eGovernment: Learning the Rules of Engagement

This is a presentation I gave at the 2013 eGovernment Global Exchange in Singapore on 17 June 2013 where I was a guest of the Singapore Ministry of Finance and the Infocomm Development Authority (the Singapore Government CIO office).

Image used under Creative Commons	This is a mob of kangaroos. Mob is generally not used pejoratively in Australia. We often speak of mobs of sheep, cattle or galahs. People talk about ‘my mob’ or ‘his mob’ without anyone taking offense. I mention this to demonstrate that there are differences between countries and places, sometimes quite significant differences. While the Australian Government experience may be of assistance, I don’t intend to suggest that it is an exemplar for all.
Photo by acidpix used under Creative Commons.	Why do we need to provide government services online? For a start, 50% of Australians use Facebook (statistics from @SMN_Australia). When added to the roughly 20% who are less than 15 and the 5% greater than 80, this means that the Australians on Facebook outnumber hose who are not by 2:1. We are a tech-savvy nation with a high proportion of online users.
	For further justification, this graph from the just released update to the Digital Economy Strategy demonstrates how fast the amount of digital downloads is growing.
	This slide from Minister Conroy’s speech shows how early our children are becoming internet users.
	The next three slides come from the AGIMO conducted 6th and last survey of eGovernment satisfaction among Australian citizens conducted in 2011 and released in 2012. It was the last survey in the series as the environment had changed so much that the questions being used had started to lack relevance. The full report can be found here: http://agimo.gov.au/2012/01/19/2011-australians-use-and-satisfaction-with-e-government-services/
	Australians are generally willing to use eGovernment services and this usage has stayed steady for some time.
	The information exchanged via eGovernment services indicates that individuals may be researching services on line and then doing the last part of the transaction in a more direct manner. This may indicate that we need to do more work to develop end to end eGovernment services.
	Following its response to the report of the Gov 2.0 taskforce in early 2010, Australian Government usage of social media channels has burgeoned. A full list if these can be found at the link shown in the slide.
	Consultation with stakeholders on line has increased as a consequence of the use of Gov 2.0 approaches. While this is easier in non-controversial ares, it remains a useful new channel and a source of new ideas and improvements.
	Engaging through social media means government officials need to go where the audience is, not hope that the audience will come to them. This might be on chat sites, Facebook pages or online news articles. This slide (thanks to Renai LeMay’s IT news site www.delimiter.com.au) shows how a useful discussion can be had and myths can be busted using social media approaches.
	eGovernment does not rely solely of websites and services. The Department of Immigration and Citizenship’s excellent YouTube channel (ImmiTV) demonstrates a multi-lingual approach to those interested in coming to Australia from overseas.
	Sites like ‘The Line‘ on Facebook show how an approach can be targeted for a particular user group, reflecting their interests and approaches. This increases the reach of government services, potentially reaching audiences that were previously hidden from view.
	eGovernment services are now being offered to citizens in Australia through the new MyGov account mechanism. Building on the 1.5 million linked accounts previously supported by Finance’s MyAccount service, the new offering is poised to provide an improved user experience and wider services to citizens.
	The updated Digital First approach will provide improved services to citizens and business. Utilising the National Broadband Network, agencies will offer a digital channel as the main form of interaction by 2020 with four of every five interactions being on line.
	In addition to better online services, Australian Government agencies are increasingly providing services via mobile application where this is appropriate.
Image is used under Creative Commons.	The KOALA acronym provides a useful summary of the lessons learnt about providing online services to and managing communications with technologically aware users. The importance of user experience is hard to over-empasise. Typically, a five second delay in getting the expected result will cause users to look elsewhere for services. Users also expect more than just the broadcast of messages. Interaction and responsive behaviour is required.
Image used under creative commons.	The new australia.gov.au site, recently relaunched on the Drupal open-source platform and soon to move to the public cloud, is a useful place to start looking for more information about Australia’s approach to eGovernment.