E-Government Strategy and Digital Public Service Delivery Training Course

Programme Summary

E-government strategy and digital public service delivery is the subject of this two-week training course for directors, heads of digital units and senior officials, ending in a service transformation blueprint for one public service. Agencies are asked to deliver services that citizens and businesses can complete online, yet portals, identity systems and data often sit in separate silos. The programme moves from vision and governance to service redesign, shared platforms, data, participation and benefit tracking. Mars Training Centre UK delivers this programme on e-government strategy and digital public service delivery for mixed-organisation cohorts.

The Business Case

Digital services only change outcomes when people use them and the back office behind them works. Leaders who govern portfolios, set service standards and track adoption can retire duplicated systems, shorten processing times and redirect staff effort from paperwork to casework. The programme equips senior officials to make those decisions with evidence rather than vendor claims.

• Service Completion Rates: Improve as journeys are redesigned around user tasks and tested with real users.
• Processing Time and Cost per Transaction: Fall as shared platforms and interoperable records replace repeated data entry.
• Digital Investment Risk: Reduces as portfolios are staged, governed and reviewed against stated benefits.

Principles and Evidence Base

• OECD Digital Government Policy Framework: Its six dimensions of digital by design, data-driven, government as a platform, open by default, user-driven and proactive structure Sessions 1 to 8.
• UN E-Government Survey: Its E-Government Development Index and E-Participation Index guide the maturity diagnosis in Session 2 and the benefit measures in Session 9.
• Human-centred service design: It shapes the journey mapping and prototype testing in Sessions 3 and 4.

Intended Participants

• Directors who own a digital government agenda or a portfolio of online services.
• Heads of digital units who must align architecture, delivery teams and suppliers.
• Senior officials who sponsor service reform and answer for its results.
• Service owners who redesign applications, licences and benefit claims for online use.
• Policy and strategy leaders who connect digital plans to ministerial priorities.

Typical sectors include central and local government, social protection, transport and health administration.

Learning Outcomes

1. Participants will be able to diagnose the maturity of an e-government programme using international index dimensions.
2. Participants will be able to construct a governance model for a digital government portfolio.
3. Participants will be able to redesign a public service journey around user tasks and evidence from testing.
4. Participants will be able to evaluate options for digital identity, interoperability and shared platforms.
5. Participants will be able to prioritise data sharing and open data releases against privacy and security risk.
6. Participants will be able to justify a benefits and adoption plan for a digital service.

Programme Structure

Day 1: Vision and Mandate for Digital Government

What is e-government meant to change for citizens, businesses and the state?

• OECD Digital Government Policy Framework Dimensions
• Stakeholder and Mandate Map
• Vision Statement Canvas
• Service Inventory Template
• Strategic Objectives Tree

Day 2: Maturity Diagnosis of E-Government Programmes

How advanced is the current e-government offer and where are the gaps?

• E-Government Development Index Components
• E-Participation Index Review
• Online Service Stage Model
• Gap and Root Cause Matrix
• Peer Comparison Scorecard

Day 3: Understanding Users and Service Journeys

How do users actually experience a public service from first need to outcome?

• User Research Interview Guide
• Persona and Need Statement Cards
• End-to-End Journey Map
• Pain Point Heat Map
• Channel Choice Analysis

Day 4: Redesigning Digital Public Services

How is a paper-based service rebuilt for online completion?

• Service Standard Checklist
• Process Simplification Worksheet
• Low-Fidelity Prototype Walk-Through
• Usability Test Protocol
• Accessibility Review Grid

Day 5: Digital Identity and Trust Services

How do users prove who they are and consent to the use of their data?

• Identity Assurance Level Table
• Consent and Authorisation Flow
• Electronic Signature Options Paper
• Fraud and Misuse Scenarios
• Trust Framework Comparison

Day 6: Interoperability and Government as a Platform

How do agencies share data, components and services without duplicating them?

• Interoperability Layer Reference Model
• Shared Component Catalogue
• Application Programming Interface Governance Rules
• Once-Only Data Principle Test
• Build, Buy or Reuse Decision Grid

Day 7: Data Governance and Open Government Data

Which public data can be shared, opened or protected, and under what rules?

• Data Classification Scheme
• Open Data Release Checklist
• Privacy Impact Assessment Template
• Data Quality Rule Set
• Data Stewardship Role Chart

Day 8: Governance, Delivery and Procurement of Digital Programmes

How are digital portfolios governed, staged and bought without losing control?

• Portfolio Stage-Gate Model
• Agile Delivery Governance Cadence
• Supplier Contract Outcome Clauses
• Technical Debt Register
• Programme Risk and Dependency Log

Day 9: Participation, Adoption and Benefits Tracking

How is use, satisfaction and public value measured after launch?

• Digital Participation Ladder
• Adoption Funnel Dashboard
• Benefits Realisation Register
• Citizen Feedback Loop Design
• Cost per Transaction Model

Day 10: Applying the Tools to One Public Service

Do the tools hold together when applied to one live service?

• Applying the Session 2 Scorecard to the Chosen Service
• Testing the Session 4 Service Standard Checklist on the Redesign
• Checking the Session 6 Decision Grid Against Platform Options
• Aligning the Session 9 Benefits Register With the Roadmap
• Completing the Service Transformation Blueprint

Methodology

The programme uses a structured exercise method built on anonymised service journeys, process maps, usability findings and short written cases from social protection, licensing, transport and health administration. Participants work in small groups on one chosen public service, explain their design reasoning to peers from other agencies, and receive facilitator feedback on each work product.

• Suggested activity: Mapping a licence renewal journey and marking every point where the user repeats information.
• Suggested activity: Scoring two portals against a service standard checklist and drafting redesign priorities.
• Suggested activity: Building a one-page benefits case for a service moving online.

Capstone Output

Each participant completes a service transformation blueprint for one public service. It holds a maturity diagnosis, a redesigned journey, an identity and data sharing approach, a governance and delivery plan, and a benefits and adoption register. The blueprint is used at work to brief leadership, shape a funding request and brief suppliers and delivery teams.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this e-government training suitable for senior officials without a technical background?

Yes. The programme assumes experience of public service management, not technical skills, and explains identity, interoperability and data topics in decision terms.

Which models does e-government strategy training rest on?

It rests on the OECD Digital Government Policy Framework, the UN E-Government Survey indices and human-centred service design.

How is the e-government service transformation blueprint used at work?

You use it to brief leadership, support a funding request and give suppliers and delivery teams a shared plan for your own service.

How does e-government and digital public service delivery differ from a programme on general digital transformation?

It centres on public services, identity, shared platforms and citizen adoption, while general digital transformation centres on enterprise operating models.