The Role of Digital Transformation in Increasing Government Trust During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Digital transformation has been playing a massive role in increasing trust in governments during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To ensure that the public has faith in their government during this time of upheaval, many governments have turned to digital transformation initiatives, particularly in both the UK and the US

UK and US Government Trust Through Digital Transformation

Digital transformation has helped increase transparency within the government to help people stay updated with the latest information on what is happening within their country.

For example, the UK government has created a Government Digital Service led by Fiona Deans, responsible for making government services more digital and user-friendly. According to a 2021 digital transformation report, Fiona Deans worked on increasing trust in government during the Coronavirus pandemic and Brexit by putting the user first and foremost in everything the Government Digital Service did. The full details of the report can be seen here.

This includes making it easy for people to find the latest information on government websites and creating online tools that are simple and easy to use.

“When you really have to get something done, people make it happen,” said Fiona.

She believed in raising the people up by educating them on how the digital world works and by empowering them to use these tools themselves.

The result of the digital transformation is the creation of Government-as-a-Platform, a set of shared digital components made to avoid duplication and support delivery – was used to text citizens using GOV.UK Notify saw a 700% spike in demand and GOV.UK Verify, which supported the  Universal Credit verification of identities.

In the United States, the pandemic was a watershed moment for the government’s digital transformation. COVID-19 pushed the government headfirst into the next phase of digitization.

Never have we seen so many major government initiatives tried out across such a broad spectrum of areas, from telehealth to telework, virtual courts to virtual education.

According to a survey by Delliotte Insights, 74% of government officials surveyed say that digital helped them cope with the pandemic with 77% of the agencies already seeing the positive impact from the digital initiatives introduced during COVID-19.

In the US, government agencies are moving from doing digital to being digital. The goal is no longer just to put government services online, but to use digital technologies, data, and analytics to deliver those services more efficiently and effectively.

This is a major shift in how the government operates and it’s one that will have a lasting impact on the way we interact with our government.

Conclusion

Digital transformation will continue to play a vital role in increasing trust in governments as we move into the post-pandemic world.

It has helped to increase transparency and communication between governments and their citizens, and it has also helped to make government services more efficient and effective – two key factors in increasing trust.

As we continue to face new challenges in the world, digital transformation will be an essential tool that governments can use to help build trust with their citizens.

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