Ten years ago, commerce was seen as a model for government. In 1993, President Clinton said that the American people are the Federal Government's customers, and Federal departments and agencies should handle requests for information in a customer-friendly way. But now, many people feel that this is not the whole story. Colm Butler, Principal Officer of the Information Society Policy Unit in the Republic of Ireland, says that the emphasis on the citizen as a customer has focused on the rights of individuals, but ignored their responsibilities; and government is less about delivering business services than about improving the quality of life. Government clearly is more than just a distribution channel for social services. If that’s the case, does it mean that it needs special information technology systems to help it to deliver? How different is, or should be, government IT?



The area of government IT that is most obvious to ordinary people is the provision of information and service delivery.

The Internet has revolutionized the way in which governments worldwide communicate what they are doing, or what they want to do. It gives citizens a real, practical ability to know what is going on, and it has the potential – not yet used – of tailoring content to individual needs.

The communication can be two-way. President Clinton – who at election time might have described US citizens as shareholders rather than customers - famously published his e-mail address. At a more detailed policy level, the Internet could enable people to provide input to government decisions as they are being formed: in the US, members of the public can already find, review, and submit comments on various proposed Federal regulations – whether it is introduction of an electronic passport, a new consumer safety standard or the latest hazardous waste program authorization. More and more local authorities and different agencies are starting to use the Internet as well and publicize their plans, solicit input, and provide access to downloadable forms.

Increasingly, this translates also to providing interactive services. Today, many citizens are only a few clicks of a mouse away from renewing their driver’s license and vehicle registration, or filing a tax return.

This area of Government IT is similar in many ways to the IT supporting commercial operations. From computerizing records and making them searchable, to enabling email communication, and interactive services, IT has a key part to play, making both types of organizations more efficient, and enabling them to serve their customers better and faster. The IT requirements are directly comparable, and similar IT systems and web service architectures can be used. Government may have some additional requirements, such as for verifiability and transparency – particularly if electronic voting is brought into play.

-1-

1  2  3  

   Next Page

Explore Our Topics

  • EDITOR'S BRIEFING

ebizQ editorial highlights and updates, compiled by Site Editor Anne Stuart

  • BPM: Big for 2012: BPM is a top priority for companies everywhere this year, according to TechTarget's global survey. Anne Stuart reports.
  • Cloud coverage: Cloud computing offers significant benefits--and challenges--for BPM. Crystal Bedell explains in ebizQ's latest BPM Quarterly e-zine.
  • Simple advantage: When properly integrated, complex event processing can provide plenty of business value. For more, see this feature by SearchSOA Editor in Chief Jack Vaughan.
  • ebizQ editorial: Browse our collection of independent editorial content, including articles, tips, Q & As, podcasts, guest columns, book excerpts and more.
  • Virtual Conferences
  • Webinars
  • Roundtables

BPM in Action

March 10, 2011

The sixth annual BPM in Action 2011 Virtual Conference will explore cutting-edge market developments in BPM and describe how to leverage them for improved business operation and performance. More

View All Virtual Conferences

Best Practices in Moving Processes to the Clouds

Date:Apr 07, 2010
Time:13:00 PM ET- (17:00 GMT)

REGISTER TODAY!

How Can the Cloud Fit Into Your Applications Strategy?

Date:Apr 07, 2010
Time:12:00 PM ET- (16:00 GMT)

REGISTER TODAY!
View All Roundtables
  • Research Library
  • Podcasts
  • News

Joe McKendrick: Part II of II: Designing Evolve-ability into SOA and IT Systems

In part two of Joe McKendrick's recent podcast with Miko Matsumura, chief strategist for Software AG, they talk about how SOA and IT systems need to change and grow and adapt with the organization around it.

Listen Now

Phil Wainewright: Helping Brands Engage with Social Media

Phil Wainewright interviews David Vap, VP of products at RightNow Technologies, and finds out how sharing best practices can help businesses understand how best to engage with online communities.

Listen Now

Peter Schooff: Making Every IT Dollar Result in a Desired Business Outcome: Scott Hebner of IBM Rati

Scott Hebner, Vice President of Marketing and Strategy for IBM Rational, discusses a topic on the top of every company's mind today: getting the most from IT investments.

Listen Now

Jessica Ann Mola: Where Will BI Fit In? Lyndsay Wise Explains

In BI, this tough economy and the increasing role of Web 2.0 and MDM are certainly topics on people's minds today. WiseAnalytics' Lyndsay Wise addresses each of them in this informative podcast.

Listen Now

Dennis Byron: Talking with...Deepak Singh of BPM Provider Adeptia

Deepak Singh, President and CTO of Adeptia, joins ebizQ's Dennis Byron in a podcast that gets its hand around the trend of industry-specific BPM.

Listen Now
More Podcasts
  • Most Popular
  • Quick Guide
  • Most Discussed

Quick Guide: What is BPM?

Learn More

Quick Guide: What is Event Processing?

Smart event processing can help your company run smarter and faster. This comprehensive guide helps you research the basics of complex event processing (CEP) and learn how to get started on the right foot with your CEP project using EDA, RFID, SOA, SCADA and other relevant technologies. Learn More

Quick Guide: What is Enterprise 2.0?

A lot of people are talking about Enterprise 2.0 as being the business application of Web 2.0 technology. However, there's still some debate on exactly what this technology entails, how it applies to today's business models, and which components bring true value. Some use the term Enterprise 2.0 exclusively to describe the use of social networking technologies in the enterprise, while others use it to describe a web economy platform, or the technological framework behind such a platform. Still others say that Enterprise 2.0 is all of these things. Learn More


E-Zine: BPM Quarterly

This new publication from our sister site SearchSOA.com explores workflow, business activity monitoring (BAM) and complex event processing (CEP) issues.

Featured Bloggers

Scott Cleveland's Latest Blog Posts:

Read Scott Cleveland's Blog
Peter Schooff's Latest Blog Posts:

Read Peter Schooff's Blog
Michael Poulin's Latest Blog Posts:

Read Michael Poulin's Blog
Tim Huenemann 's Latest Blog Posts:

Read Tim Huenemann 's Blog
Adrian Grigoriu's Latest Blog Posts:

Read Adrian Grigoriu's Blog
Steven Minsky's Latest Blog Posts:

Read Steven Minsky's Blog
Andre Yee's Latest Blog Posts:

Read Andre Yee's Blog

View All ebizQ Bloggers