Accenture's fifth annual global e-government study

out with the same level of technical sophistication.
We see this happen most in the European Union.
(See sidebar, The push for international integration,
on page 20.)
For example, the first phase of the New Computerized
Transit System was introduced to a number of customs
offices in Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland
in May 2000. It is now in the final phases of full
rollout. This system is a major step toward the
ultimate goal of fully paperless processing. The
European Union and its member states will spend
well over €100 million between 2003 and 2007 to
introduce an even greater degree of electronic information
exchange, which has the potential to save
businesses time and money and reduce the instance
of fraud.
For individuals, the 15 Western European countries
that make up the region of free cross-border
movement known as the “Schengen area” or
“Schengenland” launched a website in the United
States that offers Europe-bound travelers quick
and easy access to information on obtaining the
single, Europe-wide visa: the Schengen visa
(www.eurovisa.info).
Traveling in Europe has been simplified since the
introduction of the Schengen visa, which allows for
travel in and between Austria, Belgium, Denmark,
Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Greece,
Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal,
Spain and Sweden. From now on, visitors who
require a visa need only the Schengen visa, which
allows free cross-border movement throughout
the Schengen zone once customs and immigration
are cleared at the first point of entry within the
Schengen zone. This means internal border controls
have disappeared; there are no or few stops and
checks; and internal air, road and train travel are
handled as domestic trips, similar to travel from
one US state to another.
As these examples illustrate, much of the European
Union’s eGovernment work focuses on building
foundations. In other words, for now it focuses
not so much on developing citizen-centric services
on the front end, but rather, facilitating crossborder
integration behind the scenes. However, a
few existing or planned services will benefit citizens
as much as government.
EURES, for example, provides a network that links
employment services across Europe. This network
allows all EURES users to receive up-to-date information
in their home countries before taking (or
considering) a job in another country. The EURES
website delivers information and online services on
job searches, curricula vitae searches, labor market
information, living and working conditions and
European public employment services.
The network benefits both sides of the employment
equation. Citizens have access to employment
opportunities across Europe and to a wide range of
assistance from advisers. For businesses, EURES provides
a platform to publish vacancies throughout
the European Union as well as support in finding
the right human resources, regardless of the
employees’ locations.
Personalization is emerging
Last year we emphasized that the principles of
customer relationship management underpin
eGovernment. Customer relationship management
promises intelligent interactions between governments
and their customers based on information
about the characteristics, needs and preferences
of customers.
That said, customer relationship management implies
personalization of services over time—tailoring what
the government provides to the individual user.
Personalization, if implemented well, has obvious
benefits for the user. He or she obtains more appropriate
services and receives more relevant information,
which should improve the user experience and drive
greater customer satisfaction. Personalization also
can help users have the most relevant sites right
at their fingertips, eliminating a major barrier to
eGovernment usage.
It also drives value for the government, since personalization
suggests the better use of available customer
data to target eGovernment services more accurately
and improve eGovernment delivery strategy. The
resulting improved services should drive take-up.
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