Cabinet Office
The provision and ongoing delivery of a website, like all service delivery methods, is as dependent on the quality of its management infrastructure and controls as it is on the quality of information being provided. Additionally, the pace of technological development in the Internet arena demands that organisations move with the times and seek opportunities to take advantage of any new services on offer.
1.1.1 How should a website be considered by an organisation?
It is essential for the success of any website that it is recognised as an integral part of the organisation. It is a global, potentially low-cost communication and an (increasingly) transactional medium by which information and services can be made available at any time of day or night.
As such, organisations need to consider how best the Internet can be used to provide access to information and to aid in the delivery of goods and services to customers.
A clear web management strategy is at the heart of developing this thinking. It must be an integral part of the organisation’s Corporate Communications and e-Strategies.
There are three main categories of website:
Many websites may incorporate aspects of each of the above. In all three categories the principle of developing a relevant and effective management strategy applies. This section sets out the five key components of a web management strategy:
1.1.2 Planning your products and services
Departments and local authorities are currently investing millions of pounds in building the infrastructure to support the electronic delivery of their information and services. Without a central architecture to manage this spending much more will be spent on duplicating research, design, systems integration and hosting.
Departments and local authorities have been wrestling with the same problems: managing customers, content, new channels and emerging technologies. Entire infrastructures, both technical, as well as people and process?based, have consequently evolved, not always with consideration of the customer experience.
The Office of the e-Envoy (OeE), has 'productised' its infrastructure, the Government Gateway and the www.ukonline.gov.uk portal, into components, both products and services. The OeE is now able to offer these products and services, as a service organisation, to facilitate quick deployment of government content and transactions, economically, and focused on the customer. Such products and services include:
Products
Services
These products and services conform to government guidelines and recommendations produced by the OeE, and have all been security accredited by CESG.
The OeE product set has been designed and built to be fully modular, to enable departments and local authorities to customise to their specific strategic business needs. These products and services will increase over time, as more departments and local authorities take advantage of the centralised architecture.
Considerable investment has been made at the centre, in researching customer needs, defining the types of interaction customers require of government, as well as the best of breed technologies capable of delivering government information and services effectively. All government departments and local authorities are advised to consider the technical viability and value for money of these products and services before investing resources in building their own infrastructure.
For more information about the transactional products offered by the OeE visit: http://www.govtalk.gov.uk/gateway_partnerlink. An engagement pack is available to guide government organisations through the planning, design and implementation of new electronic services using the eDt products. This can be obtained from gatewaypartnerlink@e-envoy.gsi.gov.uk entering TECHNICAL ENGAGEMENT PACK REQUEST in the email title.
For information about other products and services offered by the OeE, please send an e-mail to the following address:
1.1.3 What is the website for??
In establishing the aims of the website, each organisation must ensure that:
The tasks to be addressed when setting the aims and objectives are:
To ensure that the aims and objectives of the website are achieved they must be applied to key roles in the organisation and placed under an appropriate management regime.
1.1.4 Benefits of publishing data on the Internet
Although publishing documentation on the Internet initially seems to be little different to publishing in any other medium, there are a number of special considerations that need to be borne in mind. There are almost as many permutations of monitor resolution, colour rendering, browser types, operating systems and user ability, as there are websites. Website Managers will have to consider many capabilities and standards to ensure that data is available to the widest audience.
There can be enormous benefits when documentation is published on the Internet, both for the publishing body and the general user.
1.1.4.1 Information access
A well designed website offers users a broader range of information than is available to them through conventional media, when they want it and in a form they can use.
To achieve this, the website should make use of the number of ways the web helps users find the documents they are looking for such as search engines, menus, navigational aids, indices and links between documents. Web navigation should also help users find the information they want within the document.
Some information such as menu pages and document summaries will have to be written specifically to be quickly scanned and understood.
It may be appropriate to make documentation available in a variety of differing formats. For example, some users may find it easier to download and print an entire document in Portable Document Format (PDF) and read it offline, whilst other may prefer to read it in online and on -screen in the form of a sequence of HTML pages.
1.1.4.2 Accurate and up-to-date
The web is easier to update or correct than print. Documents contained on the website can be a point of reference for both the public and your staff. Some departments provide a copy of their website on their intranet to facilitate this. A ‘What’s New’ section should be included and constantly updated so that users have a constant and familiar route to new and updated information.
To achieve accuracy, the maintenance of documents after publication should be planned and resourced. Each document should adhere to the site template and all data should be formatted in a consistent way. Particular care should be paid to the Cascading Style Sheet, which may be used to control the formatting of the website.
1.1.4.3 Savings on print and distribution costs
Publishing data on the website should save on the printing, distribution and storing of printed documents and the wastage caused by overestimated print runs. Only the one copy needs to be maintained; as soon as a changed version is published it is available to everyone.
In order to achieve this publication in print and on the web should be part of one carefully planned publication process. This process should be audited regularly to ensure it is efficient.
1.1.4.4 Website maintenance and archiving
Web documents can also be a reliable source of older documents, developing into a useful archive.
This will be achieved if archived documents are given a stable URL and are clearly marked as being archived. It is important that electronic master copies of each document published on the website are kept. This not only makes the creation of new versions in other formats easy; it also maintains an archive version for historical purposes.
1.1.4.5 Providing the call to action
A good publicity campaign issues a call for action - something the user is expected to do. A campaign website can give the user the chance to quickly and simply carry out that action, whether it is to set up an appointment, order more information, or enter the recruitment process for a public sector job.
1.1.4.6 Opening up consultation
Government makes policies and needs to collect informed views from organisations and individuals. The web can provide this opportunity and provide another channel for the distribution of the background documents that people need in order to contribute to the debate.
1.1.4.7 Interactivity
The Web can speed up the process of individuals getting the answers they need. Websites could be used to direct enquiries to the right place in the organisation to get an answer. Email can speed up the process of responding to them.
1.1.4.8 Adapting to user needs quickly
Feedback and access statistics can tell web managers which pages are popular and which pages need further development. They can help identify gaps in information or services. A well-managed website will respond to user needs and use the flexibility of the web to revise the website.
1.1.4.9 Building individual relations with the citizen
Web technology provides a way for users to register interests and receive automatic updates of news and developments in the areas that interest them. Website content can be personalised to meet their interests and concerns, or provide local or national versions of information that are relevant to them.
1.1.4.10 Saving costs on services
Properly supported by business plans and backend systems, the web can be used to improve services and reduce the cost of providing them.