Public sector organisations worldwide face increasing pressure to meet citizen expectations, often while working with limited budgets and ageing technology. Many services are reliant on outdated legacy systems, burdening organisations with costly maintenance, data siloes and security vulnerabilities – all of which limit their ability to adapt and innovate.
However, modernisation allows public sector organisations to unlock increased efficiency, productivity and resilience. Research suggests that digitalisation alone could deliver as much as $1 trillion of productivity improvements across the global public sector.
Here, we’ll explore how modernisation, particularly through a migration to the cloud, can help public sector services build long-term resilience and efficiency and deliver better services for citizens.
Challenges of outdated technology
A recent report from the UK parliament highlighted that legacy systems are a key source of inefficiency and a major constraint to improving and modernising government services.
Moreover, according to research, more than 70% of public sector organisations in the UK can’t effectively gather, collate and manage data. This challenge is not unique to the UK; public sector organisations worldwide struggle with similar inefficiencies from outdated technology.
These include:
- High maintenance costs and low flexibility
Legacy systems, which are challenging to update and often require specialised skills, can require significant maintenance costs. These costs are diverted from service improvements, leaving public sector organisations struggling to grow and develop.
A lack of flexibility then compounds this challenge; these systems often cannot easily integrate with emerging technology, making it difficult to adapt to changing needs by quickly introducing new features or services. An example of this could be an outdated legacy tax system. This may require costly, manual updates to comply with new regulations, diverting resources from other priorities and limiting potential to introduce streamlined services for taxpayers.
- Data siloes and fragmentation
Outdated systems usually operate in isolation, which results in fragmented and isolated data. This can quickly lead to disparate data sources and a lack of accessible data, making it more challenging to get a holistic view of citizen needs, limiting service delivery and effective decision-making. In local government, for example, a fragmented system would limit the sharing of data between housing, healthcare and social services, making it challenging to seamlessly provide coordinated support for vulnerable individuals.
- Security vulnerabilities
As legacy systems age, they become more vulnerable to attacks and breaches. With public sector bodies, such as local authorities, handling personal data, this is a crucial concern since it could leave sensitive data at risk. This also leaves organisations at a risk of non-compliance with key data regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Modernisation for long-term benefits
Faced with such challenges, public sector bodies worldwide, including those in the UK and the EU, are being encouraged to adopt ‘cloud-first’ modernisation strategies. This move from physical to cloud-based infrastructures allows organisations to reduce dependency on costly legacy systems while also reaping the associated benefits, such as:
- Enhanced data integration and analytics
Cloud-based solutions allow stakeholders to seamlessly share data and collaborate within the immediate organisation and across government and other key bodies such as healthcare organisations. Modern analytics solutions allow for faster and smarter insights, driving decisions that can improve lives and meet citizen needs.
- Reduced vulnerability and increased security
Cloud-based, off-site data storage options are generally considered safer, with providers investing in cutting-edge security technologies. However, it’s important to remember that under a shared responsibility model, the public sector organisation would still be responsible for securing data and ensuring compliance.
- Boosted efficiencies
Along with eliminating the need for expensive physical hardware and storage, cloud-based modernisation enables organisations to drive efficiency by automating routine tasks, integrating data siloes and streamlining processes – ultimately accelerating service delivery. This could be implemented across services, from licence renewal to benefits applications, allowing staff to instead focus on more complex citizen requests.
- Ability to scale, adapt and embrace technology
Data volume needs can fluctuate frequently within the public sector, making scalable systems essential. Cloud-based solutions allow for dynamic scaling to accommodate changing data volumes. Meanwhile, modernised systems enable organisations to quickly adapt to new technologies and integrate innovative tools, such as advanced analytics and artificial intelligence (AI), allowing for accelerated improvements to service delivery. During crises, this is especially important, allowing organisations to handle surges in demand, such as applications for healthcare or financial support.
Harnessing frameworks to support modernisation
Modernisation can appear daunting for many organisations, especially those dealing with sensitive data and critical public services. However, to achieve resilience, it’s crucial to overcome the challenges presented by legacy systems and embrace a modern infrastructure that allows for scaling, flexibility and growth.
To simplify the process, governments have introduced frameworks to provide streamlined procurement routes for pre-approved, secure and compliant cloud vendors. For example, the UK government’s G-Cloud 14 framework, from the Crown Commercial Services, provides a list of pre-approved suppliers offering cloud hosting, software and support services tailored to the public sector. Designed for organisations that need compliant solutions, it helps reduce procurement time, cost and complexity by offering a direct route to partners for modernisation.
Endava is a trusted supplier for the framework, offering 17 services across Lots 2 and 3. These include delivering software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications, providing support in setting up and maintaining cloud software, migration, security and more.
To learn more about our work in the public sector and explore our insights, visit our Government page.