Technology is being implemented at a rapid rate across local, state and federal government. Many agencies are using newly received federal funding to keep up with the demand of both their citizens and employees for more technology-forward initiatives. Whether it’s increased internet access across rural areas or firming up IT and networking to enable remote work, technology is heavily leveraged in the public sector. Agencies are turning to trusted government software partners to help ease the burden of implementing and maintaining these new technologies. Departments are increasingly turning to government software to tackle initiatives involving data governance, transparency and equity.
We had the pleasure of sitting down with John Paul Farmer whose impressive resume includes roles with the Obama administration, Microsoft and New York City. In this article, we tackle how government agencies can look at digitizing critical services and move from traditional IT to a true digital experience.
What gets a government to yes?
With any new digital initiative—whether it’s implementing new software for government or spinning up remote call centers—there is a period of internal hesitancy that comes with making these types of changes. Understandably, government agencies are risk averse by nature.
“I always start by thinking about ‘what gets a government to say yes?’ In my experience as NYC CTO, my colleagues wanted to be able to share good things about the work we were doing while avoiding negative backlash from new systems or initiatives.”
John Paul Farmer — Former Chief Technology Officer, City of New York
John Paul Farmer spent nearly three years as New York City’s Chief Technology Officer. Under his guidance, the city leveraged technology to ensure sufficient heat in the winter, provide young people with key mental health resources, connect communities of isolated older adults and enable evacuations in the face of potentially fatal flooding. They made it easier than ever to access government services—such as applying for affordable housing, finding and hiring minority- and women-owned businesses (M/WBEs) and securing essential business permits.
John Paul likened the work he was doing to a car.
“What we do is often under the hood. Many people in government focus on what the car looks like, and not how it’s running. We were looking to improve what was going on under the hood, which no one was rushing to spend time or money on. We had to find an angle.”
That angle was efficiency. With more efficient processes, innovative government software and stable infrastructure, agencies save money in the long term. When someone leaves the government and that institutional knowledge has not been captured, agencies are losing even more money.
Efficiency also leads to better decision making.
“Typically, you might have eight different siloed agencies and they don’t have systems that talk to one another. If these agencies can all collaborate quickly and communicate with each other, you can move faster and make better decisions.”
Looking to your peers for inspiration
During his tenure with New York City, John Paul’s team helped inform Houston on their broadband strategies and Los Angeles on their data strategies.
He also partnered with similar-minded cities—like Barcelona and Singapore—and developed a network of over 50 cities worldwide called Cities Coalitions for Digital Rights.
“There can be a ‘not invented here’ problem within government. Meaning, each agency wants to be the first to solve an issue, not copy-and-paste what another city or state or country has already proven.”
There is a lot of great work being done across the country, and agencies should feel comfortable looking towards other cities, counties or states for inspiration.
Many in leadership roles may not be in the weeds enough to know their current processes even need improvement. Or, if they do need improvement, they may not know a solution exists or may be turned off by the procurement process.
But, in today’s landscape, it is easier than ever to procure, launch and maintain government software. AWS Marketplace is an example of this. Their streamlined approach to government software procurement significantly cuts down the time it takes for agencies to purchase software.
“My motto was always: ‘Take what we did and customize it to how it works for you.’ Governments across the country are struggling with data competence, data accuracy and interoperability challenges. We have to address these to operate the tools that society demands.”
Policymakers head towards digitization with government software
John Paul Farmer became an advisor for Esper—a leader in policy management software—because he saw the intrinsic value of a data-driven government software provider.
“The next wave of policymaking that has to happen is built around data governance, transparency and equity. This has to be multi-agency. Policymakers need the right systems in place so that knowledge can be maintained and transferred and, ultimately, operations can run as efficiently as possible.”
Esper is able to deliver a solution tailored to the unique needs of policymakers in local, state and federal government. Esper currently serves clients ranging from the California Department of Motor Vehicles to the New York City Police Department—allowing agencies to streamline policy drafting, regulatory research, project management and citizen engagement.
The Esper platform was built with four core principles in mind: data, collaboration, transparency and visibility. With improved access to data comes informed policy. Streamlined collaboration means less silos and a more sophisticated policymaking process. Transparency ensures that agencies can use Esper to collect and analyze data—like citizen feedback on the policies that impact them. And, finally, increased visibility enables agencies to identify areas for improvement in their policy—whether identifying repealed references, the average reading level of policies or how many restrictions are present in their policies.
“Governments need access to more data and, more importantly, better processes and government software to use that data to improve their operations. The goal should be getting your house in order in terms of data—and it needs to be cross-cutting across every agency. A collaborative, multi-department effort.”
Solving the challenges of the present and future with better government software
No one anticipated the dramatic effect COVID-19 would have on government operations and the citizens they serve. The mad dash to digitize and automate critical processes during the pandemic shined a light on how much technology is going to play a role in the present and future of government.
Better access to data leads to more informed policymaking and decision making. More technology and government software leads to improved infrastructure, improved operations for government staff and an improved citizen experience. Together, government agencies and technology providers can forge long-lasting partnerships that will leave a tremendous footprint in the lives of everyone.
“We need to show that the government can keep pace and solve problems for citizens when they need to be solved.”
John Paul Farmer — Former Chief Technology Officer, City of New York
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