Government to Business

As the United States enters its third week of shutdown, how are its Government to Business websites reacting? Some have their act together but others are a complete disaster - both in the short term and long term impact. And of course there is a hidden victim from the shutdown that is going to reduce the quality of the government's digital service delivery offerings.

The Australian Government's business portal has been led through massive customer centric change the past 10 years by Simon Fisher. In this particular interview we talk around what's the Australian Government approach is towards a customer-centric digital service delivery to business, particularly in a federated environment. We talk about how Simon has been at Business.gov.au in using social media, search engine optimization and other strategies to get the message out about the resources on the website at relatively minimal cost. And also to start looking at the practical steps that they have taken to convert complex content and concepts into plain English. Now this is a really interesting thing when Simon starts talking around this element, around how do you get the lawyers on board and signing off on plain English where you've removed all the bureaucratic legalese out of things, but yet it's still actually able to stand up so to speak in a court of law. So that's a really interesting part of the interview, we also go on and talk around the differences between usability testing in a controlled environment and actually going to the place where business owners are actually using their computers when they're conducting their business. And of course, we also touch on how Business.gov.au measures the time and money saving that they've been able to deliver to businesses and I suppose more from that qualitative point of view, what those business owners have been able to do with that time and money that they've been able to save. So a really great interview, this is a little bit long just under an hour, but I think you'll find there's lots and lots of great things to learn from this particular interview. I must admit I recorded this one with Simon face-to-face. So the first face-to-face interview I've done on the show and this was actually done in a very small office where it was a little bit echoey. So I do apologize for the audio quality. It's probably not quite as good as normal, but that being said I think you'll still find the information in it is really, really useful.

In the third and final part of Gavin's analysis into the US Federal Government's Reform Plan and its impact on digital Government to Business service delivery, he delves into the template for the Federal Government's digital front door strategy: Farmers.gov The change in direction toward customer-centric digital front doors to government, coupled with a wide range of innovations and transparency set a new benchmark for not just US Federal Government to Business websites, but states, municipalities and even governments outside America. For more info and a transcript visit Government To Business.

After looking last episode at the US Federal Government's Reform Plan and its changes to digital Government to Business service delivery, this week Gavin looks at the broader digital capability improvements proposed. From a research institute sounding like its sprung out of a super hero comic, to the gritty facts of evidence based decision making and customer-centric digital front doors, the online channel has so much to gain and capitalize on in this reform plan. And that can only benefit Government to Business services in the United States. But like last week, its not just US Federal government agencies that get something out of this reform plan. American states, municipalities and governments outside the US can all benefit from the strategic leadership and direction being set that you can learn and benefit from. For show notes visit https://www.GovernmentToBusiness.com To download the report visit https://performance.gov/GovReform

  The White House's recent Reform Plan to transform government has many implications for anyone in the US Federal Government space dealing with digital Government to Business service delivery. That said the directions being taken are equally of interest for those in American state and municipal governments and even jurisdictions outside the US. Its plans for consolidation and bringing together across government a range of core services is a great step forward in better meeting the needs of American businesses. In this episode I look at the proposed changes that specifically relate to economic development functions and how they relate to the digital channel. This is the first in a series of episodes looking at the US Government Reform Plan and its impact on Government to Business digital service delivery. For show notes visit https://www.GovernmentToBusiness.com To download the report visit https://performance.gov/GovReform  

When trying to grow business in your jurisdiction, how do you balance an international English speaking audience with locals? In this interview with Wouter Nieuwenhuis and Laurens den Ouden we explore how the Netherlands is doing this exceptionally well with its one stop shops for business in English and Dutch (Business.gov.nl and Ondernemersplein.nl respectively.) We discuss: How building momentum with “founding fathers” - champion agencies - and building examples of success can help overcome internal obstacles within government What other EU governments can learn from the Dutch experience and segmenting the business audience - both inside and outside your country - and what to correspondingly deliver and The importance of regular high speed Agile improvements and developments to your government portal For shownotes, transcript and more info visit GovernmentToBusiness.com.

Whether you're just starting to sell the idea of transforming your government to business digital service delivery, or you're putting together a 100+ page business case, you need to cover off benefits. And while there are many major benefits, this episode I'm going to concentrate on the three big ones: Economic development and job creation Internal savings and team culture The political dimension For shownotes, transcript and more info visit GovernmentToBusiness.com.

Ready to punch above your weight with the big boys? In this interview Massachusetts State Representative Andy Vargas and the City of Haverhill's Assistant Economic Development Director Nate Robertson outline how a mid-size city can achieve great things in the digital service delivery space with business customers. We talk about how government can create a personal connectedness with business owners, doing a lot with very little resources and the importance of mentoring as an economic development tool. Visit Haverhill's Business Portal to learn more. You can also read Gavin's original article on the Haverhill Business Portal. For shownotes, transcript and more info visit GovernmentToBusiness.com.

This week I had to share a new really impressive customer experience for registering a business online. Your government can learn from MyBiz Colorado's intuitive and simple interface and process and apply locally. And of course I look at where the customer journey could be improved even further.  For shownotes and more visit www.GovernmentToBusiness.com

In episode 4 of the Government to Business podcast, Gavin analyses how governments effectively communicate regulatory change to businesses by highlighting the example of the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). He shows what works and what doesn't. And how you can apply this to your jurisdiction and government when significant regulatory change is going to impact business locally. For shownotes and more visit www.GovernmentToBusiness.com

In this episode Gavin interviews Martin Godel, Head of the Small to Medium-size Enterprise (SME) Division of the Government of Switzerland. Martin is leading the digital transformation across government agencies, cantons (states) and municipalities for business registration in Switzerland. Visit EasyGov.swiss to see what Switzerland is achieving in their digital service delivery to business.  For shownotes, transcript and more info visit GovernmentToBusiness.com.

In this second episode of the Government to Business podcast, Gavin discusses what the first thing senior executives delivering government digital services to business must focus on in their strategy: customer centricity. He breaks down the initial steps to take to deliver benefits to businesses, saving them time and money and how your government can achieve massive efficiencies. For show notes and a full transcript visit Government to Business

In the first episode of the Government to Business podcast, Gavin introduces the show and how it's designed to help senior Government executives delivering services to business. Then he interviews John Keisler, Economic Development Director of the City of Long Beach in California who's doing some amazing innovations with BizPort, their business portal. For shownotes, transcript and more info visit GovernmentToBusiness.com.