Let's go back fifteen years to 2006 specifically, It is the year that saw the emergence of design thinking as a new trend and the "Portfolio" project was one of the projects developed within this trend. Participants were introduced to the practical aspects of design thinking by envisioning new ways to carry cards, cash and ID cards.
But if you try to apply the same exercise in 2020, the participants will feel confused. Many of us don't have any cards or cash now because the world has passed that stage. unless you reside in the United States, You should give cash tips to everyone who works in a service job. You don't need money, You can pay for lunch and buy bus tickets. or a wallet if you like, Once you swipe your phone or watch in front of a gate.
The time for cash and cards is gone, but one thing we all need in our wallet is the ID card. You still have to carry your plastic or paper license when driving a vehicle except in some countries and you still need a physical document to cross a country's border.
The "Portfolio" exercise is a test that determines the extent of government innovation, The world beyond the borders of the government sector has begun a new phase and achieved a completely digital transformation. The rigidity in government innovation is the reason why we still need to use leather wallets.
But it is promising that many governments around the world are aware of this digital divide. Debates about innovation and the future of services have changed from discovering opportunities and possibilities to ensuring that the government sector is not left behind and trapped in the twentieth century by its inability to serve the people of the twenty-first century.
The five stages of development
One of the challenges facing the digital transformation of the government sector is the absence of clear foundations and benchmarks. There are a lot of models that determine the maturity of technologies, However, there is no approved framework for assessing the maturity of government services in the digital age. therefore The Centre for Digital Economy Australia of Queensland University of Technology has developed the following framework that contributes to identifying potential pathways for government services. The framework also looks at common patterns of development of government services.
- The beginning of morphology
Government Phase 1.0 introduces separate new services that come after a specific social need arises resulting from social, business or digital trends. For example, In early 2019, the Reserve Bank of India launched a digital payments monitoring service in response to the exponential growth in cashless transactions in India following the development of a unified payment interface. At this stage of development, Government service providers understand the benefits of the services they can provide and begin to focus on providing consistent access to them.
Despite their selective nature, These separate services pave the way for new value proposition in the government sector. Service teams play an important role in the launch of new services with a focus on providing access across multiple channels and providing a high-quality experience for service users.
- Scale up
In the Government 2.0 phase, The focus shifts towards establishing a system of partners to increase the volume and diversity of services provided, allowing the government sector to reach larger numbers of users and save costs. This may entail collaborating with other providers to jointly provide services or developing internal service delivery models. The Brisbane Digital 2.0 strategy provides examples of the government sector expanding the scope of services provided, which is achieved not only through partnerships to provide services but also through the government's assumption of the role of activist, facilitator, financier and provider (Brisbane Marketing). 2017). While some segments of society do not benefit from government services in phase 1.0, Government 2.0 is concerned with achieving parity that leads to the design of additional forms of services to be made available to previously underserved groups.
Effective scaling of services, both in terms of size and diversity, requires a focus on the value chain and a constant interest in the experience provided by the services. The role of service designers remains important and critical at this stage to ensure that services are diversified, while operational officers contribute to enabling increased service volumes.
- Automation
When the volume and variety of services provided reach satisfactory levels, The focus shifts to the efficiency of the service delivery process. The operating model thus becomes the focus and attention is geared towards achieving the desired efficiency gains, allowing for the effective allocation of government funds. The ability to deliver services at a "reasonable" cost becomes a key performance indicator at this stage of development. On the other hand, Government 3.0 focuses on automating its activities for productivity gains, improved efficiency, reduced costs and reduced waste. This may limit the provision of some of the services introduced in Government 2.0 for purely economic considerations.
Ensuring efficient service delivery is the task of operational officials, Government 3.0 strives for the efficient and smooth delivery of services to achieve its aspirations. The cost and high efficiency of moderate services become strategic considerations in the third stage of development.
- Digitization
The fourth phase is related to digitalization that goes beyond mere automation (i.e. the digital transformation of certain government activities) and extends to the exploration of entirely new business models and new types of customer engagement.
In Government 4.0, entities focus on their business models in an effort to attract customers. Since the "value proposition" is a key component of the operating model, Government Phase 4.0 initiatives introduce new and unique proposition values for individuals. The new proposed values could not have been achieved without the improvements experienced during the Government 2.0 and Government 3.0 phases. The new proposed values entail different business models that characterize this phase and the responsibility for delivering and delivering services shifts from separate departments to government-wide regulators. The new strategic difference in Government 4.0 is the connectivity and connectivity of services.
In the fifth stage of development, Awareness of the intrinsic role of society is generated and the operating model of government is turned upside down and the mindset in government changes from "managing people's relationships" to "people-managed relationships". This methodology is based on higher levels of community participation and requires a shift in the skills of the government services sector towards flexibility, joint innovation and joint ventures.
The Government Phase 5.0 goes beyond community-centered services or government-wide methodologies in service delivery, To reach the provision of services to individuals at all stages of their lives. Its focus is therefore on understanding the individual from a holistic point of view rather than from a government point of view. To achieve this, Government service providers seek to establish their position in the lives of customers, not the other way around.
The new strategic direction in the Government Phase 5.0 is the principle of convenience, which is embodied by ensuring the well-being of customers and the smooth dealings with the government sector. The principle of appropriateness in design thinking raises strategic questions along the following lines: Will the proposed solution meet the needs of individuals and suit their lifestyle, will it attract them, and will they want to use it?
Separate government entities cannot reach the Government 5.0 stage because it is a stage that results from uniting the efforts of all government departments and agencies. It is important to form teams from different government departments and to establish partnerships with other partners in the system. The interest of partners in the system will move away from merely providing services towards maintaining a relationship with the community that extends throughout their lives. Government intervention becomes an exceptional rather than a regular situation.
The bottom line
The gradual disappearance of money and cards from our lives has not resulted from the efforts of one or a group of entities to achieve change. Rather, it is the result of a combination of several changes: new technologies (such as radio wave identification), new business models (e.g. microtransactions and in-app purchases) and emerging social expectations (e.g. indirect payment when using shared mobility services). Although all these trends emerged in the late nineties, However, it is the huge expansion of its scope in recent years that has turned it into trends. The same applies to the future of government services, which we see before us now but which needs to be evenly distributed and its uses expanded. Otherwise, government services will remain the only aspect of our lives that keeps us stuck in the past. As personal identification cards found in our wallets.
Source: Helvetas Mosaic. https://www.helvetas.org/en/eastern-europe/about-us/follow-us/helvetas-mosaic/article/March2020/Government-5.0-Future-of-Public-Services
