In recent years, there’s been growing pressure on state and local governments to transform operations and invest in tools that improve efficiencies and service delivery while reducing costs. The imperative for transformation has only been magnified by COVID-19’s impact on citizens, communities and government staff. But state and local government agencies have historically faced tough challenges in updating and upgrading their IT systems and infrastructure — including budget constraints, increased workloads and insufficient IT resources.
The good news is government leaders are increasingly recognizing that investments in enabling technology pay off to improve transparency, responsiveness and public trust. According to the 2021 Spending Forecast for the State and Local IT Market by GovTech, IT spend was projected at a total of $118.7 billion, a 6.9% increase from 2020. As a result of the pandemic, many IT projects have been reprioritized over the past two years with a focus on enabling workers to continue essential operations and work remotely.
The future of work is here
In a Center for Digital Government survey of state and local officials, nearly 75% of respondents said they believed a hybrid work model — where employees work from home at least part time — is their agency’s long-term model. Equipping workers with safe, secure digital tools and cloud-based content services helps ensure that employees can deliver citizen services and business continuity no matter where they are working. Almost overnight, the global pandemic has permanently shifted the way government functions — and provided an opportunity to adapt and thrive in the digital age. Accelerating digital transformation and legacy modernization is crucial to meeting the ever-increasing demands and expectations of state and local government stakeholders — citizens and employees alike.
