Public engagement and government collaboration: Theories, strategies and case studies

Abstract

This special issue features selected papers from the dg.o 2010 conference on the theme of “Public Engagement and Government Collaboration: Theories, Strategies and Case Studies.” E-government initiatives and solutions are characterized by the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for public administration to achieve their strategic goals. US government strategies in implementing e-government are focused on citizen-centered, result-oriented and innovation-based services and processes [2]. Recently the US federal government has also started the Open Government Directive to promote information transparency, citizen participation and cross-government collaborations [4]. Similarly, municipal and state governments have their own strategic goals and missions to be implemented via ICT-based e-government programs and initiatives. In order for each government and each agency to achieve its strategic goals, e-government projects and initiatives need to be properly planned, modeled, managed and implemented. Quantifiable measures of success also need to be defined in terms of productivity gains, service quality improvements and cost reductions. In this issue, we present two broad categories of government strategies for collaboration. One deals with public engagement in citizen-to-government (C2G) collaborations, and the other is government-togovernment (G2G) collaborations to achieve data transparency and strategy sharing as well as innovative technology implementations.