James Devenish has joined the BIS digital team on secondment from the National Measurement Office. Here he gives his reflections on digital strategies and how organisations who have yet to write theirs might get started.
Since the launch of the Cabinet Office digital strategy and guidance on the use of social media, government agencies are starting to publish their own strategies or wanting to see what has already been published.
Back in December 2012, BIS launched their own digital strategy and as departments continue to build their own strategies focused on their individual needs, I think there are some common starting points for everyone:
- Engagement: Building relationships with our stakeholders both on and offline in a way that opens up engagement.
- Capability: Create a collective pool of expertise that can act as internal change agents, providing a constructive but challenging influence and promoting good practice. ('Lego forces management to sit social media exams')
- Users first: Our audiences need easy access to accurate, up-to-date information, advice and guidance on current regulations, as well as information and support to help them all. Our audiences also need quick and simple government transactions, including filing accounts, applying for licenses, schemes and initiatives. Businesses need a personalised service based on their previous interactions with government, their business type, and the stage of their business in the business lifecycle.
- Digital-by-default: Digital should be developed iteratively (try new things, be prepared to fail fast) but in a way that ensures we learn in the long term: from experience and seeding good practice within organisations (see 2).
Whilst agencies need to build their own digital strategies I would argue that department’s strategies and specific guidance like the social media for all civil servants has already been written for us.
Digital strategies are already pretty clear (i.e. civil servants should adhere to the civil service code online as well as off line) – let’s keep them that way.
Read the Cabinet Office social media guidance.
Read the BIS Digital Strategy.
Lets discuss and perhaps post your own strategy here as well?
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