Module 0-3: Text 2

e-TERM reference*

TPC4

Version no.*

1

Version date*

2001/08/28

Contributor*

Cain, Piers

Author/s*

Heeks, Richard

Title*

Chapter 1: Reinventing Government in the Information Age

Print availability

Reinventing Government in the Information Age: international practice in IT-enabled public sector reform, (Routledge, London and New York, 1999). 9-21

Electronic availability

-

Copyright

© 1999 Selection and editorial matter Richard Heeks; individual chapters, the contributors

Introduction

Although Heeks' writing in general tends to focus on developing and transitional economies, this particular text cites examples from a variety of industrialised and developing countries. In this chapter Heeks argues that 'government reinvention' is largely a new terminology for and a repackaging of longer term processes of public sector reform that have been present since the 1970s. The chapter describes how the response to a sense of crisis in the public sector lead to reform programmes that typically combine five main components: increased efficiency, decentralisation, increased accountability, improved resource management, and marketisation. The chapter concludes that 'reinventing government in the information age' means delivering these ongoing reform components with a more overt role for information and with a greater use of information technology. The role of information systems and information technology in reform is then analysed with real-world examples.

Richard Heeks teaches information systems at the University of Manchester in the UK, in the Institute for Development and Management: a postgraduate centre for public sector mangers from developing and transitional economies.

Relevance

Places electronic government in its historical and public policy context. Useful for students who require greater exposure to the working of the public sector.

Concepts*

Accountability
Decentralisation
Information systems
Information technology
Marketisation
Processes
Reinventing Government

Cases

Module no.*

Role

-

Contribution to learning objectives*

Preliminary reading

-

Reading help

Concentrate on pp 16-19. This text explains what happens when the fashionable notions of 'reinventing government' and 'electronic government come together. A merit of this chapter is that it points out that e-government is part of a wider (and older) agenda of public sector reform; indeed it is a means to an end rather than an end in itself. The chapter is a useful corrective to the somewhat supercharged language used by some pundits writing on this topic. Still, it is important to recognise that the ideas underlying reinventing government and electronic government are driving many of the changes in the public sector around the world and will determine the kinds of business processes and information systems that will be used. Finally, because government is a massive purchaser of goods and services from the private sector, e-government is likely to have a significant impact on the way the private sector conducts business.

Discussion

What is driving new information systems in government - policy reform objectives or the possibilities of the new technologies? Which is likely to be more important in determining the implementation of new information systems?

Heeks makes a distinction between 'information systems-supported reform' and 'information technology-supported reform'. From the perspective of the archivist or records manager, is this division useful? How many of the examples he cites would create records?

Assignment

On p 20 Heeks lists four challenges to using IT in government reform. Which of these are likely in the long term to be the most concern to records professionals and why? Write a short paper of not more than 2-3 pages.

Using the examples cited in the text, attempt to complete the following table:

Country
Organisation(s)
Business process
Type of application
Records?Yes/No

Note in some cases you will have to guess.

How many of the examples you have found are likely to involve more than one organisational unit? Are these systems likely to supplant existing paper records or will they create new kinds of record?

Further reading

Osborne, David and Gaebler, Ted, Reinventing Government: How the entrepreneurial spirit is transforming the public sector (Addison-Wesley, Reading, Mass., 1992)

Center for Democracy and Technology
http://www.cdt.org/
The Center for Democracy and Technology works to promote democratic values and constitutional liberties in the digital age. With expertise in law, technology, and policy, CDT seeks practical solutions to enhance free expression and privacy in global communications technologies.

CitizensConnection.net
http://www.citizensconnection.net/
CitizensConnection.net is the biggest website in the UK for people who want to change the world (or their bit of it). It's full of practical advice on how to take action plus the stories of people who've done it already.

Digital Governance
http://www.digitalgovernance.org/
Site dedicated to building and sustaining democratic and accountable governance structures using ICT.

The eEurope Initiative
http://europa.eu.int/information_society/
eeurope/index_en.htm
The eEurope initiative was launched by the European Commission to bring the benefits of the Information Society to all Europeans.

eGovernment Bulletin
http://www.iib.com/
The first email service covering electronic public services, 'teledemocracy' and the information society in the UK and worldwide. The Bulletin is a free, independent publication, aimed at everyone in government, local government, the social sector and their private sector partners.

The World Bank's E*Government Website
http://www1.worldbank.org/publicsector/egov/
As a source of ideas and learning, the site presents a broad array of structured case studies, each assessing government strategies and experience in adopting (and adapting) these technologies as instruments for improved governance.