free space

digital transformation (1)

Faisal Mohammed Al-Shamry

February 28, 2022

Digital transformation has become an obsession for government institutions in the region before companies, and it has turned because of leadership incentives and a unique model for change, into an obsession for officials, to the extent that some of them became, even if they did not realize the meaning of some technical terms, using them to prove the opposite, and some became obsessed with fear of change, not What is meant here is an institutional change, rather a change of these people, and their removal, to replace them with possible and empowered leaders, and this is the way of life, and the tools for achieving the vision of leadership, by becoming the number (1).

The size of the digital transformation market will grow from $521.5 billion in 2021, to $1 trillion and 247.5 billion by 2026, with an estimated compound annual growth rate of 19.1%.

On May 22, 2013, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, launched the UAE Smart Government initiative, to provide services to the public, wherever they are, and around the clock.

A government that goes to the citizen at all times, and anywhere in the world, within the government's directions to develop services and achieve a high quality of life for UAE citizens and residents, in accordance with the vision of the UAE leadership.

His Highness set a two-year period for government agencies to complete the transformation, while specifying the end of this period to bid farewell to those unable to achieve the targeted transformation.

His Highness said: "Five years ago, we gathered 1,000 federal government officials, and launched with them the (smart government) project to transform government services on smart phones. We gave them 24 months to implement, and we promised the defaulters a farewell party... Today, a report from the United Nations was issued that includes 193 countries. The UAE ranks sixth in the world in smart services.

To support the transformation and (and institutionalize it) a guideline for the smart government was prepared and circulated, and the smart government roadmap was launched, where the focus areas were identified within four parallel tracks of the roadmap: creating a general environment in which the smart government thrives, assessing capabilities, and establishing common resources at the national level Citizens' happiness.

The launch of the strategy of the national plan to achieve the goals of the smart government came in support of the development of infrastructure, the implementation of strategies that advance the smart transformation of government agencies, and the measurement and governance of indicators of smart government enablers, in line with the government’s strategy for electronic and smart transformation, and in a way that contributes to achieving the relevant national goals, and provides all The appropriate conditions to reach number 1 globally in smart services.

The rotation of obtaining the 6th and 8th position does not satisfy the leadership’s ambitions, although the basics of the advantages and characteristics of the smart government have been achieved, including: it is a government that does not sleep, works 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, hospitable like hotels, fast in its transactions, Strong in its actions, responds quickly to changes, innovates solutions to challenges, facilitates people's lives and brings them happiness.

Despite the enormity of the efforts and the competitive results, today we are still the first in the Gulf and Arab countries, and at the level of West Asia in smart services, and we have advanced globally over countries that preceded us in this field, and we have reached the sixth place globally in the global index of (smart) electronic services, and the second place in the Infrastructure Readiness Index Telecommunications (TII) globally, and in the e-Participation Index (which measures measures taken to engage citizens in policy-making, government decisions and the development of public services).

This is done through three levels, starting with the level of information provision, then the level of public consultations, and then the level of decision-making. We made a leap from the 32nd place in 2016 to the 17th place in 2018, achieving progress by 15 global centers, according to the e-Government Development Report, Issued by the United Nations Committee on Economic and Social Affairs, but as His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum said: “I am proud of my work team, they deserve a big party to celebrate them, but we will hold it for them after we achieved the first place in the world, God willing, we have not yet reached the first place.” .

As we conclude the month of innovation, on the threshold of March 1, which coincides with the celebration of Future Day, and a few days before the announcement of the results of the Mohammed bin Rashid Award for Excellence in Governmental Performance, which develops the second edition of the fourth generation, in it, to include modern and innovative awards, including categories that may not have been heard There are other countries such as: the adoption of remote work applications, proactive and interconnected services, the adoption of artificial intelligence, classification of service channels, data and knowledge management, proactivity and future readiness, quality of life, leadership position and competitiveness, innovation, and others.

We recall and commend the efforts of a distinguished national team, and institutional competitiveness that has become part of the institutional DNA, and thanks to experts who contributed to capacity-building, transfer, consolidation and development of knowledge, we mention the late Professor, Mohamed Zairi, who had a credit for me and many colleagues in teaching us the principles of excellence. and encourage us to develop it.

Can we achieve number 1?

By God’s command and success, and with the support of the leadership and the provision of institutional capabilities, of course, and as His Highness said, “Not long ago, our goal was to catch up, and our successes have greatly exceeded this goal... Now we want leadership.”

Management Consultant, Digital Transformation, Expert and Evaluator of Corporate Excellence

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