Many technology companies are wary of working with government. But that is starting to change. The state of Ohio recently
announced a new RFP aimed at bringing smaller vendors in to work on some of the state's biggest challenges. At the local level, an
increasing number of jurisdictions are finding ways to form partnerships with early-stage innovators from their local communities.
At the
State of GovTech event in October, San Francisco Chief Innovation Officer Jay Nath offered his thoughts on why now is the right time for government to engage with new voices in the tech sector.
Though there are many benefits to such partnerships, the shift from traditional large-scale deployments to this new kind of partnership lends itself to certain kinds of organizations. On the business side, for instance, working with government is best suited for startups that are thinking about more than the bottom line. And the government agencies that work well with startups tend to have a culture that is open to new ideas.
Noelle Knell is the executive editor for e.Republic, responsible for setting the overall direction for e.Republic’s editorial platforms, including Government Technology, Governing, Industry Insider, Emergency Management and the Center for Digital Education. She has been with e.Republic since 2011, and has decades of writing, editing and leadership experience. A California native, Noelle has worked in both state and local government, and is a graduate of the University of California, Davis, with majors in political science and American history.