“Digital transformation” may mean different things depending on who’s explaining what it is, but most technologists agree that it involves making services better than they were.
The private sector — companies like Amazon, Netflix and Domino’s Pizza — are frequent objects of admiration for state and local chief information officers who strive to make their own digital services as easy and enjoyable to use.
But in many cities, technology chiefs told StateScoop, they’re concerned with first connecting their populations to the internet, because services don’t mean much to those who can’t access them.
In state governments, meanwhile, efforts are constant to improve services and the digital infrastructure that supports them. But first, officials said, they must form tight relationships with their business partners, and that means explaining what terms like “digital transformation” mean.
During the pandemic, state and local governments got a helping hand from the U.S. Digital Response, a new organization formed specifically for that purpose. And in an interview with StateScoop, its leader shared a vision for the group’s future that expands beyond emergency response efforts.
In colleges and universities, too, digital transformation is on the minds of institutional leaders. Administrators said they’re gathering data and sending more-personalized messages to improve engagement with their student populations.
Enjoy StateScoop and EdScoop’s special report on digital transformation.
