The pace of change in the public sector has traditionally been slower than in the private sector, but the past few years have fast-tracked digitisation within South Africa’s citizen-facing organisations.
It seems 2020 was a watershed year for technology in the public sector. With the mass shift to digital delivery models forced by the COVID-19 pandemic, it immediately became clear which organisations were lagging in digital adoption and which were better prepared. Regardless of whether their organisations proved themselves technology leaders or laggards, public sector CIOs not only accepted the challenge, they fundamentally redefined the relationship between constituents, technology and the business.
From citizen-centred digital tools to advanced security initiatives to nascent smart cities, public sector organisations all over the world have spent the past two years modernising their IT estates and developing digital solutions to help meet the needs of constituents. While South African organisations have faced their own unique hurdles, local CIOs have come away with the same lessons: there may now be a bigger budget, but there are also bigger challenges in delivery and the basics must be in place before you can take the next step in the digital transformation journey.
Working hand-in-hand
The frantic momentum towards digital delivery forced many public sector CIOs to re-evaluate their strategies in order to avoid the implementation of piecemeal, reactive solutions. As a result, certain technologies have seen large-scale adoption while others are still gaining momentum.
The cloud was a clear leader, with a marked increase in public sector organisations migrating workloads and data to any combination of private, public and hybrid clouds. The as a service business model has become increasingly popular as businesses try to navigate the fine line between effective service delivery and cost management. With service providers like MTN Business also able to help fill skills gaps and assist in the management of legacy infrastructure, many public sector organisations have established strong public-private partnerships that are supporting innovation and improved citizen experiences.
The frantic momentum towards digital delivery forced many public sector CIOs to re-evaluate their strategies in order to avoid the implementation of piecemeal, reactive solutions. As a result, certain technologies have seen large-scale adoption, while others are still gaining momentum.
These partnerships are also helping to ensure the privacy and security of digital ecosystems. As their footprint in the cloud has increased, so have organisations’ security requirements. Public-private partnerships are allowing public sector CIOs to integrate security and privacy protections as they develop solutions, rather than adding them after the fact.
Some public sector organisations, particularly those that were further along their digital transformation journey, have used this as a foundation on which to implement technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and the internet of things (IOT) networks. While there are still relatively few local citizen-facing implementations of these solutions, utilities, municipalities and conservation agencies have already seen enough value in their investments to plan for future expansion.
Where technology and humanity meet
The good news is that public sector organisations of all sizes have started leveraging technology to help them accelerate service delivery. The better news is that today’s investments can still be seen as the tip of the iceberg, with huge improvements guaranteed in the future.
For example, while data is being collected and analysed by various types of agencies, that data is not yet being shared across entities to create a single view of a citizen or an event. Similarly, while collaboration platforms have allowed civil servants to continue working remotely, we still need to see the effective integration of this technology into citizen services. This type of seamless, interconnected digital service delivery is not far off, as the public sector continues its digital transformation.
Like their private sector counterparts, public sector CIOs are building a digital ecosystem that has been designed to be flexible enough to accommodate the changing needs of those coming into contact with it now and in the future. The difference is the sheer scale of public sector solutions compared to those needed for private organisations.
The primary success factor for all the digital investments that have been made – and are currently being made – lies in the CIO’s ability to marry technology to the needs of the organisation as well as the needs of constituents. Many public sector CIOs have used the opportunity presented by the changes over the past few years to not only demonstrate the value a strategic approach can offer, but to showcase how technology can drive service delivery in the future.
For more information on how MTN can co-create solutions for your business, send a mail to MTN Business. Getconnected@mtn.com
This article was first published in the ITWeb Brainstorm CIO Survey 2022/2023 report, sponsored by MTN Business.
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