Nowadays digital disruption is everywhere. No industry will be able to avoid digital disruption in the next 20 years. ‘If’ should not be the questions, but ‘when’. Therefore, it’s crucial that businesses, regardless they are SMEs or enterprises, need to start their digital transformation. Actually, they should have started yesterday. A lot of businesses in the private sector are dealing with digital issues, but they are struggling to continuously adjust to the fast going technology changes. How about the public sector? How does digital disruption emerge in a government? After all, government is not immune to the impacts of this upcoming industrial revolution.
The failed implementation of enterprise resources in many governments is a classic example of expectations falling short due to a failure to change processes. When it comes to IT projects alone, governments’ reputations are unsavoury. Digital disruption needs much more than just IT and it’s more than just providing online services. The impact of the digital era is already noticeable and will eventually re-define the operational model of governments. This will change the relationship with citizens, internal procedures and cost structures. More important, it needs a drastic turn in legislative processes.
Build a digital capability architecture
The described variables all play an important role. In current state they predict a very long way to go for most governments. Especially when they are not able to accelerate their pace. Governments somehow have all one determining factor; they continue operating slow and in an old fashion way. Furthermore, they all seem to have a conservative approach to disrupting changes. This makes it impossible to achieve digital transformation or disruption of any kind. Governments need a clear digital strategy combined with an innovative culture and visionary leadership to drive the transformation and deal with the consequences.
What does digital transformation actually mean? Well, therefore I would like to quote from an article I recently read:
“Digital transformation means gradual transition to an underlying business model that exploits ubiquitous web-based infrastructure to enable commonly shared capabilities. This definition would surprise most within government. When the business model of government is progressively based on shared capabilities, enabled by utility technology and web-based infrastructure, we can expect radical disruption of the market, opening up opportunities for innovation and investment by citizens, public, private, and third sectors alike – unleashing unprecedented innovation, efficiency, and savings.”
So, in short, it’s about a step by step change into a business model that endorses a platform to enable common capabilities. In my opinion there’s more to it. For example, it requires building a culture that embraces change and it needs a facilitating role that stimulates co-creation. The government as a platform is the ultimate technology disruption within any public sector. But that should not only be about providing online services. Thinking forward about adapting or creating laws that intercept the challenge of the new world this digital revolution will bring forth. Privacy and security are the key elements here. But before governments can deal with this, they have to change their value chain.
Break down silo’s
Businesses don’t run on isolated departments anymore. Working in silo’s is one of the conservative obstacles that are withholding governments from evolving. There is no full insight of the public sector as a whole. To obtain such insights you need a digital strategy that defines the right infrastructure, the right skills for employees and processes that empower cooperation.
Enable co-creation
Co-creation is one of the most powerful facilitators of innovation and disruption. To facilitate co-creation, the government should provide datasets for other public departments to explore or even cooperate with third parties from the private sector. Governments must take on the roles of a facilitator and enabler. They should collaborate with other sectors in creating new solutions, optimised public services and new businesses. Unfortunately, most government agencies are not organised. This is where the ‘doom to failure’ starts and the harmonising is stranded even before it started. Up to now they lack the ability to operate as flexible as private businesses. On this part, digitisation of government probably needs strong input and resources from private businesses. Governments need the agility in order to deal with the constant changing privacy and security issues that the e-revolution will bring forth.
Defining a clear regulation strategy: privacy and security
Local regulations will determine where organisations do business. When regulations are setting to many boundaries, it would only be smart for organisations to move their business elsewhere. Although increasing knowledge is broadening the world, capabilities that are developing through that knowledge cause an opposite effect: It makes our world a smaller place. Doing business internationally becomes easier.
Privacy and security in the internet age are becoming more crucial than ever. Considering that many governments are trying to regulate today’s digital developments with legislation dating from over 20 years ago, it is fair to say that regulatory systems are an increasing risk. Time for a new era. Digital technologies are set to transform many public and private sectors; the world needs a reliable, trustworthy and secure cyberspace. Therefore, governments should aim for a harmonised approach to achieve a high degree of interoperability and compatibility of systems. It is important that they come up with umbrella regulations like Europe is doing with the GDPR. Besides that, we need clear rules that govern dilemma’s such as ownership, management and exploitation of digital data.
Governments worldwide mostly seem to be afraid of losing money because of the digital transformation. In fact, they will lose money (and credibility) if they don’t anticipate on this E-revolution. They are not able to stop it anyway, so it would be best if they embrace it. Their future core business would entail the setup of a level playing field for this whole new ballgame. Let them become the team players that offer innovative progress and protection.
Arjen van Berkum
Arjen van Berkum is a columnist, keynote speaker and motivator, with an eye for business ecosystems, innovation and disruption. In addition to his work as technology and contract management evangelist, he is a visiting lecturer at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft).
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