What will be important in accelerating digital transformation in the public sector in the future?

Digital transformation has been a buzzword for a while now, but it's becoming increasingly important for the public sector in the UK. With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing many organisations to adopt digital technologies, it's clear that the future of all public services will be heavily reliant on technology. One of the key parts of digital transformation is the delivery and in all the examples outlined below the delivery is as important as the technology itself.

AI

AI can be used to automate processes, analyse vast amounts of data, and make predictions that help public sector organisations make better decisions.

We are already seeing AI-powered chatbots help citizens navigate government websites and answer their questions, while machine learning algorithms can analyse data to identify patterns and insights that would be difficult for humans to detect.

This has seen unprecedented success in Radiology and the detection of cancers that would be missed by the human eye.

Blockchain

Blockchain has been best known for its use in cryptocurrency but has many advantages when used within public services. It provides a decentralised digital ledger that can be used to securely store and share data.

This technology has the potential to really revolutionise the way public sector organisations manages their data, reducing the risk of fraud, improving transparency, and increase efficiency. A good example of blockchain being used in the NHS during the Covid 19 pandemic was at South Warwickshire NHS Trust: they used it to monitor Covid 19 vaccines temperature storage.

Data

Over the past decade, there has been a significant increase in the use of data in the public sector, and this has resulted in significant changes in how public services are delivered, policies are developed, and accountability is ensured.

The UK government has been at the forefront of using data to drive change in the public sector, with the Office of National Statistics (ONS) being one of the most successful examples. They are responsible for collecting and analysing data on a range of social and economic issues and this data is used by policymakers to identify emerging trends, make informed decisions, and measure the impact of policies.

We are now seeing other Government departments follow fast, with the DWP using data to identify customers whose change in circumstances qualifies them for a cost-of-living payment which may have been previously missed. Similarly, the NHS is starting to predict patient outcomes and improve patient care based on their backlog of data.

Cloud

Finally, cloud computing has been around for a while but in some areas of the UK Public Sector it is still an emerging technology. Cloud computing helps organisations store, manage, and process large amounts of data more efficiently, reducing costs and improving scalability. It also provides a flexible infrastructure that can be easily customised to meet the unique needs of different public sector organisations.

There have been many successful implementations across the NHS to help with the volume of data generated from scans and results, along with the legal requirements for data retention. Within the Home Office, cloud-based services are now used to improve data processing and storage capabilities and they are using AWS to host biometric data, which is used for border control and immigration checks.

Something to consider

The public sector needs to think more about how they deliver this change, as it is still true that 90% of IT projects fail This is often because organisations treat the business and IT separately – often never talking or working together.

As technology continues to evolve, and to meet the governments ambitious target that by 2025, at least 50 of the government’s top 75 identified services will move to a ‘great’ standard, it's important for the public sector to stay ahead of the curve and embrace new innovations that can drive positive change.