration of how this is achieved will be critical to its enduring success in the L3 arena.  As the Navy continues to transition towards being a 'learning organisation' the ability of a sailor to electronically capture and record their competencies and see their training plan is essential.  That the eportfolio links to and compliments the Joint Personnel Administration system is considered an essential requirement.  This is seen as problematic as JPA is not Bologna Process complaint, which would enable the exchange of e-portfolio relevant data between systems.  The direct download of existing and recognized frameworks and competencies into the sailor’s eportfolio will deliver a critical weight of evidence which should convince them of its value.  Being able to see the output, rather than the eportfolio interface should win many a sceptic over to the value of the process.  That said, the existing naval culture sees sailors only thinking of their second career a year or two before their departure from the service.  This underlines the need for continued promotion of the Life Long Learning agenda within the Royal Navy, of which the eportfolio is tangible evidence.  Using the L3 justification for the eportfolio supplements the argument of the Operational but if it is to be credible, then the ownership and physical location of the eportfolio after a Sailors service is of critical importance.   The veteran sailor must have access to the eportfolio and should be supported in its use after active service. 

The last consideration is that of data security.  The loss or unauthorised access to any MoD data, regardless of security classification results in acute reputational issues for the department.  Any system used must be secure, yet accessible to users.  The use of a Secure Singular Sign In is considered essential.

At present there is no clear market leader in this area but as the Eportfolio will be required to link with the RN’s JPA system which is not Bologna Process compliant a bespoke or heavily modified E-portfolio system is considered necessary.