But there's no point sinking large amounts of public money into new systems that don't deliver a return on investment. Successful e-government should concentrate on the benefits that can be delivered to the public through the use of IT. The technology itself is of secondary importance.
But benefits to the public won't be achieved unless workers can use the installed technology effectively.
There's no escaping the fact that all employees within the public sector will have to embrace technology to deliver central government's target of having all services online by 2005.
Office and administration employees will already have had exposure to some IT, including Windows and email. But in the build-up to 2005 they will also have to use additional systems.
Departmental staff will have to get to grips with the council intranet and new bespoke IT applications that have been implemented to help deliver 'best value' services to the public.
Housing staff will have to use systems to input and process rents and repairs online, while finance employees will have to use revenues and benefits systems to process claims and monitor payments made online by the public.
However, administration workers aren't the only employees who will have to embrace new IT systems.
Fieldworkers, such as verification officers and social workers, will not only have to adapt to new systems, they'll also have to adopt alternative ways of working if the true benefits of IT are to be achieved.
Traditionally, fieldworkers have avoided the use of IT. Handwritten files from the field were passed to the back-office staff to be processed.
But with the development of technology for mobile working, they can now input information on the move using PDAs and laptops.
Meanwhile, at the tenant's premises, maintenance workers can process an initial assessment, order products and book a follow-up appointment. This can speed up the assessment and repair process.
Social care workers can also access and update case files on the move, delivering efficiency savings across the department.
For all of this to be achieved, local authorities need to make sure that the skills and training issues surrounding the use of technology are tackled upfront.
A clear strategy is needed with regard to what skills are required to operate a specific system. The training should focus on the benefits to the user in embracing this technology.
Depending on the technology, the choice of training provider will also have to be considered when planning a user-training schedule.
If the system is a bespoke application, then the software vendor should be charged with training the users because it will understand the full functionality of the system.
However, local authorities should review the training programme to ensure that it is relatively straightforward.
If the requirements are more generic, external trainers are likely to be the better option. Professional trainers should have effective presentation skills and also be able to overcome any cultural barriers.
Following the initial training, local authorities must monitor the take-up of the technology, and then tackle any problem areas as soon as possible.
Local authorities need to take into account the bigger picture when planning the introduction of an IT solution and address the skill requirements of potential users sooner rather than later.
A training strategy is required in 2003 if workers are to be e-equipped to deliver e-government by 2005.
Quelle: vnunet
