Tapping the Power of Web Portals for Improved Government Services to Constituents

Empowering People: e-citizen self-service solutions for governmentExecutive brief
Tapping the power of Web portals to
efficiently deliver improved government
services to constituents. Tapping the power of Web portals to efficiently deliver improved government services to constituents.Page 
Give people what they want-information and services, on demandContents Government agencies are constantly searching for ways to better serve the needs of citizens more effectively and responsively. Citizens and business users 2 Give people what they want- are now used to getting their information and completing transactions online. information and services, on They expect this level of service from government, and they want it on demand, demand 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Agencies feel the pressure to provide higher-2 Web portals-the new gateway quality services to more constituents through more effective implementations.to government services4 Creating a portal with IBM Government bodies face competing challenges to provide enhanced service software-quickly, simply and to constituents. Budget constraints mean fewer resources to upgrade gov-securely ernment services. Disparate IT infrastructures and siloed information hinder 7 The building blocks of your communication and interoperability among agencies. Large volumes of paper e-citizen portal information often go back decades and require cumbersome manual pro-12 Why is IBM the right choice to cessing. All sensitive information must be protected from internal and external help governments implement threats. And compliance issues dictate that agencies meet certain specifi-e-citizen portals? cations to protect data and manage it appropriately. How can government agencies address these challenges and still improve service and increase efficiency for citizens, businesses and their own employees?
Web portals-the new gateway to government servicesIn this environment of expanding expectations and shrinking funds, doing more with less takes innovative thinking. That's why many forward-looking agencies are finding ways to help constituents and employees help themselves. Tapping the power of Web portals to efficiently deliver improved government services to constituents.Page 
Self-service Web portals enable governments to help citizens obtain informa-tion, apply for services and complete transactions more quickly than ever before. These portals streamline formerly cumbersome tasks and make it easier to navigate and access large volumes of information. Imagine if in minutes-from their home, office or mobile computer-your constituents could:
. File tax returns.. Pay for parking permits.. Gain access to social services information and applications.. Search for information from various government agencies from one site.. Apply for passports, car registration, business licenses and other services using built-in electronic forms.
These are just a few examples of the power of e-citizen portals. Information becomes more accessible, and processes become more efficient for citizens, businesses and government employees.
The ingredients of a successful e-citizen Web portalWhat features of an e-citizen Web portal will truly make the lives of your gov-ernment agency's constituents and employees easier? An effective e-citizen self-service portal must help agencies to:
. Provide citizens and business constituents with browser-based, streamlined applications and search processes that enable them to more effectively and efficiently make decisions and complete transactions.. Enable fast access to a massive volume of information, often going back decades, and enable fast and useful answers to constituent questions.. Incorporate secure access to multiple back ends while maintaining a per-sonalized and user-friendly interface based on Web 2.0 technologies.. Deploy and maintain services that provide quick time to value and are easy to operate-across different IT systems and organizations within the government.. Facilitate interoperability with legacy systems to protect existing investments and ensure efficient data integration with existing systems.. Provide a secure, role-based framework that facilitates secure and private interactions with constituents and businesses. Tapping the power of Web portals to efficiently deliver improved government services to constituents.Page 
Creating a portal with IBM software-... [download for more]