Case Study: How did they change the process of issuing passports in the UK? Outlines the excellent process and explains how other organizations can learn from the example.
The magic formula:
- Covid pressure
- Use an existing tool (Slack) and avoid coding
- Changing the process from serial to parallel
- Online service for other government agencies
I’m usually not enthusiastic about customer stories that companies publish. In this particular case, I met the clients at a conference held in London six months ago. They made a revolution – a rare modernization and transformation for the public sector. The combination of Corona constraints, a tool that is easy to implement, and managers of the HMPO (His Majesty’s Passport Office) allow for real change, not just “digital cosmetics.” They measure the change and deepen it.
The change carried out in the HMPO has achievements beyond the digitization of the process. Before the change, the manual process was serial and is now parallel. The process was serial for many years, primarily due to the inability to parallel work without a computer system. Changing the workflow is one of the first considerations for automating a process. Automation must allow parallel sub-processes to be managed through the system, creating integration between them and providing a snapshot during the process. It is essential to pay attention not to drag into the digitization process an outdated template of a process.
Another achievement that the mechanization of the process has made possible is the online checking of passports for other agencies, including the UK Border Agency, the Ministry of Justice, and the National Health Service.
Service delivery should focus on ease and efficiency. Digitalization facilitates the passport-related process for the customers and the agency providing the service.
Several measurements must be made to prove ROI in any digital transformation process. The main measures are service quality, the efficiency and quality of the process, and the reduction of costs.
I hope other countries will adopt the path paved by another government ministry on another continent. We all face the same challenges.
