Local Government Online

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GOVIS 05
Local Government Online A New Era of Service
Delivery
Jim Higgins Chief Executive Officer Local
Government Online Limited
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eGovernment a thought!

• Are we done?
• We all know what eGovernment is
• We know what we have to do
• Most of us are already doing a lot of it and have
  plans for the rest
• Is eGovernment moving behind the baseboard?

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Setting the Scene
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From an IT Perspective
Local Government is different From Central
Government
While at the same time Having a number of
similarities!
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Similarities

• Public good aspect
• Citizens are our end users
• Elected Representatives can jerk you around
• Its all about Government

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Differences

• All Councils do the same things
• Basic set of administrative software applications
• GIS, Engineering, etc.
• Councils are closer to their public
• High level of cooperation and exchange of
  information
• Business arms (CCOs)

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eLocal Government

• Similarities of operation allow a unified
  approach to eLocal Government
• Wide range of outward-facing systems
• Councils have multiple system interfaces
• Consulting interfaces have high importance

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Local Government OnLine Ltd

• Limited Liability Company
• Formed in 1997
• Initial Shareholders Algim/Solgm
• Expanding Shareholding to LGNZ and Civic
  Assurance
• Enabler
• Operational similarities

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Local Government OnLine Ltd

• Drivers/Services
• Web Template
• Web Portal
• List Serves
• News/information distribution
• Best practice resource library
• Consolidating cooperation between Councils

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Local Government OnLine

• 2004 moves towards eGovernment and business
  transformation
• ASP-based support systems
• Online forms
• Transaction gateways
• Centralised systems
• Recruitment
• Tendering

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The Business Transformation Process in Local
Government
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Transforming the Model
From this.
To this.
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Barriers

• Not invented here
• Lack of bandwidth
• Political understanding
• Technology penetration
• Economically viable payments system

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Local Government business transformation will

• allow citizens to initiate, process and conclude
  transactions with councils
• allow transactions to be conducted any time, any
  day at times which suit the customer as opposed
  to the Council
• allow transactions to be conducted from anywhere
  which suits the business or personal environment
  of the customer

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Caveat!!!

• If you transform your business and put the onus
  to drive your business processes back on your
  customers you will need to design those processes
  to be
• Self explanatory and..
• Foolproof
• Remembermost of your customers wont be power
  users of your systems!

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Solving the Customers Problem

• Everyone goes to a Web site with a problem
• Do you understand how your customers see their
  problems
• Do they understand how your Web site will solve
  their problem
• How will you ensure that your Web site will be
  responsive to your customersneeds

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The Customer Needs

• To know how to start the solution process
• To understand what the solution process is and
  what its timeframes are so that
• They know if it has run off the rails
• They can find out where that has happened and
• They can initiate a restart of the process or
  call for help

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Some Caveats

• Security
• When you move to an e-environment, everything
  changes
• Its like leaving the back door unlocked
• Do you have regular penetration checks
• How do you authenticate your visitors
• Your security should match the value of the
  information

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Some Caveats

• The Net is Transforming the way we communicate
• Expectations Change in the e-Environment
• Posted Mail 8 to 10 days acceptable
• eMail 8 to 10 minutes is the expectation!
• Can you match those expectations?
• Do your staff have time to e-chat?
• Have you thought about recorded conversations?

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The Customer Also Needs

• to be comfortable that they know where they are
  in the process
• and that they can get back logically if they make
  an error
• To be able to see the whole picture

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Will they use it?

• The Field of Dreams approach
• If you build it they will come!!!
• Auckland City Parking Fines
• IRD payments 12 uptake
• Dont relate stats on PC ownership to uptake of
  e-Services
• 80/20 rule
• 80 of your transactions likely to be by PC owners

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Assisting the Transformation

• Local Government Online promoting ASP
  applications
• Recruitment
• Tendering
• Health and Safety
• Emergency Management
• Transaction gateways
• Online Forms
• Enterprise Management

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Recruitment

• About to release a new recruitment service for
  Local Government
• Partnering with StaffCV
• Talent Pool approach rather than jobs board

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Tendering

• LGTenders launched Nov 2004
• Sophisticated system
• Covers all areas of tendering
• Electronic tender box, document fees etc.
• 10 Councils now in operation
• 20 lined up for conversion

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Health and Safety

• Partnering with INTAZ
• Promoting Health and Safety event management
  software
• Software to audit the Health and Safety processes

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Emergency Management

• Business partnership to develop an Emergency
  Management Benchmark
• Tailored for Local Government by LG emergency
  managers
• Currently piloted by two councils
• Now available for general implementation

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Transaction Gateway

• Business partnership with software developer
• Sophisticated functionality
• High level of security
• System implemented in two councils

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Online Forms

• Initial dozen forms
• Covers a wide range of common council forms
• Back end management functionality
• Further forms planned

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The Old Model Closed Systems
Councils developed bespoke systems or hosted
packages internally
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The New Model Open ASP Systems
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eTransition

• Technological revolution
• Demands changed thinking
• Demands customer-oriented approaches
• Demands rejection of old service models
• Requires Councils to hide themselves
• Promises huge benefits

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New Zealand Local Government OnLine Ltd www.localg
ovt.co.nz