Socitm will challenge council leaders to learn more about IT
and use it more effectively, president Richard Steel said at the
annual conference.
The CIO at the
London Borough of Newham council said business leaders in local
authorities need to increase their knowledge of technology and stop
wearing their IT ignorance as a "badge of honour".
He said, "Too many of our customers are still closeted in silohs
and wear their ignorance of IT like a badge of honour. They are
resistant to change.
"For too long we have been inward-focussed. It is now time to
challenge our stakeholder communities to use the potential of ICT
effectively."
He announced a new Socitm benchmarking service aimed at
measuring improvements in services that are facilitated by IT.
Steel said he wanted to "focus on demonstrating effective use of IT
rather than just measuring efficiency."
The organisation also announced a package of measures designed
to support councils in joining the Government Connect network,
central government's public sector IT infrastructure project.
From April next year, the only way councils will be able to
share benefits data will be via this network. Before they are
allowed to join they must meet the requirements of the Code of
Connection. Steel announced a package of support for councils
trying to do this, saying the effort was worth it - despite earlier
problems with the project.
He said, "I am convinced that by throwing our weight behind the
achievement of a secure government infrastructure after, let's face
it, years of fragmentation, proscrastination and wasted effort, the
public sector ICT profession can considerably extend its
authority."