Accenture's fifth annual global e-government study

2004 key findings
eGovernment leaders are
reaping tangible savings
When governments began their online programs
several years ago, their initial objectives were to provide
service improvements and alternate channels
of delivery. Cost savings were a hoped-for result—
a potential by-product, rather than a certainty. Few
countries realized significant cost savings in those
early years.
This year, we see evidence that the focus for many
governments is now specifically on the cost savings
potential of eGovernment. This is not surprising,
given that most governments currently operate in
an environment of severe fiscal constraints. Other
governments seem loath to make the investments
needed to build a robust eGovernment program. This
may be a costly, shortsighted move, however,
as we see evidence that a number of eGovernment
leaders already are reaping tangible savings on their
way to high performance.
Canada, for example, recently conducted a comparison
of channel costs per transaction that showed
the cost savings from online service are significant.
Its survey showed that an in-person transaction
costs the government Can$44, a mail transaction
costs Can$38 and a telephone (agent) transaction
costs Can$8. In contrast, an online transaction costs
less than Can$1.
In other countries, individual agencies exhibit some
of the clearest examples of the potential cost savings
benefits from eGovernment. Revenue agencies in
particular show the results of most countries’ early
focused development. In Norway, the Inland Revenue
Department (Skatteetaten), www.skatteetaten.no,
Reflections from a world leader
Michelle d’Auray, CIO of the Canadian government, shares her thoughts on what leads to high performance
in eGovernment and on the challenges Canada faces as it looks to its eGovernment future.
How do you define high-performance eGovernment
High-performance eGovernment is one that meets citizens’ needs, that has a huge degree of seamlessness and
ease of access, that has a speedy response time and that essentially challenges the way of doing things traditionally.
Put the [customer] first and provide the [customer] with the whole of government at his or her disposal.
Do you have a guiding principle for eGovernment
Citizens and businesses don’t care what level of government they interact with, they just want to be able to
get things done.
What has the Canadian government done right in its own eGovernment program
The direction [of our program] was predicated on very extensive polling and focus groups. It wasn’t as if the
direction was imposed by some strange group of people who had dreamt this up one day. It was imposed by
the people whom we were trying to serve.
What do you see as the future challenges
It’s not just the delivery mechanisms themselves, but also rethinking the services. The challenges, I think, are
going to be informational—how you deal with information, how it’s architected, how it’s shared, how it’s
tracked—and then, if I can use the term, the governance mechanisms become absolutely critical for us. What
will be interesting is to see how far we can go down the integration path without having to change the rules.
What is your advice for moving ahead
You have to find a couple of goals. We’ve ended up calling them catalytic. What would drive change efficiently,
what would be change-generating enough that would be worth investing in that might take you
enough of the way to the next stage that won’t necessarily turn government inside out.
14