Using SAP in Electronic Government - Research Paper Example

s SAP is participating in assessment programs in the U.S. and Europe to address the challenges of E-Government  Abstract Numerous public-sector organizations are interested in using IT to improve operational efficiency and customer service but struggle to define and measure the economic, social and political returns of government-funded technology programs, according to SAP executives. The German company, which sees significant opportunities for deploying its business software in the public sector, is participating in separate E-Government assessment programs in the U.S. and Europe and will address the various challenges at "The Impact of E-Government in Europe" conference next month in Helsinki, said Ian Swann, vice president of SAP's public sector unit. Last year, SAP joined a program headed by the Center for Technology in Government at Albany State University in New York to help address the challenge of calculating return on investment (ROI) for public sector IT initiatives. The center has conducted five case studies of organizations that have sought to assess the impact of the IT investments and has drafted a document offering a methodology for measuring ROI. Swann will present the findings of the five case studies and the ROI white paper. SAP is also participating in the European Union's E-Government Action Plan, aimed at helping Europe's sprawling public sector improve the efficiency of its internal operations and external services to citizens. The company is a contributor to the E.U.-funded Picture Project, a Web-based system that lets government officials measure the impact of information and communication technologies on organizational processes, enabling informed choices for long-term technology investments. "This isn't just about investing in IT but about investing in transforming the way governments deliver service," Swann said. "We're trying to show them ways to justify their investments in what's being achieved. “Transparency is a prime concern of many public sector organizations, according to a survey SAP recently conducted. IT can help meet this requirement, Swann said. Introduction While pointing to SAP's software expertise in areas such as accounting, human resources and logistics, Swann acknowledged an eagerness on the part of many governments, such as Germany and France, to create applications on "open architectures.” Public-sector organizations will use "open source where it is appropriate and where it works," Swann said. But Swann was quick to use the word "open" in the context of SAP's new service-oriented architecture platform. The platform, he said, "opens up the delivery of services" and opportunities to work with independent software vendors. "All of this is about building more agile applications and creating more value out of existing investments," he said. Currently, sales to the public sector account for roughly 10 percent of SAP's total revenue and are growing, according to Swann. But selling to governments, which "are and will remain under severe financial constraints," will continue to be a challenge, he said: “That’s why we have to deliver value to what they're doing." E- Government compliance We've seen the news reports with carloads of FBI agents, windbreakers and all, rushing into a business to seize paper records and servers. The evidence is analyzed later to prove a crime using computer forensics. However, the more likely use of computer forensics will be requirements around lawsuits: accounting records, emails, transaction data, and so on, all used to tell a story that will benefit either the plaintiff or the defense. The problem comes when we move data to the public clouds. How do we deal with legal issues, such as lawsuits and law enforcement? For the most part, organizations moving to the cloud have not even considered this issue. Indeed, according to Network World, "Any business that anticipates using cloud-based services should be asking the question: What can my cloud provider do for me in terms of providing digital forensics data in the event of any legal dispute, civil or criminal case, cyber-attack, or data breach?" The reality is that each cloud provider takes a different approach to cloud forensics. Although some have policies and procedures around warrants showing up at the data center door, including data retention policies, other cloud providers have not yet begun to think through this issue. The technology issues they need to consider include how to hand over just the data required, what to do if there is missing data, and how to deal with encryption. Moreover, what if the cloud provider is in a foreign country and not subject to U.S. laws? You've heard of offshore accounts to avoid legal issues; perhaps we'll hear of offshore clouds as well. Some of these issues are being considered in the Cloud Forensics Working Group at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). It is looking at the requirements around cloud forensics, and it'll make suggestions regarding best practices. I suspect we'll really begin to understand this issue after a few well-publicized court cases where data in the cloud turned out to be the smoking gun or, in some instances, where cloud providers either lost the data or were incapable of producing it on demand. No matter what, the issue will make for interesting legal discussions. The hot security skills Most successful CSOs will tell you it was a unique mix of skills that propelled them to their current position. Technical background is important, certainly, but practice in the business and excellences in communication are paramount for any CSO truly worthy of a place in the C-suite. We don't expect that to change any time soon. But every few years, a few super-hot skills get added to the mix, ones that will make you even more attractive (to your company and to future employers) and keep you on top of your game. You may need to bring in some of these skills by maintaining a well-rounded staff, rather than by acquiring them yourself. Here are the skills that our sources say are among the most important right now. Diverse technology experience Familiarity with both information and physical-security technologies is important at the highest rung of the security ladder, according to Carl Young, CSO of Stroz Friedberg, a global digital-risk-management and investigations firm. The increasing interdependence between these areas demands a broad perspective on risk management. Ability to anticipate needs By understanding the needs of the industry and keeping on top of new technologies and threats, good CSOs can identify the special skills and expertise (such as analytics expertise or a specialty in malware) needed in their new hires on both the information- and physical-security fronts, says Young. Fluency in the IT side of physical security Tom Verzuh, president of recruiting firm SCW Consulting, is seeing great demand for physical-security professionals who are fluent in technology, especially digital-video software management and analytics. Brent O'Bryan, vice president at Allied Barton Security Services, confirms his firm is hiring professionals who have experience in the convergence of physical and information security. Many, if not all, of the devices used in physical security today (including smartphones and digital-video surveillance systems) produce loads of data. Making sense of that sea of data requires special expertise, which is highly in demand right now. "The way to increase your value as a physical security professional is to invest in learning the world of IP networking and Microsoft server technologies and data analytics solutions," says Charles Foley, chairman and CEO of Watchful Software. "Security pros that know these two areas will be able to spearhead their companies’ efforts to streamline costs; increase value delivered, and will literally sell information collected to the rest of the organization." Advanced data-protection expertise Hardening the perimeter is good basic hygiene, but it is no longer enough. Information-protection skills are in great demand, according to Foley --in particular, knowledge of data-centric technologies such as enterprise rights management, multilevel security models, data classification techniques and biometrics. Work cited Anttiroiko, Ari, and Matti Ma?lkia?. Encyclopedia of digital government. 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Remenyi, D.. 5th European conference on e-government: University of Antwerp, Belgium 16-17 June 2005. Reading: Academic Conferences, 2005. Print. Sankar, Chetan S., and Karl Rau. Implementation strategies for SAP R/3 in a multinational organization lessons from a real-world case study. Hershey PA: CyberTech Pub., 2006. Print. Satyanarayana, J.. E-government: the science of the possible. New Delhi: Prentice-Hall of India, 2004. Print. Traunmu?ller, R.. Electronic government: third international conference, EGOV 2004, Zaragoza, Spain, August 30-September 3, 2004 : proceedings. Berlin: Springer, 2004. Print. Wimmer, Maria A.. Knowledge management in electronic government 5th IFIP International Working Conference, KMGov 2004, Krems, Austria, May 17-19, 2004 : proceedings. Berlin: Springer, 2004. Print. Read More