Australian councils urged to enhance digital services

Research from ReadyTech indicates that local councils in Australia are under pressure to improve their digital service offerings to meet growing community expectations.

The Customer Centricity Report 2024 by ReadyTech, based on surveys of ratepayers, renters, and local council executives, reveals a disconnect between the services community members value and those prioritised by local government. While 62% of community members have accessed council services online in the past year, less than half of council executives consider their digital services effective.

Daniel Wyner, ReadyTech's Chief Executive of Government and Justice, noted the divergence between community expectations and council priorities. "While councils prioritise internal functions such as payroll and financial reporting, the community wants easy access to information and streamlined digital services," Wyner stated.

He further highlighted the community's desire for a unified customer portal for interactions such as paying rates, submitting development applications, registering pets, or requesting asset maintenance. More than two-thirds (69%) of community respondents expressed that councils should invest in such online portals, a service deemed least important by local government respondents (8%).

"People are becoming accustomed to being able to manage all their interactions with a service provider in one place," Wyner added. "This is a user experience that's standard in a lot of industries, but not in local government."

Despite agreement between community and council respondents that online service investment is crucial, only 40% of council respondents reported having a digital transformation plan. "Councils need to be proactive about strengthening their digital services to keep pace with community expectations," Wyner said.

He noted a generational shift with digital natives becoming more engaged with their councils. The research identified challenges in delivering digital services, such as cost, outdated systems, and staffing limitations. "The purpose of councils is to serve their communities, and investing in digital transformation will enable them to do this better," Wyner concluded.

ReadyTech Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer Marc Washbourne emphasised the role of the research in guiding councils towards improved digital access. "By understanding community expectations and needs, councils are better placed to deliver useful and customer-focused services that make it easier for people to engage with local government," Washbourne commented.

The report highlights that the community ranks property rates payment, council payment processing, and a comprehensive online portal among the most important services. However, only 40% of local government authorities (LGA) respondents indicated that their council has a digital transformation strategy in place.

Challenges identified in delivering effective digital services included financial and staffing resource constraints (47% net), outdated software systems (31% net), and lack of staff skills (26% net).