Governments face an alphabet soup of digital transformation with eGovernment and mGovernment mandates. Do I hear an sGovernment, anyone? The trend in engaging via new digital channels is clear: 52% of US online adults have engaged in one or more government related activities. For example, 19% have renewed a driver’s license or vehicle registration online, and 16% have paid a bill such as a traffic fine or utility payment. In the age of the customer, government organizations must understand and address the needs of their citizens. For governments, it's the "age of the citizen," with demands for greater transparency and accountability, improved efficiency, and, above all, better service delivery. Citizens no longer accept the shoulder shrug and age-old excuse that government is "like that" when service quality isn't as expected. And, part of that service quality for some is to be able to embrace a mobile moment to look up information or complete a task. Some government organizations hear the call and are making great strides to embrace and enable new mobile delivery channels — where appropriate. But many struggle to invest in what they do consider a strategic initiative. Of those who consider mobility a strategic priority, only 30% in government have increased spending on mobile projects, compared with 51% in other industries.

Though behind their private sector counterparts in terms of mobile strategy — and the funding of that strategy — some innovative government organizations do embrace the mobile mind shift with new channels for citizen access to information and services. But truly innovative governments embrace a broader mobile-enabling mandate to extend the benefits of mobility. My new report, From Mobile Government To Mobility Enablement: Governments Not Only Embrace The Mobile Mind Shift, They Enable It, highlights some of those innovations and provides recommendations for how best to balance the government's dual mobility mandate.