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Marano Consultants

Improving Access to eGovernment Information on the Web


A speculative appraisal of eGovernment Websites

12th March 2009 (Version 1.0)


10th November 2009 (Version 2.0)

Prepared by:

Kieran O’Hea
Director
Marano Consultants

Marano Consultants, 21 Northumberland Place, Dublin 4


Tel: +353 87 6481344, E-mail: marano@ireland.com
Reg. No: 408887, VAT No: 6428887N
Contents

Table of Contents

1. Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 3
2. Searching on Google for “eGovernment Ireland” ..................................................................... 3
3. Objective of this Document ...................................................................................................... 3
4. Initial Analysis ........................................................................................................................... 4
5. eGovernment Action Plans ....................................................................................................... 4
6. eGovernment Structures........................................................................................................... 6
7. eGovernment Report from the Comptroller & Auditor General, 2007 ..................................... 6
8. eGovernment International Best Practice Report from Forfás, 2008 ........................................ 7
9. How the Web Contributes to eGovernment Strategic Objectives ............................................. 8
10. Conclusion and Recommendation ............................................................................................ 9
Annex I - Critique of eGovernment Content on Department of the Taoiseach Website ................. 10
Annex II – Information about Marano Consultants ......................................................................... 12

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Improving Access to eGovernment Information on the Web.
1. Introduction

Marano Consultants specialises in online strategy. While searching for information about Irish
eGovernment projects, we were alarmed by what we found (see section 2). This prompted closer
analysis which raised important questions about the way in which Irish eGovernment initiatives are
presented on the web. The analysis was carried out in March 2009 and again in November. Most of
the issues identified in March still remain. This indicates that the maintenance of these sites needs
to be improved. In our opinion, this needs to be done as part of a customer engagement strategy.

Marano Consultants brought its findings to the Government’s attention in June 2009 but were told it
was not a priority. We have extensive experience in this area and believe it should be a priority.
Poorly maintained websites affect public perception at home and abroad. eGovernment is an
important way to provide more efficient and cost-effective government services and a lot of
attention is being paid to eGovernment activities around the world. Ireland has an excellent
portfolio of eGovernment services and these deserve to be publicised accurately on high quality
websites which are easily accessible to all users.

2. Searching on Google for “eGovernment Ireland”

For most people, the Internet search engine of choice is Google. When Marano Consultants
searched Google for “eGovernment Ireland”, the first result returned was a link to the page below.

This link should either lead to a page populated with relevant content or it should redirect people to
www.gov.ie. Instead the user is directed to the page above, which contains no relevant content. For
a visitor arriving at this page after searching on Google for “eGovernment Ireland”, the trail has now
gone completely cold. Searching on Google is the main way that people find websites, so the page
above may be the first introduction to eGovernment Ireland for web users from all over the world.

3. Objective of this Document

This is a speculative document prepared by Marano Consultants which highlights the variable quality
of eGovernment information available on Irish Government websites. We propose to address this by
providing an expert in online strategy with extensive experience in public sector websites to
determine what improvements should be made in order to provide the public with up-to-date, well-
presented and well-managed website content about Irish eGovernment initiatives.

Once a more detailed analysis has been completed, the expert will present his recommendations
and, if requested, can subsequently supervise their implementation. Cost estimates will be provided

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Improving Access to eGovernment Information on the Web.
once interest in this speculative proposal has been expressed and the assignment has been fully
scoped out. Details of the proposed expert are provided in Annex III.

We wish to stress that the objective of this document is not to analyse the content or quality of
Ireland’s eGovernment strategy or Information Society action plans. It is solely concerned with
improving the process by which information about these programmes is disseminated online.

4. Initial Analysis

As demonstrated in later sections of this document, there are many ways that the web can support
the achievement of Ireland’s eGovernment objectives, including:

 Providing a central point of access


 Improving public perception at home and abroad
 Disseminating best practice
 Gathering customer feedback
 Increasing engagement with eGovernment services

However some of the existing eGovernment websites are confusing, out of date and not properly
maintained. Despite being of variable quality, they are live and accessible to people around the
world, including decision makers and potential investors. The results of the aforementioned Google
search, together with the review of Irish eGovernment websites that appears at the end of this
document, provide clear evidence of the following:

 Terminology including Information Society, Knowledge Economy and eGovernment are used
interchangeably.
 Statements on web pages are not dated.
 Relevant documents exist on numerous government websites with no centralised list of
links.
 Documents which are supposed to exist can’t be found either on government websites or on
Google.
 eGovernment content on official websites has been removed and some information has not
been updated for several years but is still accessible.

This is what anyone with an interest in eGovernment in Ireland will currently find if they use the web
to search for it. This not only includes Irish citizens at home and abroad, but also international peers
and partners (including organisations such as the European Commission) and perhaps most
importantly in today’s economic climate, business leaders all over the world who are considering
either investing, locating or perhaps even remaining in Ireland.

5. eGovernment Action Plans

In 1999, the Government launched the first information society action plan, Implementing the
Information Society in Ireland1. Its main objectives were to ensure that the benefits of the
Information Society could be availed of by Irish citizens and Irish businesses, thus contributing to the
ongoing improvement of the Irish society and economy.

1
http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/upload/publications/238.pdf
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In the second Information Society action plan, New Connections2, published in 2002, the Irish
Government was committed to the objective of having all public services that were capable of
electronic delivery available online, through a single point of contact, by 2005.

The Department of the Taoiseach website states that a third action plan is “due within the coming
months” but there is no date on that commitment, and the document does not appear to have been
published. If it has been published it may have been done so by another department or as part of
another report. If it has been published, it is not clear how to access it online.

Dáil Éireann Private Members Business, 30th April 20083, cited the October 2007 report on
eGovernment by The Comptroller and Auditor General 4. This report stated that “no formal
eGovernment strategy has been in place since early 2006”. It called on the Government to produce
within six months an action plan for the achievement of a comprehensive system of eGovernment
within two years.

That action plan should have been published before the end of 2008. In the meantime, the report
Transforming Public Services5 was published by the Task Force on the Public Service in November
2008. It recommended that “a rolling programme of eGovernment projects, a combination of
central, enabling projects and citizen-centred initiatives in the Health, Local Government, Education
and other sectors, should be developed with regular reports to Government on its implementation.”

It further recommended that a plan to deliver this programme should be furnished to the
Department of Finance within 3-5 months. The government responded by saying that it would
announce priority e-government projects in all sectors of the Public Service within 5 months and
publish 6-monthly progress reports on implementation of projects. Neither the project list nor the
progress reports appear to have been made public.

The fact remains that the last eGovernment action plan was published in 2002 and expired in 2005.
That’s a four year gap without a national plan for eGovernment, with a corresponding failure to keep
some of the related web sites up to date. This is not only likely to inhibit the introduction and
adoption of the online public services themselves, it is likely to prevent people from learning about
their objectives and their achievements.

According to the report Leadership in Customer Service: Delivering the Promise 6 released by
Accenture in June 2007, Ireland ranks 11th out of 22 countries worldwide with high quality public
service delivery, and it gets the 6th best score among all European countries studied. Partly based on
a citizen survey, the report reveals that 62 % of Irish citizens polled believe that public service has
improved since 2004, and 78 % stated they were satisfied with the service they had most recently
received from the Government. This is the type of positive information that should be published on
eGovernment websites.

eGovernment provides the promise of greater transparency and accountability in public decision-
making enabling citizens to avoid the need to understand the complex structures of government in
order to be able to deal effectively with it. Providing transparency is a crucial step in building public
confidence. Yet access to information about eGovernment on the government’s own websites is
currently far from transparent.

2
http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/attached_files/Pdf%20files/NewConnectionsMarch2002.pdf
3
http://www.oireachtas.ie/documents/op/apr08/supple/sp300408.pdf
4
http://www.audgen.gov.ie/documents/vfmreports/58_eGovernment.pdf
5
http://www.onegov.ie/eng/Publications/Transforming_Public_Services_Report.pdf
6
http://nstore.accenture.com/acn_com/PDF/2007LCSDelivPromiseFinal.pdf
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Improving Access to eGovernment Information on the Web.
6. eGovernment Structures

A number of cross-cutting structures were established to co-ordinate the implementation of the


eGovernment plans. These included:

 A Cabinet Committee on the Information Society


 An e-Strategy Group of Secretaries General
 An eGovernment Implementation Group of Assistant Secretaries, with a remit to co-ordinate
activities relating to implementing the Information Society and to contribute to policy
development in this area.

However it’s very difficult to find anything on the web about these groups and who is in them. There
is not enough transparency to ensure that interested third parties can inform themselves about
what these groups are doing.

Meanwhile the Department of the Taoiseach saw its role as providing a sense of direction and
prioritisation for eGovernment, including:

 Establishing broad goals


 Providing a framework of policy and reporting
 Providing a means of encouraging certain strategic development areas.

However the list above does not include dissemination and promotion of results in the public
domain. This might explain why up-to-date information about eGovernment initiatives is difficult to
find on the web.

Responsibility for implementing eGovernment strategy now lies with The Department of Finance and
specifically with The Centre for Management Organisation and Development (CMOD). CMOD has a
general strategic role for ICT in the public sector in relation to strategic direction, common services
and common infrastructure. In addition, it has an internal operational role in relation to ICT
development and support for the Department of Finance.

Despite this, it is virtually impossible to find any information about CMOD’s role in eGovernment
implementation. It does not appear in the list of Government websites at www.gov.ie. Search results
for CMOD on Google relate mainly to its role as a training centre. A CMOD website might be a logical
place to find eGovernment information but one doesn’t appear to exist at the moment.

While there may be little in the way of easily accessible information about the new eGovernment
strategy or its owners, it is clear where responsibility lies for publicising the outcome of these
initiatives on the web. In response to a Dáil question last April regarding the delivery of
eGovernment services, the Taoiseach’s reply was: “The Department of the Taoiseach does not have
responsibility for the delivery of many public facing services, with the exception of our websites
which have been expanded and enhanced in recent years. Therefore, the question of my Department
delivering new or improved services for members of the public does not arise in practice”.

7. eGovernment Report from the Comptroller & Auditor General, 2007

The October 2007 report on eGovernment issued by the Comptroller and Auditor General 7 was
undertaken in order to examine the extent to which the eGovernment projects and initiatives
7
http://www.audgen.gov.ie/documents/vfmreports/58_eGovernment.pdf
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Improving Access to eGovernment Information on the Web.
outlined in the 1999 and 2002 Information Society action plans had been implemented in the period
2002 to 2005.

One of the issues dealt with by the report was the extent to which the eGovernment initiatives were
meeting their objectives in terms of providing better public access to the latest information about
the services offered by government departments and agencies. (Note: not to the services
themselves, but to information about the services)

The report referred to the fact that the estimated final cost of eGovernment activity undertaken or
commenced in the period 2000 to 2005 would be almost €420 million. There is little or no reference
to the dissemination of results or promotion of achievements. In fact in the majority of cases,
quantified benefits of implemented eGovernment projects were not reported. It seems unlikely
therefore that any of the €420 million was earmarked for publishing information about the impact
and benefits of eGovernment initiatives as opposed to the delivery of the services themselves.

The report also observed that the momentum towards developing eGovernment that was evident in
the early years of the last decade appears to have faded somewhat. This is evident in the absence of
a formal eGovernment strategy since the beginning of 2006. However, the report also states that the
Department of the Taoiseach “is currently working with other departments and agencies on the
development of a new strategy”. It is now November 2009 and there is no evidence on any
Government website that this strategy has been published.

8. eGovernment International Best Practice Report from Forfás, 2008

This comprehensive report from refers to what it terms Website Consolidation:

“A multiplicity of Government websites has been allowed to form in most countries. There is a
general trend to consolidate provision to offer a more streamlined and consistent brand and feel to
Government. This also reduces government expenditure. Most countries now seek to provide a one-
stop Government Portal – typically a separate portal for citizen and business customers.”

It also recommends the provision of a single face to Government:

“This inclusive customer-centred approach matches the implicit expectations that people have of
simple-to-access quality public services – where the power rests more in the hands of the user.”

While creating a single face to online public services is still a work in progress, there is no excuse for
not having already put in place a single face to information about those online public services and
the strategies and programmes behind them.

“The report examines best practice in eGovernment in administrations around the world. The
characteristics of the leading countries examined include strong (and sustained) political leadership
and support for rolling out eGovernment.”

What this means at its most basic level is that a champion is needed who will ensure that
eGovernment plans are disseminated, progress is reported and achievement’s are highlighted on
government websites.

The report includes a number of case studies about leading eGovernment practitioners including:

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Improving Access to eGovernment Information on the Web.
 The Business.gov.au8 website is Australia’s first whole-of-government service delivery
initiative and as such constitutes a breakthrough as a customer value proposition. Users
enjoy improved business transactions with federal, state and local government. The site also
helps businesses to find, manage and complete government forms online without having to
understand the structure of government or individual agencies
 Singapore’s eGovernment programme is the ongoing leader in customer service rankings
due to its strong combination of an innovative customer centric vision and entrepreneurial
attitude. EGovernment services are widely used and perceived as easy to use due to its One-
Stop Government Portal for businesses and the consistent and unified look across different
websites and e-services through Web Interface Standards.
 Directgov is the UK Government's website which provides public service information and
services to citizens. A separate business oriented site called Businesslink.gov.uk similarly
provides small and medium-sized businesses with access to e-services and transactions
through one primary site.

The report also believes that the web can be instrumental in supporting Customer Leadership:

“To truly deliver effective and efficient eGovernment services requires an ‘outside-in’ view of service
delivery as opposed to ‘inside-out’. This fundamental change requires a change of mindset and
culture, a customer engagement strategy, and collaborative working between tiers of government
and across Government agencies.”

9. How the Web contributes to eGovernment Strategic Objectives

The objectives of eGovernment articulated in the first action plan, Implementing the Information
Society in Ireland9, focused mainly on the delivery of specific projects by departments and agencies.
In the second action plan, New Connections10, four strategic objectives for eGovernment were
articulated. These were that:

1. All services capable of on-line delivery should be available on-line by 2005, through a single
point of contact
2. The delivery of Government services should be reshaped around user needs (including
continuous on-line availability and delivery of integrated services).
3. Ireland’s international competitiveness should be improved (through reduced business
costs, higher efficiencies, better services and opportunities for businesses to develop new
services and content)
4. The business community and the general public should be stimulated to wider engagement
with ICT (through contact with quality on-line public services).

Furthermore it was recommended that annual eGovernment progress reports should be published,
focusing on the achievement both of strategic goals and of planned project impacts. The
effectiveness of the eGovernment strategy should be formally and independently evaluated from
time to time.

Dissemination via the web would be an ideal way to publish information about the eGovernment
programme in the public domain. In doing so, it would help in the achievement of the objectives
above.

8
http://www.business.gov.au/Business+Entry+Point/
9
http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/upload/publications/238.pdf
10
http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/attached_files/Pdf%20files/NewConnectionsMarch2002.pdf

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 It would contribute to Objective 1 by providing a single point of contact with details of the
services that are available and links to the appropriate websites where they can be accessed.
 It would contribute to Objective 2 by incorporating an online forum for user feedback,
capturing information which would allow eGovernment services to be continuously
reviewed and improved.
 It would contribute to Objective 3 by reaching a global business audience with details of
Ireland’s increased competitiveness, gained through the successful implementation of
eGovernment initiatives.
 It would contribute to Objective 4 by providing an introduction to eGovernment services and
by promoting the wider engagement of the business community and the general public.

Furthermore, the web would be an ideal place to publish the annual eGovernment progress report,
including the achievements of the strategic goals and of the planned project impacts.

10. Conclusion and Recommendation

The accurate promotion of eGovernment on the web is essential in order to publicise its ongoing
implementation and the vital role it has to play in the Smart Economy. The web can also help to
reconcile past expenditure with the success of eGovernment initiatives to date. Based on the initial
analysis Marano Consultants has carried out, we have no doubt that more effective use of the web
as a dissemination channel will help in meeting eGovernment objectives.

The pages we have analysed and found issues with are the ones that users searching for
“eGovernment Ireland” currently find themselves on. Some of these pages are confusing and out-of-
date. They should either be properly maintained or removed. They do not accurately reflect the
status of online public services, the investment in their development or the rollout of the
eGovernment action plan.

Based on the quality of the online information available at the moment, people may form an
incorrect perception of Irish eGovernment achievements. On the basis that the correct perception is
vital, we recommend that:

 The issues we have identified are addressed immediately.


 Immediate consideration is given to the development and implementation of an effective
customer engagement strategy.
Taking these steps will improve not only the quality of the information but also the customer
experience and hence the public perception of eGovernment. This doesn’t necessarily need to be an
expensive process but one which will provide significant added value to Irish eGovernment efforts.

For further information about this proposal, please contact:


Kieran O’Hea, Director, Marano Consultants,
21 Northumberland Place, Dublin 4.
Tel: +353-87-6481344, E-mail: marano@ireland.com
Reg. No. 408887 VAT No. 6428887N
The document is ©Marano Consultants. Its content may not be used or reproduced without the author’s permission

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Annex I - Critique of eGovernment Content on Department of the Taoiseach
Website

Navigating to the eGovernment section on the Department of the Taoiseach website is not easy and
leads to the page above, which is out of date, referring to objectives that will be met by 2005. The
Knowledge Society and eGovernment section on www.taoiseach.gov.ie appears under the heading
Policy Sections and has the following links:

1. Knowledge Society and eGovernment Policy a page summarising the various Information
Society Action Plans and the work of the Information Society Policy Unit (ISPU). This contains
the following links:
o eGovernment which incorrectly links to a page called About the Information Society.
This contains the following links:
 eGovernment which contains links to:
 New Connections, the 2002 action plan for the Information Society
in Ireland.
 Public Services Broker (PBS)
 The REACH Agency, which links to the homepage of the Department
of Finance website where there is no reference to REACH.
 eCabinet which links to an unrelated page called Government Secretariat.
 eEurope which is a dead link.
 Information Society Structures and Groups leads to a page which states that
“Minister of State, Tom Kitt, T.D., is responsible for coordinating the
Information Society agenda across all Government departments”. Tom Kitt is
no longer a Minister of State.
 Information Society Fund, this page has not been updated since 2005. It
includes a link to Details of some of the projects supported under the Fund
to date. This lists projects funded by the Information Society Fund between
1999 and 2002.
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 eGovernment – the same link appears twice on this page
o The Access, Skills and Content Initiative (ASC), which ended in 2007.
o The National Payment Conference
o The Information Society Policy Unit (ISPU) e-newsletter, which was last published in
May 2007 but is still accepting new subscriptions.
2. ASC Initiative which leads to the same page as the one above
3. About the Information Society which leads to the same page as above
4. Information Society Structure and Groups which leads to the same page as above
5. Speeches and Press Releases leads to a page which lists speeches and announcements made
about the Information Society between 2002 and 2007. The list is not in chronological order.
6. Information Society Publications leads to a page which lists in chronological order the
documents produced about the Information Society since 1998. The most recent entry is
dated January 2005.
7. Links leads to a page which provides:
o Links to four external publications of which three don’t work.
o Links to eleven relevant websites of which two don’t work and one is redirected.

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Improving Access to eGovernment Information on the Web.
Annex II – Information about Marano Consultants

Marano Consultants are experienced in managing all aspects of the development and
implementation of online strategies. This includes providing some or all of the following services:
 Review the current online presence, including web site quality, traffic and revenue figures,
arrangements with suppliers, size of web team and the “e-culture” within the organisation.
 Conduct a period of consultation, identify stakeholders and decision makers, meet suppliers,
workshop with internal users, external user testing, identify online champions.
 Write the online strategy, including vision, best practice review, competitor analysis,
business requirements, risk analysis, time frame, success criteria, investment needed.
 Secure funds to carry out interim improvements, measure impact over a defined period,
present results to stakeholders, secure budget for complete overhaul of online presence.
 Hire staff to create web team, develop a functional specification, issue and manage call(s)
for tender, develop the content plan, manage the project development and rollout.
 Put in place web analytics for measuring usage, domain management, hosting
arrangements, search engine optimisation and search engine marketing techniques.
 Develop the e-marketing plan, co-ordinate online and offline marketing plans, promotions
and campaigns, working with marketing teams in different departments and/or countries.
 On an ongoing basis, keep client informed of progress and brief them on developments in e-
business best practice.
As a result of delivering these services, significant performance improvements have been achieved in
a relatively short period of time.
 Search engine rankings improved, visits to websites increased and sales leads and online
revenue grew significantly.
 The online skills base within the organisations also grew as a result of the use of appropriate
technology and proper training.
 The importance of the online function in relation to the offline activities was also increased,
encouraging more integration between the two.
 Organisational change occurred as the Internet established itself as a significant business
channel.

About the author

Kieran O’Hea specialises in developing online strategies for public sector organisations and NGO’s.
He recently managed the development and implementation of successful new online strategies for
Tourism Ireland and for Concern Worldwide. The Tourism Ireland project was the most ambitious
web project ever undertaken here, delivering 28 websites in 18 languages.
Prior to managing the above projects, Kieran was an advisor at the European Commission whom he
helped to set up and manage some of the first online projects in Europe. He has also advised a
number of Irish state agencies including Forfás and InterTradeIreland in relation to digital media.
His goal is to help more organisations to embrace innovation and to develop world class online
presences. He aims to achieve this through a combination of evangelism, strategy development and
project management.

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Improving Access to eGovernment Information on the Web.

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