Stuart Fowler: Technology is not an answer in itself but it is an enabler

IN THE US, a powerful group of IT company executives, including the heads of IBM, Dell, Motorola and Intel, are releasing a report which states that information technology could save the US federal government $1 trillion (two-thirds of its current deficit) by 2020 by closing the "IT gap" and bringing government into line with the private sector in the way it uses computers and information systems.

In Scotland, the David Hume Institute recently issued a series of papers by some of Scotland's most influential thinkers on how Scotland could go about "re-shaping the public finances".

IBM contributed a paper which drew on our own experience of transformation as an organisation and our understanding of the potential contribution offered by technology to create a "smarter government".

The opportunity for reform is not simply about getting more for less but looking at everything the public sector does: what services it delivers, how they are delivered, where they are delivered and by whom. By addressing these "big" questions, there is an opportunity to use technology to streamline government.

To address these questions we need to open a public debate on a range of potentially contentious issues but arguably this is exactly the right time to do it - when the status quo is no longer an option.

Many of the public commentators in recent weeks have identified the need for consolidation in government. Alex Salmond has not ruled out consolidation in Scotland's police forces while Sir Philip Green identified the need for more consolidation in procurement. Others focussed on the need to centralise functions such as human resources, payroll and finance. New technological developments, such as cloud computing, can facilitate shared infrastructures, services and information to provide better value for the public pound.

Changes to the delivery of front-line services also offers huge cost efficiencies and dramatically improved service. However, to maximise the potential of this, we need to address the thorny subject of data sharing: how, where and what details can be shared between different organisations.

A useful start point for this debate is recognition that data sharing has already made our lives a lot easier. Take, for example, the ease with which we can buy our road tax online rather than heading to the post office with multiple documents.

The delivery of public services through e-channels is, in itself contentious but public services have to be multi-channel. We need to listen to the customer about how they want to receive services and not try to apply the one size-fits-all rule. In addition, the easier online services are made, the more they will be used.

Based on our own experience at IBM, we know that transformation requires taking a long hard look at what you're good at and what is core to your service.In the case of the public sector, this activity is dictated by its statutory duties but potentially government does not need to be "all things to all men". Instead they could adopt the role of commissioning body, responsible for policy and specification, while delivery of front-line services is contracted to lower-cost bodies in the public, private or third sector.

Although outsourcing is an emotive subject for governments, a longer-term vision of the future could reveal a positive picture. Say for example Scotland employed innovation and honed its skills in a particular area of public service such as revenue and benefits. We could become a centre of excellence in this area, selling our expertise to the rest of the UK and creating a new economic sector. Or could the NHS become a global beacon in tele-health with knowledge to export to emerging markets?

To generate this investment, we are advocating strategic public private partnerships with the investment coming from the private sector in return for a longer-term partnership contract that allows real savings to be made and invested to carry out the transformation.

Technology on its own is not the answer, but it is one of the key enablers in delivering the required efficiencies in the public sector. What we need is an aspiration to move towards a degree of commonality and wider integration of the technology infrastructure.

• Stuart Fowler is IBM associate partner, global business services