I almost never write speaking notes for my conference presentations but, whilst looking for something else, I came across some slides and the notes to accompany them.They’re from a conference in Japan that I attended a little over 10 years ago (no taxpayer money was spent on this trip). I’ve pasted the notes in exactly as they were laid out, and embedded the slide deck via SlideShare.net.Japan slides 16.10.2001http://static.slidesharecdn.com/swf/ssplayer2.swf?doc=japanslides-16-10-2001-111216071843-phpapp02&stripped_title=japan-slides-16102001&userName=alanm
View more presentations from Alan Mather.
View more presentations from Alan Mather.
E-Government
A UK Perspective
What have you done today to change dramatically the way your
government deals with its people?
government deals with its people?
Over the last 20 years, the single largest change you have
made was to computerise. But since then,
what has been achieved? During this time
we have seen corporations centralise and decentralise. We have seen boom and bust several times
over. We have seen new
technologies. We have seen fashions
come and go. We have seen the rise of
the PC, of the Internet and, especially here, the mobile phone.
made was to computerise. But since then,
what has been achieved? During this time
we have seen corporations centralise and decentralise. We have seen boom and bust several times
over. We have seen new
technologies. We have seen fashions
come and go. We have seen the rise of
the PC, of the Internet and, especially here, the mobile phone.
The one thing that has not changed is government.
The Internet is not going away. Those who do not capitalise on it, including
governments may well go away. Web sites
alone are not enough, nor are transactions.
governments may well go away. Web sites
alone are not enough, nor are transactions.
How will you capitalise on the Internet? What barriers do you anticipate? How will you overcome them?
The only agenda must be to transform the services offered to
our citizens. A new vision of Government
is called for.
our citizens. A new vision of Government
is called for.
Are you doing enough?
The
Importance of Vision
Importance of Vision
St. Paul’s Cathedral.
Designed by Christopher Wren, the vision that he had was for a landmark
to be seen from all over London – capped by a magnificent dome. During the years he spent designing and the
35 years it took to build, his vision never wavered. Your vision must hold true in just the same
way. Because it is hard to realise great
things, and there are many barriers to overcome.
Designed by Christopher Wren, the vision that he had was for a landmark
to be seen from all over London – capped by a magnificent dome. During the years he spent designing and the
35 years it took to build, his vision never wavered. Your vision must hold true in just the same
way. Because it is hard to realise great
things, and there are many barriers to overcome.
Conjured up in the aftermath of the Great Fire of London
more than 300 years ago St Paul’s is still unique. There
are many parallels with the building of St. Paul’s and today’s projects in
government.
more than 300 years ago St Paul’s is still unique. There
are many parallels with the building of St. Paul’s and today’s projects in
government.
- The
project sponsor had other ideas. The design was rejected by the King
several times. - Once
he had a final design, he knew that he did not yet fully understand how to build it – there were no other great domes in the UK and, although
he had toured France and Italy, he had not seen someone actually build
such a dome. - Money
was tight – new taxes were needed to pay for it - The
clergy (his customers) were not supporting him (they wanted something
smaller and much sooner)
Does this sound familiar? Projects in government are always
hard to realise – many stakeholders with different ideas, problems over funding
and issues with how you are going to make it happen.
hard to realise – many stakeholders with different ideas, problems over funding
and issues with how you are going to make it happen.
Then there was the project itself.
- As a
project manager and the architect, Christopher Wren was held directly
accountable for money spent, progress made, workers rights, accidents and
so on - Half
of his salary was to be deferred until completion (remember, no cathedral
had ever been finished in the lifetime of the architect) - He
tried to keep his final plan covered until the last minute so that it
would be a surprise for all of London.
No beta testing for Wren. - He
thought about problems ahead of time and tried to solve them, but still
had to react to difficult day to day circumstances – knocking down the
foundations of the old cathedral using gun powder, dealing with poor
quality stone, workers strikes at the quarry and so on.
Not much has changed – I can imagine that each of your
projects faces the modern equivalents.
Are you facing up to the barriers and knocking them down?
projects faces the modern equivalents.
Are you facing up to the barriers and knocking them down?
This is the challenge before us:
- To
create a vision of what Government could look like - Compelling
and far enough away to challenge us greatly - Deliver
benefits soon, without compromising the greater goals. - Map
out how we get there – the bridge to the vision
The UK e-Government Vision
100% online by 2005
Be citizen focused
Be Joined Up
Nearly two years ago Tony Blair, the UK PM, announced his
vision for e-government. Like all good
visions, it’s far enough away to give you time, it’s highly challenging, it’s
hard to think about what it might mean and initially, you have absolutely no
idea how to start. I think we can relate
this to Kennedy’s vision back in the 60s – put a man on the moon, by the end of
the decade, bring him back alive. For
the UK it means huge change, it means breaking down the walls between the
different departments, it means changing more than 400 years of history.
vision for e-government. Like all good
visions, it’s far enough away to give you time, it’s highly challenging, it’s
hard to think about what it might mean and initially, you have absolutely no
idea how to start. I think we can relate
this to Kennedy’s vision back in the 60s – put a man on the moon, by the end of
the decade, bring him back alive. For
the UK it means huge change, it means breaking down the walls between the
different departments, it means changing more than 400 years of history.
There is no-one to copy in realising this vision, no-one who
has already achieved it. We must solve
the big problems as they come and see what benefits can be realised.
has already achieved it. We must solve
the big problems as they come and see what benefits can be realised.
e-UK Today
To start with, we have reasonable use of the Internet in the
UK. Some 55% of the country access it
regularly; nearly all of our businesses have some presence on the
Internet. In Government terms, we have
made some progress and see, in some cases, up to 5% of people using Internet
services to, for instance, pay their tax or access local government services.
UK. Some 55% of the country access it
regularly; nearly all of our businesses have some presence on the
Internet. In Government terms, we have
made some progress and see, in some cases, up to 5% of people using Internet
services to, for instance, pay their tax or access local government services.
These graphs don’t tell the real story though. Perhaps 35% of the population in the UK have
no desire to use the Internet, they don’t know why they need to – because it
doesn’t offer them benefit.
no desire to use the Internet, they don’t know why they need to – because it
doesn’t offer them benefit.
In the UK, there are 5 billion transactions per year with
government. Only a few hundred thousand
of those are being carried out electronically.
Reaching the 35% that don’t use the Internet is a key goal that will
help us increase this count, because it’s likely that these are the people who
have the most need of a close, fast relationship with government.
government. Only a few hundred thousand
of those are being carried out electronically.
Reaching the 35% that don’t use the Internet is a key goal that will
help us increase this count, because it’s likely that these are the people who
have the most need of a close, fast relationship with government.
But before we can conduct billions of transactions via the
Internet, we have a difficult journey ahead of us.
Internet, we have a difficult journey ahead of us.
Stages of e-Government
There are four key stages that every country will go through
towards realising the vision. Moving between each stage brings a big
increase in risk, technology usage and also, new barriers to overcome. Now how big is your appetite for risk?
towards realising the vision. Moving between each stage brings a big
increase in risk, technology usage and also, new barriers to overcome. Now how big is your appetite for risk?
Most of us are somewhere between one and two now – we’ve all
put up web sites full of the information that we used to publish on paper – in
fact, very few of us have stopped publishing anything since the Internet came. The overwhelming majority of interactions are
via letter or telephone.
put up web sites full of the information that we used to publish on paper – in
fact, very few of us have stopped publishing anything since the Internet came. The overwhelming majority of interactions are
via letter or telephone.
Some of us are already doing electronic transactions. Tax forms, driving licenses, and so on. The second stage. Limited one way
transacting.
transacting.
Few have moved as far as real two way interaction – a world
where you can conduct an entire relationship online. This is more than amazon.com – you can buy
some music tracks or books online and use them without ever touching what you
have bought.
where you can conduct an entire relationship online. This is more than amazon.com – you can buy
some music tracks or books online and use them without ever touching what you
have bought.
But by far the majority of transactions result in something
being delivered through the post. The
interesting thing is that government can probably get here faster than
corporations because we exchange mostly information with our population – vast
quantities of it. It’s really a lot of numbers and letters.
being delivered through the post. The
interesting thing is that government can probably get here faster than
corporations because we exchange mostly information with our population – vast
quantities of it. It’s really a lot of numbers and letters.
So, for example, a birth certificate need not be
physical. If you could look it up
wherever you were and prove that you were the person listed, why would you need
a copy? If the tax people check with
your employer, your bank and your broker how much you had made – why would you
need to be involved?
physical. If you could look it up
wherever you were and prove that you were the person listed, why would you need
a copy? If the tax people check with
your employer, your bank and your broker how much you had made – why would you
need to be involved?
Finally, at the limit of what we can see is
transformation. I think only a few
companies are here- dell, maybe, who – thanks to the dynamism and thinking of
their ceo – are at the forefront of business in the Internet world. In the world of government this would be
represented by simple rules, benefits in the hands of the people that need
them, lower taxation, better investment in public services and so on.
transformation. I think only a few
companies are here- dell, maybe, who – thanks to the dynamism and thinking of
their ceo – are at the forefront of business in the Internet world. In the world of government this would be
represented by simple rules, benefits in the hands of the people that need
them, lower taxation, better investment in public services and so on.
The hardest part of this last stage, especially for
Government, is how to get people to stop thinking about how it is (after all,
it’s probably been that way for decades), but how it could be.
Government, is how to get people to stop thinking about how it is (after all,
it’s probably been that way for decades), but how it could be.
And let’s be honest here. None of us know how this will turn
out; our customers don’t know what it will look like either. This piece of the vision will only become
clear as we overcome the barriers and move between the stages.
out; our customers don’t know what it will look like either. This piece of the vision will only become
clear as we overcome the barriers and move between the stages.
Barriers To Realising The Vision
|
• Technical – Authentication – Scale – Accessibility – Robustness – Security |
• Business – Track – Inertia – Privacy – Cost – Take-up |
On the left of the screen should be the easy ones to
solve. We have had PCs now for 20 years;
mainframes for longer. We should be able
to deal with scale, accessibility, robust service delivery and security. Unfortunately we are not there yet. There is much work to be done in all of these
areas before we can rely on the technology we have to be there when it’s needed
and be usable by anyone, protect itself from intrusion and deal with the
massive volumes of information that it will need to.
solve. We have had PCs now for 20 years;
mainframes for longer. We should be able
to deal with scale, accessibility, robust service delivery and security. Unfortunately we are not there yet. There is much work to be done in all of these
areas before we can rely on the technology we have to be there when it’s needed
and be usable by anyone, protect itself from intrusion and deal with the
massive volumes of information that it will need to.
The biggest barrier here is actually authentication – proving
that the person interacting with you is who they say they are. Digital certificates, smart cards, single
identification numbers and so on are all part of this debate. In the offline world, you are often asked for
a secret word, perhaps your mother’s maiden name – but that is far from strong
enough to work in the world of the Internet.
that the person interacting with you is who they say they are. Digital certificates, smart cards, single
identification numbers and so on are all part of this debate. In the offline world, you are often asked for
a secret word, perhaps your mother’s maiden name – but that is far from strong
enough to work in the world of the Internet.
If we are to succeed though, we need to break down the
barriers on the right. We must overcome
government’s history of poor delivery, improve the speed of delivery by
overcoming the inertia that prevents change, resolve privacy issues that often
prevent data being exchanged, do all this without increasing the cost of
running our countries. And finally, to
make it all worthwhile, everyone has to actually use the services that we
offer. Few countries have made dramatic
breakthroughs here – percentages of use are often less than 10%, even in the
most advanced countries. More people
bank online and shop online than use government services online.
barriers on the right. We must overcome
government’s history of poor delivery, improve the speed of delivery by
overcoming the inertia that prevents change, resolve privacy issues that often
prevent data being exchanged, do all this without increasing the cost of
running our countries. And finally, to
make it all worthwhile, everyone has to actually use the services that we
offer. Few countries have made dramatic
breakthroughs here – percentages of use are often less than 10%, even in the
most advanced countries. More people
bank online and shop online than use government services online.
Wrapped up in all of this is the battle for great
talent. How do you find the people that
will do this for you, how do you attract them to government and how do you keep
them there. Personally, there is nowhere
else I would rather be. Every challenge
is bigger here. Success redefines how a
nation is governed. What greater reward
can there be than that.
talent. How do you find the people that
will do this for you, how do you attract them to government and how do you keep
them there. Personally, there is nowhere
else I would rather be. Every challenge
is bigger here. Success redefines how a
nation is governed. What greater reward
can there be than that.
Overcoming
(some of)
The Barriers
The early steps that you must take are:
- Appoint
a champion. This must be someone
reporting at the very top, surrounded by a team of capable people. In the UK, our e-envoy reports directly
to the Prime Minister. Your
champion must have ownership, either directly or through dual key, all of
the funding that relates to internet projects. If not, projects will be duplicated
throughout government, you will all attempt to break through all of the
barriers – yet you will do it in different ways, at high cost, and two or
three years from now you will be unable to bring it all back together. - Preventing
duplication can be eased by defining some simple standards. In the UK, early on our technology
strategy team defined some standards called e-GIF – these standards
explain how government transactions will be made available. - Next
up is picking your partners. Much
of what we are trying to do is new, few partners have done this before and
even fewer with great success. They
will learn with you, so you must feel comfortable with them. It cannot be a purely contractual relationship
because these partners are going to shape how your people deal with you in
the future. - Then,
with your partners, you can build a plan.
The first few months can be detailed, later on will be less clear –
but you need to be sure that everything you are doing lines up with the
vision. I’ll talk about two of the
key components of our plan next.
UK online
This is the UKonline web site. UKonline is more than just a web site though,
it’s our campaign to get the whole of the UK using the Internet. Here though we have tried to present a simple
environment that allows the user to search across government for specific items
that they want – but we have also linked some important things together, as
Life Episodes – for instance, Having a baby provides content from a variety of
sources so that all aspects of such a major event can be researched and
understood.
it’s our campaign to get the whole of the UK using the Internet. Here though we have tried to present a simple
environment that allows the user to search across government for specific items
that they want – but we have also linked some important things together, as
Life Episodes – for instance, Having a baby provides content from a variety of
sources so that all aspects of such a major event can be researched and
understood.
Government Gateway
The gateway is the “intelligent router” of government. It handles the authentication task – when
someone sends an item (such as a tax form) to government or requests something
(like a tax statement), it is the gateway that decides if the person is
eligible to do that. The Gateway, built
on Microsoft products, such as Biztalk, takes in XML defined by the e-GIF
standard that I talked about earlier. It translates the XML and sends it to the
right department, providing a receipt to the person who sent it.
someone sends an item (such as a tax form) to government or requests something
(like a tax statement), it is the gateway that decides if the person is
eligible to do that. The Gateway, built
on Microsoft products, such as Biztalk, takes in XML defined by the e-GIF
standard that I talked about earlier. It translates the XML and sends it to the
right department, providing a receipt to the person who sent it.
E-Government in Action
Putting both of the previous slides in context, here is the
whole picture. This also shows the major
developments that we plan to make:
whole picture. This also shows the major
developments that we plan to make:
- We
will aggregate more and more government content into a single environment
so that we can manage it and index it better. We can then personalise the view of
government that anyone looking at the site has – for instance, if a 16
year old boy visits he may be wondering about what he should do next at
school, thinking about getting a job, perhaps he is wondering about
travelling around the world and so on.
With a little data about the person, we can present a huge range of
content to them along with the transactions that go with that. So we are moving away from life episodes
to “life styles” – not thinking about what we think someone will want to
do at a certain point in their life, but letting who they are and what
they are thinking about drive the content we show them. - One
Size Never Fits All. One size fits
one. Only one. So you have to personalise the experience completely to
really make a difference. - We
will also partner with commercial companies, letting them use our content
too so that they can wrap additional services around it, adding further value. For instance, a bank may wrap a suite of
financial services around a tax transaction offering ways to reduce the
tax bill. - All
of the transactions that we offer will route through the Government
Gateway. Let me give a few examples.
Right now, we are doing single transactions to single
departments. So, a small business
using their accountancy software can send in their end of year payroll
data direct to government and get a receipt on delivery. Many packages already support this
facility. Or a small trader can
send in their quarterly VAT return, using a government web site or that
from a 3rd party. - Where
the real value comes, is when we join up services; something you cannot do
with paper transactions. So, if you
wanted to know how much your pension would be when you retire, coupled
with how much your private pension would give you, then someone, say the
prudential, could offer that service, tapping into their own databases as
well as those of the inland revenue and the DSS to get the right data. Or if you were just coming back to the
country from a spell abroad, then the transaction is “please update
records to show that I am back” – tax, local doctor, electoral roll etc.
Government is complicated.
Our job is to hide the complexity of government.
Our job is to hide the complexity of government.
The Take-up Curve
All of these clever ideas must be set in the context of how
government interacts with its citizens.
In truth, government is only an occasional partner of any one person –
but to really add value and to realise the transformation that we want, we will
have to move up this curve. This will
entail changes to how things work. For
instance, if we knew enough about someone, could we actually prompt transactions
rather than wait for them to arrive? For
government to transform, the interactions must occur where the people are –
where they are doing their banking online, buying books, using an internet café
and so on.
government interacts with its citizens.
In truth, government is only an occasional partner of any one person –
but to really add value and to realise the transformation that we want, we will
have to move up this curve. This will
entail changes to how things work. For
instance, if we knew enough about someone, could we actually prompt transactions
rather than wait for them to arrive? For
government to transform, the interactions must occur where the people are –
where they are doing their banking online, buying books, using an internet café
and so on.
UK Delivery Timetable
Over the next 4 years, there is a lot of work to do. We will re-work each of our main pieces of technology
to improve the citizens experience. At
the same time, we will break down more of the barriers, increasing the number
of people who can access our services.
We will bring in new functions such as voting. Gradually, we will move through the remaining
stages I talked about earlier and transform Government.
to improve the citizens experience. At
the same time, we will break down more of the barriers, increasing the number
of people who can access our services.
We will bring in new functions such as voting. Gradually, we will move through the remaining
stages I talked about earlier and transform Government.
UK future challenges
• Bring fragmented government together
• Drive real change within government
• Strengthen commercial partnerships
• Broadband roll-out nationwide
• One billion pounds committed
So the
challenges that we face over the next four years as we realize our vision are
around the problems of breaking down the silos of government departments so
that we can drive real change and make a difference. We will strengthen our existing commercial
partnerships and add further.
The single
biggest challenge remaining and one that I know you are dealing with here in
Japan is the roll-out across the nation of a broadband network. For a long time now there has been a debate
over broadband – why is there not more demand, why is no-one creating content
for it. This will be solved by creating
the network. We expect this to be a
significant enabler for driving change in government – enabling fast exchange
of data between us and citizens.
biggest challenge remaining and one that I know you are dealing with here in
Japan is the roll-out across the nation of a broadband network. For a long time now there has been a debate
over broadband – why is there not more demand, why is no-one creating content
for it. This will be solved by creating
the network. We expect this to be a
significant enabler for driving change in government – enabling fast exchange
of data between us and citizens.
Lessons
• True partnerships (suppliers and
customers)
• Wide experience for project boards
• Fast delivery needs fast decisions
• Start practicing now for hi-scale
usage
• Expect failure – manage your
portfolio
– Ready. Aim. Miss. Reload.
True Partnerships –Put a team of the best and brightest on
the project and make sure that the team had a clear requirement. Include people on the team from the various
departments acting as early adopters and from suppliers and customers. Then set them loose to deliver. No more can
the business lob a set of requirements over a wall to the IT department and
wait for the explosion. Everyone works
together in a true team to address issues, confront problems and ensure
successful delivery.
the project and make sure that the team had a clear requirement. Include people on the team from the various
departments acting as early adopters and from suppliers and customers. Then set them loose to deliver. No more can
the business lob a set of requirements over a wall to the IT department and
wait for the explosion. Everyone works
together in a true team to address issues, confront problems and ensure
successful delivery.
For instance, The Government Gateway, was built to aggressive
timescales – in this case to meet the end of year filing deadlines. You and your partners need to work closer
together than ever before; there needs to be mutual trust. The strength of your
partner and the way you work with them is directly proportional to probability
of success.
timescales – in this case to meet the end of year filing deadlines. You and your partners need to work closer
together than ever before; there needs to be mutual trust. The strength of your
partner and the way you work with them is directly proportional to probability
of success.
Project boards – draw on a variety of personalities to
oversee your projects, from within and without the company. Put your suppliers
on the project board so that they can be held accountable. Open your books to them and share
experiences. Meet regularly and show
them (and I mean show – with live demos) what you have done; get feedback and
act on it.
oversee your projects, from within and without the company. Put your suppliers
on the project board so that they can be held accountable. Open your books to them and share
experiences. Meet regularly and show
them (and I mean show – with live demos) what you have done; get feedback and
act on it.
Decisions – when you first join government in England,
you’re issued with a new watch – it only has 4 times on it; and I don’t mean 3,
6, 9, 12 o’clock, I mean spring, summer, autumn and winter. In government
Feasibility studies for instance were often to be completed by the autumn,
project teams would be up to speed by the spring. The process has changed now; decisions are taken
based on information available; reviewed on a conference call, as often as
every day at critical stages; and the decision is changed if it is not working.
you’re issued with a new watch – it only has 4 times on it; and I don’t mean 3,
6, 9, 12 o’clock, I mean spring, summer, autumn and winter. In government
Feasibility studies for instance were often to be completed by the autumn,
project teams would be up to speed by the spring. The process has changed now; decisions are taken
based on information available; reviewed on a conference call, as often as
every day at critical stages; and the decision is changed if it is not working.
High scale usage means, in the case of the UK, 5 billion
transactions per year. That’s 400 per
second, every second of the day, week, month and year. That will mark a big change in how your
technology works.
transactions per year. That’s 400 per
second, every second of the day, week, month and year. That will mark a big change in how your
technology works.
Then get used to getting it wrong. Because you will. You will need to manage a portfolio of
projects, nuture them, grow them, but when they go wrong, kill them off quickly
projects, nuture them, grow them, but when they go wrong, kill them off quickly
I’ll close today by asking you the same question I asked at
the beginning:
the beginning:
What have you done today to change dramatically the way your
government deals with its people?
government deals with its people?
