It s clear that governments have a long way to go, which leaves room for vendors to step in and help. The motivations and business pressures of the public sector are different than those of the private sector. Rather than looking to capture markets and increase revenues, governments seek first to reduce costs and enhance services, Greenwood said. An EC3 survey last year found that most state governments have e-commerce projects in the works. Many plan to offer services such as online permitting and license renewals, and some are working on higher-stakes applications such as business tax collection and procurement.
Some governments think so.
Arizona and New Jersey, for example, have teamed up with IBM Corp. to take driver s license renewals online. Boston, on the other hand, has developed its online applications in-house. Some worries Greenwood has mixed feelings about e-government outsourcing. He is glad to see seamless portals for users and a move toward online services, he said, but he worries about ownership. Control should remain in the hands of people who are public stewards, he said.