Opportunities

The opportunities presented by digital technology are widely acknowledged.

The savings that can be made through shifting service to cheaper channels are hugely enticing. However, we believe that the other, less easliy quantifiable benefits will turn out to be far more significant. The ability to go beyond using the web to enable self-serve and into sustainable self-help networks and the changing relationships between service providers and consumers will lead to greater efficiency in services and more effectiveness in business supporting functions.

Serve

Providing good quality interfaces to transactional services is key.

All interfaces to transactional services should provide citizens with confidence that their time is valued, their information will be safe and their needs are understood. The interface to the service should reflect the quality of the service.

To achieve this, transactional service interfaces should be designed to meet the needs and situation of the users rather than simply providing a mechanism for information to be gathered. These user needs can be understood through both qualitative and quantitative user research techniques and user feedback. Findings should be applied iteratively through a process of continuous improvement.

Digital Inclusion

Ensuring that the all sections of the community are able to take advantages of using the web.

Web usage is not evenly distributed across all sections of society. Unless positive action is taken the people who use council service the most won’t be able to take advantage of them online.

Such is the importance of digital inclusion that it warrants the appointment of a Digital inclusion Champion within the local authority. Their role will be to ensure that digital inclusion is tackled using all of the available support from national and local programmes and initiatives.

Service improvement is part of the service

Service improvement (with involvement from the community) must be an integral part of service provision. All transactions should offer citizens the opportunity to use commenting and feedback to suggest service improvements as part of the process. Analytics and metrics should be used as part of an in depth user experience strategy to find and fix points that cause high dropouts. Services need to be provided via as many channels as appropriate and an engaging practical website will bring more people towards the self service end of the spectrum.

Connect customer channels and platforms

All interactions with the Local Authority should be joined up. So that no matter how individual strands have been facilitated conversations started via one channel can be continued or added to on any other.

This means some form of CRM software that is used for or interfaced with by all channels needs to be part of the digital strategy.

For some channels this means staffs training for others such as Internet TV, SMS it needs to be a requirement as part of the procurement process.