What got me thinking about this was the Government Technology magazine article on Is E-Gov Really Delivering?
There are several references in the document to events that have played out in my emergency management career. One being Y2K and the preparations for it that upgraded an industry to be able to make a technological leap. The first websites that came along in government at the turn of the century and now the revolution in mobile devices and connectivity that is driving much of how people want to interact. The article points to the fact that we are now at the point where more people are connecting to the Internet via their mobile device than on a personal computer.
Another factoid that caught my attention is that only one-third of states offer online license renewals. So, while we have come a long way, we have much further to go. Going forward everything we do in emergency management will have a technology component.
Lastly, the workforce has changed significantly. The number of administrative support staff has dwindled over time as project staff have become responsible for their own document production. The idea of being a clerk typist has gone the way of the buggy whip manufacturer.
