AI, analytics top game changers for government CIOs
AI, data analytics and cloud computing are considered the top game-changing technologies for governments in 2019, according to a survey of public sector CIOs in markets including Australia and New Zealand.
Among the government respondents to Gartner’s 2019 CIO Agenda Survey, 27% expect artificial intelligence and machine learning to be the most game-changing technology for 2019.
One in 10 government respondents have already deployed an AI solution, with 75% planning to do so within the next three years.
“AI introduces new insights and delivery channels that will enable governments to scale in magnitudes not previously possible,” Gartner VP analyst Rick Howard said. “This will allow reallocation of valuable human resources to more complex processes and decisions.”
Other key technologies considered to be game changers include analytics (22%), cloud (19%), the Internet of Things (7%), mobile technologies including 5G (6%), business intelligence (6%) and digital transformation technologies (6%).
But the transformative potential of these technologies does not directly translate to investment priorities. Only 22% of government CIOs reported that AI was an investment priority in 2019, with the technology ranking just seventh on the top 10 list.
Instead, business intelligence and data analytics (43%), cyber and information security (43%) and the cloud (39%) are the most common technology areas for increased investment, followed by core system improvements or transformation (33%), software development or upgrades (26%) and data centre or other infrastructure (23%).
Public sector CIOs are also making progress with efforts to design and deliver digital services. Around 29% of respondents say their organisations are scaling up and refining their digital initiatives, but this is below the average of 33% across all industries.
Meanwhile, 18% of CIOs across all levels of government cite having digital initiatives as their top priority. Yet only 17% plan to increase their investment in digital business initiatives in 2019, compared to 34% in the private sector.
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