With people being more mobile, connected and reliant on technology than ever before, councils are expected to be more agile in the way they engage with communities.
While the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation in the private sector prevails, some local governments and councils have struggled to adopt these new technologies. The lack of adequately qualified resources coupled with a fear of change and the reality of budgetary constraints have slowed the digital transformation process in the public sector.
A recent study published by KPMG Australia reveals that only 3% of local governments consider themselves fully transformed to the digital age. A figure that highlights the difficulties faced by government agencies to successfully implement new technologies within their organisations.
We've sat down with the Ungerboeck's government specialist team and put together 4 strategic elements every local government should consider to efficiently transform:
Develop a clear and coherent strategy supported by a strong leadership
Digital transformation means more than just a revamped website and engaging, regular social media posts. It goes much deeper than this. The experience received by the customer needs to be pulled together through various integrations, providing back office staff with a simplistic approach of collecting all the users relevant information.
Efficiently managing booking enquiries for public facilities, for example, requires the use of an online booking system that can oversee bookings from start-to-end, all while collecting data that will be analysed to help better understand customer behaviour. The information received will then be used to improve the digital platform and enhance future experiences.
However, such a strategy can only be successfully implemented if it is supported by a strong leadership who have the confidence to drive change, listen to different models and empower people to actively take part in this journey.
Investing in talent who have the skills to understand and execute a digital strategy
Delivering a successful transformation program requires the bringing together of a range of unique skills set across different areas from project management, to customer experience, to ICT management, data migration and more. Unfortunately, this often presents challenges with many local government not having all these resources in-house. To rectify this shortfall, councils must be willing to upskill some of their existing resources but also involve external resources that would help fill in the gaps whenever and wherever required.
Put customers and users at the forefront of the transformation
Change can be a scary word for people. We like what we are used to and fear the unknown. It is important to keep your customers and users informed when developing your transformation strategy so that they are involved and included in the transformation process from the start. People want to know what to expect and what major changes mean for them.
Included benefits need to be clearly highlighted, such as the fact that automation improves the overall team performance and collaboration. It reduces the need to perform repetitive tasks, eliminates the margin for error and allows people to focus on what they do best. Digital technologies enable employees to work more efficiently and more effectively. It gives them the tools they need to better engage with customers and community who enjoy a quicker response rate and a more personalised experience.
The overall experience on both sides is significantly enhanced, resulting in a higher engagement from your employees and your community.
Short term investment for long-term savings
The use of technologies, cloud services and automation bring many benefits across government agencies including lower maintenance costs, improved productivity and reduced errors. Ungerboeck estimates that by automating processes with their events and venue management software, local governments can reduce costs by at least 30%. A figure that should be included in many digital government transformation business cases to help drive final decisions.
Want to learn more about the rise of digital services?
Download our eBook to learn why venues within the public section are fast-tracking technology adoption, the challenges that they are facing, the critical role of change management, and the importance of digitization of community services.