How does digital government become better government?

Today’s citizens expect public services to be as personalized and responsive as the services they get from the private sector. Governments need to reimagine how digital can be used to enhance the citizen’s end-to-end experience of public services. This requires the adoption of a ‘citizen-first’ culture and mindset in designing policies and delivering services. The ultimate goal is to improve service quality, promote transparent and efficient interaction, enhance the level of public trust in government, and drive better citizen outcomes.

Social media and mobile platforms are replacing traditional channels as a means to interact with government, report concerns and provide feedback. Mobile services, such as apps and SMS, enable people to access the services they need in a more convenient and targeted way. These e-participation tools also encourage greater collaboration with citizens by involving them in decision making, policy setting, budget prioritization, problem solving and the co-design of services.

The use of advanced analytics allows governments to leverage data continually gathered from people and devices to improve service design and personalize delivery. For example, patients making online appointments with a health service provider could be guided to additional sources of help with their condition, such as a nearby support group or exercise class.

Already, artificial intelligence (AI) can help deliver services to citizens, using chatbots to complete transactions within government websites. It can help improve urban planning by optimizing routes for transport operators, reducing commuters’ journey times; provide educational support to students based on their individual learning needs; and enable online self-referral and screening, signposting citizens to social services based on their needs and eligibility.

In an environment of uncertain growth and rising demand, governments must find sustainable ways to finance public services and infrastructure. Digital technologies create opportunities to explore new models for providing services, improve management of resources through smarter spending, and link the money invested in programs and services to the outcomes they produce for citizens, boosting accountability and trust.

Blockchain technology can help track how money is spent through the system — for example, from finance ministry to spending department and then delivery agency. With better visibility of spending, governments can make better decisions about how to allocate public resources. 

Robotic process automation (RPA) offers increased speed and efficiency, the flexibility to cope with peaks in demand or backlogs, and the reduction of manually introduced errors. Some governments are already using a virtual workforce to automate routine business processes, relieving the burden of high-volume, repetitive tasks, and freeing up time and resources that can be focused on frontline services.

Predictive analytics and text mining can make an important contribution to the smart management of public resources by anticipating problems and enabling preventative action — for example, identifying taxpayers at risk of nonpayment.

3D printing has the potential to improve turnaround time and reduce construction costs for infrastructure and public transportation projects; establish more efficient and lower-cost supply chains for defense agencies; and facilitate job creation and economic transformation of remote locations through the introduction of new manufacturing capabilities.

As well as deploying these technologies to boost public value, governments must think differently about their role, becoming a platform for an ecosystem of partners including agencies, private businesses, not-for-profit organizations, social enterprises and citizens that together can develop innovative services and business models.

We live in uncertain times. The threats from unpredictable states, terrorist groups and other non-state actors are increasing and made more complex through digital technology. Today, conflicts are waged not only on the battlefield but on public transport, on social media and in cyberspace.

Governments have a responsibility to safeguard their citizens from a whole range of threats, enabling them to live and work without fear. Digitalization is both a hindrance and a help in this struggle.

On the one hand, as governments embrace digital technologies and become more interconnected with partner organizations and smart devices, new vulnerabilities arise that can be exploited by cyber attackers. Terrorists, fraudsters and hackers can jeopardize the delivery of essential public services and the smooth running of civil society, including the election process.

On the other hand, digital technologies and better data sharing provide a sophisticated means of combating threats. Defense organizations are investing in AI and machine learning; cyber weapons and threat detection programs; cybersecurity apparatus; robotics and digital tools to make them nimbler and more effective. Police forces are using mobile technologies to reduce incident response times, while data analytics is enabling predictive policing models and better threat analysis planning.

Citizens are becoming increasingly concerned about the way their data is being used. So governments are introducing information security management systems to safeguard the data they keep and increasingly rely on.

Governments must also exploit the power of cloud computing to increase their own computing capacity, support secure biometric identification programs and provide safe payment platforms for citizen transactions.

Economic growth, social cohesion and equality of opportunity rely on a country’s workforce being skilled and ready to embrace the needs of 21st-century employers.

Governments need to build the skills and capabilities of their own employees in order to drive greater efficiencies, elevate customer focus and strengthen diversity and inclusion. In a competitive labor market, the public sector has not always been an employer of choice for top talent. Governments need to do more to attract, retain and develop people with the required skills and capabilities. As they gradually build a more dynamic and responsive environment, governments will attract younger workers who are in search of purpose-led roles where they can make a difference to society.

Creating this culture partly relies on governments freeing up employees’ time to concentrate on more stimulating and value-adding tasks. This can be done by deploying intelligent automation tools to complement human workers. Reducing the amount of manual and repetitive work leads to higher levels of productivity and satisfaction, in turn helping to attract and retain high-quality candidates and improve citizens’ experience with government services.

Mobile technologies can help agencies empower their workforce to do their jobs more effectively. As a high proportion of public sector employees regularly work outside the office, they can be equipped with devices such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops to perform their duties wherever they’re located.

While governments prepare their own workforces for the digital age, technological changes such as automation and AI have far-reaching implications for the future of work, economies and society in general. Governments must adopt, update and strengthen policies to mitigate adverse social and economic consequences — such as the displacement of workers in some lower-skilled jobs, and widening social inequality.

Many of today’s most fundamental challenges — urbanization, globalization, pollution, water shortages and climate change — can be tackled with smart infrastructure developments such as connected cars, electric vehicles, smart power grids, energy-efficient buildings, Internet of Things (IoT) networks and open data portals.

Governments are facing strong pressure to build and upgrade infrastructure, particularly in urban centers where expanding populations are putting increasing pressure on aging facilities. Many emerging countries need new infrastructure to support their growing populations and increased economic activity, while mature markets must renew deteriorating or inefficient infrastructure. However, the years of underinvestment in infrastructure is now catching up with countries around the world. Estimates show that nearly US$100 trillion globally needs to be spent on infrastructure in the next 20 years.

Smart infrastructure offers a way to harness the latest technologies to obtain maximum value and efficiency and create resilience and sustainability. It applies digital technology – such as smart devices, sensors and software – to physical structures, from power plants to bridges. These intelligent devices enable more efficient and effective monitoring and control of energy and water systems, transportation networks, human services, and public safety operations – all core government functions.

Governments must also pursue policies to encourage a thriving digital economy. This involves working with private businesses to provide enhanced 4G and forthcoming 5G networks, and data centers; create high digital literacy among citizens; promote digital inclusion; and enable secure access to services, through digital identification systems.

The public sector cannot fund every infrastructure project itself; it must find innovative ways of working with other investors.