Government Insights Cites Mismatch Between eGov Initiative and OMB Scorecard.

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. -- According to a recent analysis conducted by market research firm Government Insights, an IDC company, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) scorecard leaves citizen-centered goals untracked in measuring and driving agency adoption of the U.S. Presidential Management Agenda's (PMA) eGov Initiative. Government Insights cites the emphasis PMA puts on eGov to strengthen government's citizen service and the fact that the OMB scorecard does not measure citizen service. This study predicts that without performance measures in place to drive agencies toward that goal, the citizen centered mandate may be left unfulfilled.

"For all the emphasis the PMA admirably puts on leveraging eGov to strengthen government's citizen service, the OMB scorecard exhibits a serious deficiency in actually taking that initiative," says Jenny V. Whitmer, senior research analyst for Program Management and Controls at Government Insights. "Given the powerful influence the performance measures in the OMB scorecard are having on agencies, it is critical to assess how well it is driving efforts toward the PMA goals. None of the scorecard criteria measure citizen satisfaction," she added.

In this report, Government Insights highlights the OMB scorecard that measures agencies progress in expanding Electronic Government (eGov) and provides a snapshot of recent agency scores. Government Insights provides examples of how OMB could include citizen centricity from international governments and organizations. Additionally, several US organizations that are involved with projects that measure citizen feedback regarding government are cited.

"For better or worse, performance measures drive the direction of an organization's efforts," noted Whitmer. "It is important to make sure that the behavior that OMB is attempting to influence is contributing to the stated strategic goals of making it easier for the citizenry to be informed and have readier access to government services."

The study, Citizen-Centered eGovernment Needs Performance Measures for Success

(Doc #GI204403), provides the PMA eGov Initiative, the OMB scorecard, and examples of international governments and agencies that have developed methodologies for evaluating eGov impacts on citizens.

The study is available at http://www.idc.com.

About Government Insights, an IDC Company

Government Insights, an IDC company, provides government organizations and IT vendors who serve them with research-based advisory and consulting services that enable government executives to maximize the value of their technology investments; minimize technology risk through accurate planning; benchmark themselves against industry peers; adopt industry best practices for organizational/technology alignment; make more informed technology decisions; and drive technology-enabled performance and innovation. Government Insights provides full coverage of the government value chain, with special emphasis on developing and employing strategies that leverage IT investments to maximize organizational performance. Staffed by senior analysts with significant technology experience in government, Government Insights provides a portfolio of research and advisory services that are relevant to the needs of both the government and IT vendor communities. For more information go to www.government-insights.com.