The who, what, when, where and why of e-envoys

As the dust settles on Alex Allan's brief tenure as e-envoy, thoughts quickly turn to who can be found to replace him. And the list of potential candidates is not a long one.

Everyone agrees the post is a vital one. Nigel Hickson, head of the ecommerce group at the CBI, said: "It is vitally important the post is filled as quickly as possible. We need someone high profile who can be a missionary for UK IT."

Simon Moores, head of the Research Group and industry lobbyist, added: "We need someone who can talk on an even level with the likes of say Jack Straw, and Charles Clarke at the Home Office."

Someone of "serious CEO level", said Shankar Trivedi, Sun Microsystems UK MD.

The brief is a lengthy one. Not only does the candidate have responsibility for pushing through the government's objective of making the UK the number one place for ecommerce, he - or she - also has responsibility for cleaning up government procurement of IT.

Sorting out government IT means the candidate must have the respect of the civil service. This is where Allan excelled. Impeccable civil service credentials, as one time secretary to prime minister John Major and UK high commissioner to Australia, his voice was guaranteed to be heard within government.

Trivedi commented that this may preclude someone from industry filling the role. He said: "The difficulty that an industry player would have is a lack of knowledge of the workings of government. There's no point evangelising to industry without being able to move and shake within government."

However the worry is that an internal civil service appointment wouldn't have the business experience, and would smack of cronyism. Moores underlined the point. "It would be best to find someone outside the government. We need someone good with the media, good with TV - an evangelist able to set the pace of the digital agenda."

The problem is summed up by Jim Norton, head of ecommerce policy at the Institute of Directors (IoD), and potential e-envoy candidate.

He said: "This is a job that desperately needs doing, but there are several jobs there. There is a major internal job - that the government still underestimates - in getting government IT back on track. Equally there is an outward task facing industry trying to rebuild some trust that has been damaged by issues like RIP. There is also an international role in trying to create a global consensus on internet problems, such as security and tax."

Norton feels there is no way one person can do it all. "There are only so many hours in the day."

As Trivedi put it: "The appointment must be savvy with government, savvy with industry and savvy with technology."

Any two of these skills is not enough.

So who are the candidates able to bridge the gap between business, government and technology? Of the names being bandied around, the foremost is Jim Norton.

Norton has a government background but also has many years' experience working in the industry. As the author of current government policy on ecommerce, he is uniquely positioned to step into the role at short notice - he has respect from all sectors. And he has already declared an interest.

However, the fact is the government is unlikely to be able to stomach Norton's forthright views. Outspoken on issues such as RIP and IR35, he may not be happy to toe the party line. And, as he has already made clear, the brief would have to be much tighter - or the reward much greater - for him to consider the post in the first place.

As revealed exclusively on silicon.com today, rumours suggest other names are in the front running. Anne Steward is the Cabinet Office's director of e-government, having spent three years leading the government review of IT projects. Is it idle speculation to assume she would continue Allan's focus of reviewing government IT, rather than concentrating on making the UK "the best place for ecommerce"?

Another woman mentioned by those in the know - or those who think they know - is Margaret Smith, director of business technology and delivery at insurance group Legal and General. Little is known about her, except that she was making pronouncements about ecommerce in banking as far back as 1996. This could be the type of vision the UK needs.

As Rene Carayol, CEO of ebusiness consultancy Voodoo, makes clear, the post really needs someone high profile enough to publicly lead the fight. He said: "It's important to get someone who's had some experience, who's a pragmatist, slightly visionary, more charismatic, and who is actually going to make things happen."

And he's putting himself forward too.

Finding someone who has the respect of all parties in this arena will be hard. Finding someone with the media savvy to set the public agenda for the years to come will be even harder.

The one certainty is that time is pressing. Whoever gets the post will not have six months' grace to get going. The industry - the UK itself - needs someone who can pick up the ball immediately and then up the ante even further.

Because when it comes to being the best in the world for ecommerce, we still have some way to go.