Action 1 case study: active board-level leadership
Published 24 March 2014
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The importance of high-level digital leadership
Martha Lane Fox, Antonia Romeo (MOJ) and Ian Trenholm (Defra) talk about the impact of high-level digital leadership
“Revolution, not evolution,” said Martha Lane Fox, who was the government’s Digital Champion, kicking off a complete rethink of the way government uses digital to deliver public services. The stated aim: that services should be digital by default.
To make that happen, government departments need to have proven leaders in place at the top. People with a track record in transformation, who understand the potential digital offers, and can push for change from board level.
Martha says:
It is only ever likely to be a success if you have support at the top level of an organisation.
It’s vital, she says, that there are people at the top who understand technology and can see its potential.
These people need an ability to inspire and lead, and put out the art of the possible.
Antonia Romeo is one those high level leaders, in charge of transformation at the Ministry of Justice. She says putting this strategy into action means changing paradigms, reforming and transforming the way business is done.
She says:
It has to be taken seriously by the people at the top.
Digital is completely critical to our Transforming Justice programme. You need to have really strong leadership. Change is something organisations have to do to stay innovative.
Transactions at scale
| Transaction | Online | Paper | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cattle tracing | 10 | 3 | 13 |
| Prison visits | 0.83 | 8.01 | 8.84 |
| Court fines | 0.25 | 1.63 | 1.88 |
| Fishing rod licences | 0.25 | 1.25 | 1.50 |
Figure 1: Annual paper and online transactions (£ millions) for 4 government services
Ian Trenholm is doing similar work at Defra, the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs. He thinks it’s important for civil servants to think more radically.
Politicians don’t like things going wrong, and that tends to lead to civil servants being quite risk-averse. That makes sense, but I think this agenda is too important.
People shouldn’t be afraid to try new ideas, he says. Start small, experiment, test, and see what works.
Try prototyping something. If it doesn’t work first time, don’t worry about it. Move on.
That’s not how government normally works. But it’s how some of the most successful private sector businesses have been working for years. This experimental approach is more likely to be used - and more likely to succeed in the long run - if it has support from people right at the highest level.
It’s really important to have ‘big hitters’ on the board, because you need someone credible that understands technology, and can genuinely advocate for it.
The stakes are high, and the possibilities endless, says Martha Lane Fox. Government must take the lead by creating “brilliant” public services.
I believe that as a country, we should help people unlock their full potential. The opportunity is enormous. And the momentum is with us.
Antonia Romeo is Director General of Transforming Justice, Ministry of Justice.
Ian Trenholm is Chief Operating Officer at the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs.
Martha Lane Fox was the UK Digital Champion.