Challenges & Opportunities
Meeting Rising Expectations — While Saving Tax Dollars
State and local governments must be prepared to protect citizens who are in harm’s way. And today, that leads to new communication challenges around terror alerts and awareness — on top of natural disasters ranging from hurricanes and tornadoes, to wild fires, earthquakes, blizzards and floods.
But state and local governments do most of their work outside of the headlines. They provide and support an array of programs — constituent services, health and social services, roads and infrastructure, public schooling and higher education, and dozens more. It is here where the influence of globalization, changing demographics and the rise of a new digital economy has compelled governments to reinvent themselves to meet growing expectations among citizens and businesses alike.
Characterized as “e-Government” or citizen-focused government, it is a vision that recognizes the different ways that people interact with their government, such as:
- Taxpayers who expect value and results
- Business and citizen “clients” who expect accessible, quality services
- Citizens who participate in the democratic process
While building more effective relationships, governments must also control costs and dramatically improve internal efficiencies. Datamonitor has forecast IT spending by U.S. states and local authorities to grow to over $62 billion by 2009, and the need for strong budget oversight and tangible ROI metrics is as acute as ever. State and local governments are struggling to consolidate IT management and transform business processes to reduce administrative costs and boost productivity.
To respond to the pressures of growing needs and tighter budgets, governments require solutions that increase internal efficiencies, support legacy technologies, integrate disparate data and improve overall communications.
Read about our practical solutions for state and local governments to learn how Pitney Bowes Group 1 Software is uniquely capable to help governments support these technology and operational objectives.