The future of local government

Local government organisations worldwide are setting their sights on creating digitally enabled and data-driven organisations that are designed to serve their ‘customers’ in revolutionary new ways.

Today’s hyper-connected digital world is about the customer experience and local authorities everywhere now have a historic opportunity to transform how they meet the needs and expectations of their own customers – the citizens, businesses, partners, leaders and stakeholders across the diverse cities and communities they serve.

The future of local government organisations – driven by digital capabilities, data integration and customer centricity – is unmistakably upon us. And as our global research reveals, there is not much time to lose on this inevitable and exciting journey as the remarkable pace of change accelerates in today’s hyper-connected new reality.

According to global research by Forrester Consulting research on behalf of KPMG, just half of today’s local authorities leaders surveyed believe their customer experience is meeting public expectations. Only 38 percent believe they are effectively compiling the critical data they need to capture a ‘360-degree view’ of customers that today’s personalised service demands.

Some future-focused organisations around the world are already pursuing modern strategies that will seize today’s golden opportunity. Their vision is to serve as a digital ‘community platform’ – providing modern, personalised services within data-driven ecosystems that are holistic, trusted and secure.

Local government agencies are ideally positioned to play a leading role in driving change. By fostering positive collaborations with the private sector and adopting expertise sharing, local authorities will able to enhance progress in delivering a level of service that's timely and efficient, while highlighting customer centricity.