The government's current internet strategy is 'failing to make the grade' and it will need to enter into partnerships with the private sector if it wants to make savings of Pounds 3.7bn by moving services online, IT research house Forrester has warned.
Forrester has advised the government to join up with private sector ‘match makers in revenue sharing agreements’ in a move that would potentially save Pounds 406m annually from 2003 onwards.
Forrester analyst Caroline Sceats said: ‘The government should let go of fears that private-sector charges will lead to preferential services for the wealthy.’
However, according to Sceats, private sector data transactions will never get off the ground unless the government accept that such partnerships will save consumers between three and five pounds on their transactions.
Sceats based her comments on Forrester’s in-depth research of 14 government agencies on their e-government efforts.
Each agency was graded on its vision, implementation, partnerships and savings sharing. Forrester’s research revealed that the agencies had insufficient knowledge and understanding and were unable to implement innovative services.
However Sceats predicted: ‘By 2002 the government will drop the go-it-alone strategy, opening up business processes and service opportunities to new partners.
‘The government will adopt the e-business network framework, where a resilient structure of interdependent players co-operates in real time over the net to get a job done.
‘This will require the government to share its savings on data and financial transactions with the private sector, creating a commercial market worth Pounds 730m by 2005.’
In addition to creating opportunities for large technology firms, smaller vendors stand to benefit the most from this new market, due to their ability to adapt to rapidly-changing internet conditions.
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