Published May 2019

Breaking Down Boundaries Mobile Working in Government

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Delivering customer service throughout Brexit and beyond

Change in a changing world

Twenty first century government is having to do a lot to keep up with the changing times. And change must occur in the interests of public service; change that will make government workforce fit to serve citizens.

Citizen expectations are growing, the political climate is uncertain and, as always, there is the constant mantra of needing to do more with less.

Government is at a cross roads. It can either continue as normal and wait for events to unfold or be proactive and equip itself for the future. Staying ahead of the times is critical for government organisations as the pace of change is showing no signs of letting up.

The evolution of workstyles

Many public sector organisations are beginning to ask these questions and explore smarter ways of working. To do this, they are exploiting technology and matching this with customer needs and preferences. So, what are these new workstyles?

  • MOBILITY IN THE OFFICE
  • HOT DESKING
  • FLEXIBLE WORKING PATTERNS FORM THE OFFICE
  • HOMEWORKING
  • CROSS BOUNDARY WORKING

As the landscape of work shifts, more public sector organisations need to take advantage of technology to support these new ways of working.

As the workforce becomes even busier and dispersed, government need to adopt technology that helps create and maintain meaningful communications between teams in departments and across organisational boundaries. Technology that drives communication and encourages interaction is vital for government collaboration, bringing civil servants together in modern and efficient ways.

The ambition as set out in the Government Transformation Strategy, 2017 to 2020 is to harness technology to deliver services so government can transform the relationship between the citizen and the state. But, in order for government to strengthen the relationship with citizens, the relationship between public servants needs to also be strong. Unified communications is one way that can make this possible.

What to prepare for and how to prepare for it

For government to deliver excellent public services, it needs to be fully equipped. The types of tools that public servants use, the space they work in and the processes being used to deliver public services are all essential to digital government. So how do government prepare for all this?

Firstly, it’s important to start by looking internally. Government needs to assess its workforce and workplaces by asking the following questions:

  • What are the needs of the workforce?
  • Is the workforce an environment that staff are motivated to work in?
  • Are staff equipped with the best tools to do their jobs?
  • Do staff feel empowered, productive
  • Are you equipped for flexible and mobile working?

With the development of new technologies making lives and work easier, public servants are wanting more from work. They want flexibility and the right tools to carry out their jobs, whatever their roles and wherever they are.

The transformative role of unified communications

Unified communications is a suite of technologies, often used as an umbrella term for a group of communication tools. And it’s accelerating change throughout many private and public sector businesses. The benefits of unified communications technology includes reducing overheads, increasing efficiency and supporting productivity. And it’s ticking all the boxes for better communication in businesses large and small. Offering bags of choice, unified communications should be seriously considered within government, especially as it’s an environment where collaboration and communication is so clearly needed.

Unified communications technology is also facilitating the ability to work across a wider range of locations, both for mobile workers and public servants. That’s why it’s a smart technology for government organisations to adopt. With unified communications, public servants can work in ways they want to, and communicate with each other regardless of location, get feedback on work, share ideas and make sure everyone is on the same page.

With modern telephone systems to contact centre solutions, video calls, instant messaging, presence and audio or web conferencing, unified communications means public servants can be easily reached, wherever they are. Team collaboration can be easily supported and customer facing staff are able to deliver better customer experience, allowing performance to be measured from any location.

Interested in finding out more on how to equip, empower and mobilise your workforce? Give us a call to discuss its features in more details and explore how unified communications can redefine the way your government department works – contact us on 0800 316 7566.
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