Two quarters into 2020 and the year has been nothing short of overwhelming, to say the least. The world today is the first-hand witness to the sweeping challenges posed by the pandemic -not only at a national or global level but also on an existential level. Of course, the mitigation efforts by the governments, businesses etc. to quell this paradigm shift or bargain for a sense of "normalcy" to prevail have been remarkable on many counts. BUT, I strongly feel that wisdom lies in admitting that this so-called "new normal" is here to stay.
As COVID-19 continues its march across the globe, it has served as a sobering antidote to a rosy discourse long held by the governments and businesses with regard to the order of things. The fight against this global crisis has been a major and an uphill one. Nonetheless, it has also set the stage for a newer, better and less fragile world order. Acting as a catalyst of this New World Order, is the role of technology in transforming governance, otherwise called GovTech.
As one of the greatest statesman of all times once said "Never let a good crisis go to waste." The proverbial silver lining to the challenges of such kind and order always brings in opportunities.
If not a 'black swan', COVID and the current global scenario in its downstream has, at least, spelled a watershed moment for a lot of businesses and industries. And this includes GovTech - a rather specialized and honestly, an understated domain within The Great Indian IT Industry. In a way, the vision of our organization has always been ahead of its time.
It is my firm belief that in the times to come, the way governments react and interact with the citizenry, the manner in which they carry out their affairs is going to witness a tremendous change and GovTech shall be one of the key drivers for these changes. The wheels are already in motion. Today, with the kind of technology influx happening around the globe, from an organizational standpoint - a clarity of purpose, drive for excellence, competency to build sustainable & scalable systems and convergent ideas that brings value to the governance structures across the world, would spell make or break.
Having said that, the theme of this edition of i2- Decoding GovTech, couldn't possibly be more pertinent to this spirit.
