By Ben Malpass, Executive Vice President for Local Government at TechnologyOne
New Zealanders and Australians love nothing more than a head-to-head comparison where one can claim boasting rights.
Unfortunately, the findings of two major pieces of research into the delivery of government digital services – while finding some interesting differences – also shows law makers on both side of the Tasman have a lot of work to do to fully engage their citizens with online services.
In both countries, Central Government (70%) and Federal Government (88%) digital service usage was much higher overall when compared to local government online service usage in New Zealand (50%) and Australia (56%), particularly among those in precarious financial situations.
And the reason why is not access but accessibility.
The studies, conducted by independent research firm IBRS and commissioned by TechnologyOne, did show the significant investment in broadband infrastructure in both nations over the past 15 years – combined with the ubiquity of smart phones – has had the desired impact.
The old problem of the digital divide – that some parts of the community simply don’t have access to modern digital services – has largely been resolved.
People want to embrace digital services. They are drawn to the convenience, the accessibility of information and the speed. But only if they are comfortable using them.
Both studies found worrying differences in the experience of citizens in the precarious financial circumstances compared to those that were better off.
For example, in New Zealand only 38% of people in precarious circumstances used online services from their local government. In Australia, the situation was little better, with 44% of people in similar positions using local government digital services.
The story for better-off people – those describing themselves as comfortable – was quite different.
In New Zealand, 62% of comfortable residents reported using local government services, compared to 70% in Australia. The findings suggest that investments in digital services largely favour citizens who are already well-served, while those who tend to put the most strain on traditional customer service channels are falling behind.
The reasons people gave for giving up on online services are revealing and suggest the problem is not with the technology, but with the designers of the services not “sitting in the shoes” of users, especially users who lack confidence.
Across the socioeconomic spectrum, Australian and New Zealand citizens identified similar reoccurring pain points – complex language, hard to find information, limited visibility on service progress, time-consuming processes and a lack of timely human support.
At the headline level, local governments have the most to gain from addressing citizen pain points. Enriching existing services with empathetic design principles that educate and guide citizens through the service – focusing on clarity and simplicity in language, providing navigation, visual aids and mobile readiness – helps reduce residents’ reliance on call centres and council offices. A win for both the community and council’s bottom line.
In a resource-constrained industry, empathy and operational effectiveness is not just beneficial but essential. Best-of-breed (BoB) software for core business processes create information silos that places upgrades, maintenance and data migration squarely on the shoulders of stretched council teams. Limiting their ability to provide the human-touch support precariously placed residents are calling out for.
Councils need to be able to update their internal knowledge base and have those changes apply to their customer portal and information available to their call centre staff simultaneously.
But without a single source of truth, how can councils appropriately integrate customer feedback into operations?
When systems, data, and processes are unified, councils can deliver more intuitive, human-centred services that anticipate needs, reduce confusion, and foster trust while also driving internal efficiency and long-term cost savings.
An integrated Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution enables councils to embed empathetic design principles consistently across all services, ensuring a seamless experience for both residents and staff. Removing the administrative, security and IT burden on staff, so that they can provide greater support to complex cases and spend more time on strategic work that will drive meaningful change within their communities.
So, when it comes to our trans-Tasman rivalry, there’s no clear winner – at least not yet. With the right technology and a commitment to empathetic design, councils in both New Zealand and Australia can bridge the accessibility gap, unlock the full value of their digital investments, and finally deliver the equitable, intuitive services their communities deserve.
Now that would be a win worth bragging about.
