The federal government is known for many things; efficiency and progressiveness aren’t typically among them. Its evolving digital strategy may turn the tide on those perceptions, however.
Kathy Gurchiek, of the Society for Human Resource Management, recently wrote about the changes the government could realize – and the challenges it could face – with a move to an increasingly mobile workforce.
Rick Holgate, CIO for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) recently spoke about the government’s plan, which is focused both on security, affordability and ease of information sharing and on serving its constituents more effectively. When taken together, mobile solutions – the prevalence of remote network access, “bring your own device” (BYOD) policies, which are steadily growing in popularity, and multiple options for communicating electronically – will likely dramatically change the face of the traditional work arrangement.
Holgate referenced a study from 2012 that found that roughly half of federal workers could increase productivity by as much as 17 percent per week if enabled to work via mobile devices. This potential windfall comes with serious concerns, however. Gurchiek specifically pointed to security issues, workers’ ongoing need to reference on-site paper archives, limited technical infrastructure and pushback from key individuals who either doubt the effectiveness of telecommuting or are averse to risk.
Published by Conselium Executive Search, the global leader in compliance search.
