Over the past seven years, consultancy firm Capgemini has carried out surveys for the European Commission to measure the availability and quality of online public services across all member states in Europe.

The latest survey examined more than 14,000 websites offering 20 basic public services in the 27 EU member states, as well as Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Turkey. In the 2007 survey, the online sophistication of public service delivery reached an overall score of 76 percent, while 58 percent of the measured public services are fully available online.

Graham Colclough, global vice president from Capgemini and in charge of the survey, says not only has the availability of services improved, the quality has also improved markedly.

“When we first started measuring in 2001, there were huge discrepancies across countries,” Colclough says. “The availability and sophistication of services was poor. It has advanced massively over the past seven years and the quality in Europe generally is quite high. We must not rest on our laurels, however; leading nations globally provide some very progressive examples of good practice.”

For the first time, the 2007 survey also looked at users’ experience when accessing online public services

“Today’s challenge is focused more on the user experience, rather than merely the availability of services,” Colclough says.

The survey examined three elements that are important to the user experience: the provision of a legally recognized, secure electronic identity; whether the service could be accessed via alternative channels, such as call centers, kiosks, mobile phones and TV; and whether the websites complied with international accessibility guidelines.

“Although many countries provide several channels of access, the key is to understand how to manage the experience that people get between these channels, the very significant cost differentials that exist between them, and the preferences that different customers have for accessing through different channels at different times,” Colclough says. “This is a rich and complex picture to manage. That is, however, the reality that public-service providers need to address in order to satisfy their customers and manage their budgets.”

The most shining European example is Austria, which leads both in sophistication and full online availability, with scores of 99 and 100 percent respectively. Portugal has also made major progress since 2006, and Malta and Slovenia stand out as countries that have embraced e-government and advanced online service delivery, leading to these countries topping the survey in 2007.

A recent, interesting example of interactive public e-services can be found in Greece. Telecom Report has previously reported on Greece’s digital city, Trikala, which introduced its broadband network, e-Trikala, two years ago. Since then, a number of public services have been added – the latest being the e-participation program.

The program enables citizens to send in suggestions and advice to local politicians, and recent debate has centered on such issues as the building of a new railway station. As a result of comments submitted by the public via the e-participation process, the politicians decided to build two railways, one in the city center and one outside the city to serve as the freight railway.

So what should countries that want to improve public services focus on? Colclough says it is not just a matter of copying the most advanced nations. It is a far more complex journey.

“It is quite common to hear statements such as ‘we want to copy what Canada is doing,’ but you need to understand the nature of that particular country in comparison to your own,” Colclough says. “There are several aspects to consider – such as geographical and economical differences, socio demographics, and culture – which must be built in.

“One of the most important levers to rapid development in making public services available is clear political leadership. Technology is, of course, also important. However, success depends on how well you manage the streamlining of business operations frequently across public agencies, how well you deal with culture and change and also how well you optimize the mix of channels: face-to-face, phone, TV and the internet.”

When it comes to devices, Colclough cites more personalized solutions.

“I am sure we will see a very dynamic evolution that will support greater personalization and far better interoperability. Some say e-government is dead. No way. It’s just a very much different animal to deal with now than to what it was when the term first appeared.”

Hendrik Bergstén