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Every generation seems to live through some kind of transformational national or global experience, be it the Great War, the Great Depression, World War II, the Cold War, the 60s, the Space Race, the Personal Computer revolution, the fall of Communist, or the rise of the internet.
A lot of people see the growth of social networks as the next great transformational event for the world - and with some reason. We've seen a billion people become 'internet citizens', with access to global communities on a scale never before possible in human history.
This, in turn, is causing change throughout society. Our choice of entertainment, our approach to philanthropy, to education and to social engagement are all adapting to the new tools available.
It is inevitable that social changes transform governments. For every transformational event in world history there has been equally significant changes in politics and in public institutions.
Governments have had to change along with their citizens, their employees and their peers in order to remain relevant, to ensure their nations remain competitive and to address changing social norms.
There has already been significant government change due to the growth of the internet reflecting changes in how citizens wish to interact with government.
Ten years ago there were few government services online and websites were primitive 'brochureware'. Today the egovernment agenda is a leading driver for government reform.
What we are only just now seeing the start of are changes in how society interacts with government in determining policy and community engagement.
In the UK we're seeing Lords blogging and civil servants encouraged to participate in public discussion forums. In the US we're seeing political leaders broadcasting their voting intentions and facilitating online communities. In New Zealand we're seeing legislation created by the community.
Around the world citizens are asking if their governments will embrace this change, or resist it for as long as possible.
Little of this style of activity is, as yet, occurring at a national level in Australia, but it will.
The question for those of us within Australian government is how can we begin working with communities within the framework of the legislation, policies, processes and perceptions of today's public service - or how do we go about reshaping the business of government to enable the level of participation that our citizens now expect.
This presentation from Deloittes and Beeline Labs, the 2008 Tribalization Of Business Study, offers some insights into what we should expect along the journey.
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
Transforming government via communities | Tweet |
Monday, August 04, 2008
Should all public housing come with cheap broadband internet access? | Tweet |
ScobleizerTV ( by Robert Scoble) has released a very interesting video interview with David Kralik, Newt Gingrich's internet strategist on egovernment improvement in the US.
It discusses areas such as,
- the provision of cheap broadband access in public housing to help reduce the digital divide and provide lower income people with an economic window
- the practical difficulties in introducing laptops into schools due to the poor ratio in education of IT workers to computers and the limited PC skills of teachers, and
- government transparency via internet tools,
It's very thought provoking, if a little grainy.
Saturday, August 02, 2008
Is your agency monitoring or pre-empting online impersonators? | Tweet |
With the vast array of online social media tools now out there, it's inevitable that a few individuals will use them in a malicious way to discredit organisations.
Where organisations are not keeping an eye on these online channels, there is the possibility that the impact of comments - made in public to large groups of participants - could be substantial.
A current case in point is the fake Exxon Mobil tweeter. Someone, purporting to be a representative of Exxon, has been using Twitter, a very popular micro-blogging application, to make comments about the organisation's activities.
In this case, however, the comments are positive - although not representative.
As reported in The Houston Chronicle, Exxon Mobil says it's not behind its' Twitter account,
In this case Exxon was unaware until the media contacted the company and presumably was not monitoring online social media to see what was being said about, or purportedly on behalf of the organisation.To many, Exxon Mobil is the picture of control, a disciplined corporation that stays on message in a simple, staid manner through oil booms and busts.
That's why a new participant on the social networking site Twitter.com earlier this week was a bit of a surprise.
According to the online bio, "Janet" at ExxonMobilCorp in Irving was "Taking on the world's toughest energy challenges."
In the brief, 140-character snippets Twitter allows, she points out the oil giant's philanthropic efforts, answers questions about the company's policies and even laments a shortage of caramel apple sugar babies at one Exxon retail outlet.
This foray into the new media frontier for one of corporate America's blue chip companies might seem ground-breaking if it wasn't for one thing:
"That's not us," said Alan Jeffers, spokesman for Exxon Mobil.
"Janet" isn't part of Exxon's public relations machinery — the company said it has no idea who she is and wasn't aware of her until the Chronicle called to ask.
I expect they will be reviewing this position for the future.
Note that I am not advocating that organisations take a censorship approach. It is impossible to prevent people from talking about organisations, whether in the pub, in the home or online.
However it is possible to become part of this conversation - and ensure that the messages being conveyed appropriately reflect the actual views of the organisation.
Friday, August 01, 2008
The survey for people who make websites | Tweet |
A List Apart is conducting a survey on the work situations of those working in the web space - from developers and web designers, through to content managers and online publishers.
Last year the survey (held for the first time) had 33,000 respondents, roughly 1,700 from Australia. This year is expected to be much bigger.
This survey is particularly interesting as the raw (anonymous) data is released - allowing anyone interested in a particular segment to analyse this data in the way they choose.
This allows for significant insights into particular segments of the market which can be used for web team management and recruiting purposes.
I'd recommend that anyone in the online space in the public sector consider both completing in the survey this year and reviewing the result from last year.
This year's survey is open at http://alistapart.com/
Last year's results are at: http://alistapart.com/
UK announces new grants for egovernment projects stimulating involvement in democracy | Tweet |
The UK government has announced a £150,000 government scheme to encourage online democracy aimed at charities, community groups and non-government organisations.
Named the Innovation Fund, grants will be made to support projects developing new ways to encourage public participation in the UK's democratic processes and influence government policy.
This is the third year the program has been run, with 8 projects funded in each of the proceeding years.
Most interesting for those not in the UK, ideas are floated publicly in the Fund's website, making them visible to governments in other jurisdictions to study.
More information, and the latest ideas submitted, are available at www.buildingdemocracy.co.uk.
