E Governance in Today’s BPM World

Any government, it is said, is only as transparent as its citizenry wants it to be and as the government functionaries choose it to be. However, with an increasing number of countries now paying due attention to their citizens’ rights to information, this transparency does seem to be on the rise. With e-governance, a government gives all its citizens a common platform to voice their opinions, seek answers, and most importantly, to get work done.

E-governance is not something that is limited to the west any more, and a number of Indian states have also embraced this technology is some form or the other. States that are already part of the e-governance revolution in this country include Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu, with more looking to follow suit.

This shift in paradigm is not without reason. Not only does this allow the government mechanism to be available to the common people round the clock, but it also cuts across the geographical barriers owing to the continually rising internet connectivity penetration even in previously unreachable hinterlands. So, not only would this result in saving time and money, but would also provide people with the much needed ease of access. For instance, registration of property could be incorporated into e-Governance, and so could an assortment of application processes.

Governments need to recognize that looking at BPM e-Governance solutions is the way to go because documentation accounts for a considerable chunk of its work, and this would include collecting documents and forms from the electorate, or supplying the electorate with any record or document that it requires.

With a good document management system in place governments would succeed in making their processes more transparent. Moreover, since government processes, like any other business process, require to be cost efficient, incorporating an effective document management solution would work in reducing the costs considerably. Process and documental Security is also a crucial aspect, and with the right document management solution in place the classification of documents and access to the same can also be handled effectively.

Other benefits that a good BPM e-governance solution would provide include ensuring that documents are not lost or misplaced and that they can be tracked easily; that inter-governmental communication is streamlined; that audits can be more reliable; that collaboration between various departments is augmented; and a smoother overall workflow. A good BPM e-governance solution should ideally be able to seamlessly integrate with the process’ existing framework; and should also allow room for reengineering at a later stage if the need arises. Also, owing to the diverse electorate, such a solution should be multilingual. These, in effect, would lead to the smoother overall functioning of all the government bodies involved, which resultantly would lead to a more satisfied electorate.

And since this is the primary aim of every government body (or should be), then not using e-governance to empower the people would only leave them discontented, unsatisfied, and looking for change.