State and Local Governments Must Boost Citizen Engagement on Tight Budgets
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A new report details how spending on advanced digital solutions in the short term can lead to long-term savings.
Government agencies concede the private sector is better at improving citizen experience, which is why they’re focusing on advanced digital solutions in 2016, according to a recent GovDelivery report.
Of more than 1,100 public sector communicators surveyed, 82 percent said their priority was stronger citizen engagement through, among other things, increased online services (60 percent), automation (57 percent) and open data (55 percent).
But governments face an uphill battle, 58 percent of those surveyed citing lack of budget as a challenge and 50 percent lack of resources.
“As citizens become more accustomed to the quick, convenient and rewarding digital interactions they have with businesses, thousands of government organizations, including GovDelivery’s clients, are rethinking how to bridge that gap,” Steve Ressler, chief marketing officer, said in the announcement. “This report illustrates that these public sector communicators are not only prioritizing a better citizen experience, but are turning to technology to improve that experience and create real change for the people they serve.”
Streamlining content sharing and automating backend communications simplifies and speeds up otherwise costly processes while allowing government to target desired audiences—working around budget constraints.
Greater government transparency surrounding open data helps citizens and staff make more informed decisions, but that data must be searchable and interpretable. Only 30 percent of governments surveyed hosted or published their own open data, while 41 percent weren’t sure what initiatives their jurisdiction had.
Limited funding and resources also make it difficult for governments to invest in the untapped opportunity that is digital training, 43 percent of respondents saying staff wasn’t schooled enough on current trends.
GovDelivery’s full report can be read here.
Dave Nyczepir is a News Editor at Government Executive’s Route Fifty.
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