OASIS Transformational Government Framework (TGF) TC

FAQ

  1. What is the rationale behind this standardization effort? What is the motivation of the sponsors/authors?

    A - Governments all round the world have struggled to get real benefits from their use of IT to implement their e-Government initiatives. Increasingly the set of best practices generally known as "Transformational Government" is pointing the way forward. This a much more radical focus on transforming the whole relationship between the public sector and users of public services as opposed to just putting current government services on-line. The TC has produced a document that sets out the Business Case for TGF and this is available on the TC website.

  2. What is the scope of this effort? What is explicitly out-of-scope, and why?

    A - Whilst there is not a one-size-fits-all approach because each government is different, there are some universally applicable rules, sets of principles and processes for delivering the transformational change. The work of the TC will be to define an overall framework that encompasses these rules, principles and processes. Nothing is explicitly out-of-scope at this stage although it is likely because of the very wide breadth of the subject area that some aspects may be better handled by separate TCs or indeed other standards organisations. Decisions on that will be made on an-as-needs basis as the work of the TC progresses.

  3. Are there existing comparable or overlapping standards, or comparable standardization efforts currently under way (inside or outside OASIS)? How does the work of this technical committee relate to these? What distinguishes this TC from similar work? How do the differences add value?

    A - None. This is new territory and is not being addressed by any other standardisation efforts.

  4. Is the product of this technical committee intended to be used in conjunction with other standards or complementary technologies? What are these? How does this work relate to these (is the usage of these complements mandatory? optional? restricted or profiled?)

    A - The Transformational Government Framework will set out a whole range of standards, methodologies, policies, strategies and the like that are required to implement the Transformation Government approach. It is not intended that this TC will produce new standards but it is likely that it will identify the need for new ones and it will seek to get them created.

  5. Can you give some example of concrete applications that will benefit from standardizing the specifications from this TC?

    A - The new Transformational Government approach covers the whole domain of how Governments deliver their services to the citizen and business communities. To that end all applications involved in on-line service delivery and point of contact service delivery will benefit from this new approach.

  6. Is it anticipated that TC deliverables will be broadly used, deployed, and/or implemented? Or are the deliverables intended for a narrow audience, possibly including only the TC membership?

    A - The TC deliverables will be for use by all Governments and public sector organisations across the globe.

  7. Do you see external factors that should help a broad acceptance and deployment of the specifications from this TC? And what factors may potentially hinder a broad acceptance and deployment?

    A - The Transformational Government approach is effectively the next step on from e-Government and as most Governments around the world are heavily into delivering eGovernment initiatives then this next step should be a natural progression for them.

  8. Do you know of companies or industry verticals that have already expressed interest in using the specification(s) produced by the TC in their products or services?

    A - This new Transformational Government approach is already being used to varying degrees by Governments in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Croatia, Hong Kong and UK.

  9. Regarding the adoption of this specification(s) by a vendor for its products: is this a decision that vendor companies can make individually, or are the interoperability aspects important enough to require industry-wide, coordinated adoption?

    A - In so far as the Transformational Government Framework will set out the policies, strategies, methods and standards to be used, this will have an impact on all vendors who provide services and software to Governments and therefore will require industry-wide adoption.

  10. Have the authors and their companies considered further ways to promote the produced specification(s) after completion (PR, marketing, campaigns, industry consortia....)

    A - Yes we are looking to work with global institutions and NGOs, eg World Bank, European Commission, ERIS@, to assist with promoting the new Transformational Government approach through the directives and guidance they issue to their member communities.

  11. What are the security implications, if any, of this effort?

    A - None

  12. Where and how do I start to implement a Transformational Government programme?

    A - The success of a Transformational Government programme will depend almost entirely on the enduring commitment shown by the Leadership as set out in the Primer at Component 1: Guiding Principles. Getting that commitment has to be the starting point for any TGF programme.

  13. What is meant by "one-stop service" in the Transformational Government Framework?

    A - "One-stop Service" is a service designed around the needs of citizens and businesses. Such a service brings content and transactions from a wide number of different government agencies, and from different layers of government, enabling them to be integrated as a "one stop" point of service delivery, according to common service standards and with common marketing and communication.

  14. What is meant by "Brand-led" in the Transformational Government Framework?

    A - In government "Brand-led" is frequently understood in a superficial sense (badging, logos, advertising etc). But outside government it has a much deeper and more fundamental meaning, which is entirely apt for the way it is used in the TGF. Put simply, the brand is the implicit promise that an organisation makes to its users about the products and services it delivers. And the TGF genuinely is recommending to governments that they adopt a "culture of brand-led service design and delivery" rather than simply a "culture of service design and delivery". In a brand-led culture, governments and public-sector organisations should think hard about the promise they want to make to service users, and then redesign their service delivery and communication systems to ensure they delivered consistently on that promise.

  15. Do I have to use the Franchise Marketplace approach?

    A - No the Franchise Marketplace is simply a recommended but not obligatory way of delivering a Transformational Business Model. The TGF recommends implementation of a business model that permits the joining-up of services from all parts of government and external stakeholders in a way that makes sense to citizens and businesses, yet without attempting to restructure the participating parts of government. The Franchise Marketplace has been adopted successfully to date but clearly it is possible that alternate models may be developed in future.

  16. Will a Transformational Government programme require new money?

    A - Generally any new TGF programme should not require new money. It is more a case of making better use of existing budgets by co-ordinating and pooling current resources. Organisational and business change must be addressed before consideration is given to spending new money on technology

  17. What other deliverables do the TC plan to produce in addition to the TGF Primer and Core Pattern Language?

    A - A full list of intended products and the timescales for producing them is available on the TC website.

  18. Do you intend to publish your documentation in languages other than English?

    A - Yes, initially we are looking to translate the major documents into French, Dutch, German and Spanish and will look for other opportunities and resources thereafter. If anyone has the time and facilities to translate into other languages will they please contact the TC Chair.

 

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