Landscape Review update

_{8th September 2020}

The Digital Transformation Team is responsible for delivering the Digital Transformation Programme and provides support and guidance to NICS Departments and other public sector organisations with the aim of ensuring that citizen facing services are transformed in a way which improves and simplifies government services. Put simply the objective is help make citizen’s lives better. We needed a way to assess the demand for digital services across the public sector.  A Landscape Review is just a way to provide evidence that will enable Government to plan ahead for the next 5 years and beyond.  The Landscape Review will also shape the arrangements for frameworks/ delivery contracts through which the Public Service will access digital skills and capability. 

A Landscape Review also provides the backdrop to reviewing Government’s ‘Making Lives Better’ Digital Transformation Strategy.  The Digital Transformation Strategy ‘Making Lives Better’ sets out a roadmap in the NICS and wider public sector, to continue our work with citizens and partners to digitally transform Government as we continue on our digital journey to better connect citizens and businesses, as well as contribute towards building a digital society.

So how does this affect everyone living in Northern Ireland? Well one of the principles of digital transformation is putting citizens at the centre of how we design government services so that Government can make lives better for everyone.  This citizen centric approach lies at the heart of our Landscape Review. 

So where are we with the Landscape Review? Over 60 organisations submitted contributions to the Landscape Review survey, telling us not only about their current service provision but how they are considering future transformation of services using digital and what their future capability needs will look like. In particular the Review has collected data to build a picture of future needs including: digital capability, digital development, payment services and contact centre services. The Digital Shared Services Landscape Review Team are currently analysing the information and data collected in the Landscape Review and are now meeting with some of the organisations in order to understand better their digital landscape.  This will provide an opportunity to talk through what owners of online services and back office functions see as opportunities for better collaboration and capability development across the public sector. These meetings are also an opportunity to discuss how the Covid19 pandemic has impacted on service delivery. During the pandemic ‘digital’ capability and online approaches has underpinned our citizen facing public services at a time when face-to-face delivery wasn’t possible. Undoubtedly there are lessons learned and this will impact on future service delivery with new ways of working.

The Landscape Review Team are also aware that many organisations contributed to this Review at a time when their priority was to maintain and develop new priority digital services during the pandemic period. We acknowledge their commitment as part of Government to help this important Review. Further updates will be provided.

In the meantime if you have any queries about the work of the LANDSCAPE REVIEW TEAM or about the Digital Transformation Strategy please email DSScomms@finance-ni.gov.uk.