eGovernment: Using Web Technology for Cost Efficiency and Improved Service

eGovernment:

Government agencies today are under increasing pressure to manage themselves like private businesses. Just as private-sector shareholders expect a monetary return, public-sector stakeholders look for value-which is defined as improving service to citizens and the ability to serve the public more quickly and efficiently. But governmental agencies face even more stringent requirements than many corporations. Not only must these agencies improve efficiency, but it is critical that they ensure privacy and security.

In addition, they must address legislative policies and regulations and maintain a citizen-centric focus that builds and maintains trusted relationships with their constituencies. Beyond that, after a long legacy of operating as separate entities, federal agencies are now expected to collaborate and share information-but only with those who are authorized. Up to date information must be available to the right people at the right time-and in some cases the safety of citizens is dependent on this. In short, federal agencies must implement secure e-Government solutions to operate cost effectively and to achieve their mission of serving their constituency.

BroadVision's self-service suite can facilitate e-Government by enabling organizations to furnish constituents, partners, employees and suppliers with one-stop, personalized self-service access to information, transactions and business processes. This white paper considers the drivers behind the move to e-Government, the need for relationship management and the complexity of e-Government value chains. It also outlines a solution that government entities can deploy to address this top priority of information management and sharing.

e-Government Drivers

Key drivers discussed by market analyst INPUT in their IT Market Forecast for 2004-2009 include:

- eGovernement security and Homeland Security-driving separate agencies and organizations to share information effectively

- Upcoming federal worker retirements-and difficulty finding new workers with comparable skills, creating a need to capture information from existing workers and make it available to those who need it

- eGovernment Security goals to leverage information technology-focusing on improving service to constituents and automating internal processes

- Consolidation of redundant processes-including traditional back-office processes such as HR and financial systems which have been separate for each agency

Historically federal agencies' Information Systems have reflected the decentralized approach to egovernment management that has been their legacy. Each agency operated like a separate entity with its own silo of information distinct from other agencies. This has now changed dramatically as the need for collaboration among agencies becomes increasingly more important. For proof of this you need look no further than the Department of Homeland Security which by its very nature requires multi-agency cooperation and information sharing to achieve its mission.

The various agencies are responding with specific requirements to address the FEA mandate. For example, the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) has created the Net-Centric Enterprise Services (NCES) program to provide enterprise services in support of the Global Information Grid (GIG). The mission of NCES will be to provide the many Department of Defense (DoD) organizations with ubiquitous access to reliable, decision-quality information through a net-based services infrastructure and applications to bridge real-time and near-real-time communities of interest (COI).

eGovernment software - agencies also must address citizens' expectations. As citizens become accustomed to the improved business service in their encounters with the private sector resulting from use of the Internet, they are also demanding similarly efficient, timely and cost-effective services from government.