Local government blazes the trail in public sector CRM

Eugene Lacey ZDNet.co.uk

Published: 10 May 2002 11:32 BST

Working with the local government IT specialist contractor, ITNET, Warwick is now regarded as a reference council for others to follow. ITNET spokesperson, Neil Hollings, told ZDNet UK that Warwick have set up several innovative customer contact points including call centre, Web site, and video conferencing contact for minority language interviews.

The future of e-business systems for local government hinges on the success of 'Invest to Save' schemes says Hollings. Nationally it is estimated that it will cost £2.5bn to upgrade every council in the country. He is confident that providing the general public can be persuaded to use some of the 'self serve' systems that are put in place, the savings can and will be made. The evidence from Tower Hamlets and Warwick helps to make the case and the strong progress made by local authorities in upgrading IT systems brings central government's bungled efforts into sharp contrast.

The Economist last week listed seven major projects that have gone awry -- including a £1.4bn overspend at the Inland Revenue, a write-off of £1bn for a failed Post Office benefits payments system, and a £118m write-off of failed projects for immigration applications and the passport agency. This follows a recent ZDNet UK report about a National Audit Office warning that one in six government departments still aren't online, and urging the e-envoy to focus on e-government implementation.

ITNET's Neil Hollings is reluctant to jump to conclusions about the contrast between local government success and central government failure. Local authorities benefit from their relatively small size -- which means it is usually possible to fit all the decision makers in one room, he says, which would not be the case with the Inland Revenue. However, central government is not completely off Hollings' hook -- as he believes there are some lessons to be learned from the planning and roll out of successful local government e-business projects.

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