The ‘low code revolution’ is improving service delivery in Public Sector

In 2020, five years worth of digital adoption for citizens and businesses happened in about eight weeks. Government agencies worldwide were able to pivot to 100% digital services in a matter of days, a level of public-sector agility and innovation never seen before. As we emerge from the pandemic, how do governments build upon this momentum?

The massive increase in demand for digital citizen services during COVID-19 simply accelerated an already established trend. Adding to this was the shift to remote work and the need for increased inter-agency collaboration to ensure rapid and effective service delivery. The result is a permanent shift in both operating models and citizen expectations.

Rapid delivery and heightened effectiveness of new digital systems has set the bar for governments going forward. However, many of the weaknesses within government systems remain as reliance on legacy and outdated technology continues. Gartner estimates that by 2023, more than 60% of governments will have tripled citizen digital services, but less than 25% will be integrated across organizations' silos.

Building agility and flexibility

Governments must find ways to enshrine innovation in everything they do. This means quickly developing and deploying systems that can exploit citizen data and insight to deliver new levels of experience and optimize operational performance.

Increasingly, governments are looking towards low-code development platforms to accelerate innovation and provide critical citizen services. Indeed, Accenture suggests the low-code revolution will unleash a 'Cambrian explosion' of innovation.

Low-code platforms empower public sector workers to quickly and easily deliver new capabilities on demand, without having to rely on hard-pressed development teams. In effect, the people who best understand citizens' needs are those who can help create the systems to fulfil those needs.

This has many benefits for government, including:

• Creating proofs of concept. Low-code tools offer a way for citizen developers to show government executives their ideas and working proofs for improved applications or entirely new systems at little cost.

• Increasing task efficiency. The reduced amount of development time required for low code makes it ideal for delivering small applications and automation to increase everyday task efficiency and shrink workflows.

• Avoiding the "good idea paradox." Low-code solutions let citizen developers convert good ideas into simple apps that can convince the business of the value for full-scale development, ensuring ideas move from concept to reality.

• Empowering remote work. With many staff members still working from home, IT teams can't cope with the variety and volume of network connections, application preferences and much-needed features. Equipped with low-code tools, employees can build what they need when they need it.

Cloud for Government from OpenText™ allows governments worldwide to place business goals before technical requirements when modernizing their IT systems. The solution speeds innovation and delivery cycles to create a new world of agile and responsive government. Read the white paper or ebook to learn more.

And join us at OpenText World 2021 to learn about the latest trends in government transformation. This free, digital event takes place between November 16-18. Register now.