[LINK] Gartner urges government investment in Web 2.0

[Bernard Robertson-Dunn]

Gartner urges government investment in Web 2.0
By Rosalie Marshall
24 October 2008 06:48AM
iTnews
http://www.itnews.com.au/News/87385,gartner-urges-government-investment-in-web-20.aspx

Analyst firm Gartner has warned that governments need to step up their 
commitment to social networks.

Gartner argued that, by not employing social networks, governments are 
missing opportunities to tap into societal resources, such as voluntary 
groups, philanthropists and associations.

Andrea Di Maio, author of the report, gave the example of a case manager 
in human services responsible for identifying clients in need through 
outreach or referral.

"In the future, he or she will be part of a more complex 
socio-ecosystem, including a voluntary sector, online communities and 
individuals who play a fundamental role through all the different 
phases," he said.

"Their role will shift from managing a case to ensuring that community 
resources are complemented where needed."

The report predicted that, by 2011, 70 per cent of social computing 
deployments in government that achieve business benefits will do so in 
unplanned ways.

Di Maio advised governments to select a number of employees who look for 
social networks relevant to their domain of government.

The analyst gave the example of Netmums, a social network that allows 
parents to collaborate over child-care issues, as a successful project 
set up independently.

Di Maio added that social networks are a good project for governments to 
focus on as the economic crisis deepens.

The networks require little investment to start and will help people 
looking for peer and government support when times are tough, he said.

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Regards
brd

Bernard Robertson-Dunn
Canberra Australia
brd at iimetro.com.au