This field guide is written for digital services and technology leaders working in government agencies at the federal, state, or local level. It’s meant to highlight the power of product thinking to government digital services. With this guide, agencies can start moving from a project management mindset to a product-based approach to delivering services.
Through our research understanding the government digital service field and what workers in this field need, we want to help strengthen those existing roles and establish more pathways for promotion and career support, as well as help other teams recognize the value of these skills and create new roles.
Defining a product in government digital services is crucial, as it serves as the means through which a service is delivered to the public, and understanding its attributes ensures effective and continuous improvement.
Ad Hoc has found that product operations can help scale impact by putting objective indicators at the center of product decision-making. The team has seen success in supporting product thinking at agencies like the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), where they made it easier for Veterans to access employment and education assistance and for caregivers to receive needed support.
Modular contracting doesn’t just mean that you break one procurement into several pieces. This article shows you how to take a modular approach with a single contract divided up into natural break points.
In our research announcement on theories of change (ToC) for digital government, the Digital Service Network shared our belief that all Digital Service (DS) teams should work to develop a ToC.
A modern system that helps people learn about, apply for, and gain access to affordable housing. Bloom Housing is an open source platform that digitizes the process of finding and applying for affordable housing, turning a time-consuming paper process into a 15 minute activity from one's smartphone or computer.
As a next step in Iowa's modernization effort, the MEME project released a video describing Iowa's proposed approach and next steps for the purpose of engaging with vendors. The video linked here provides additional information on the project's learnings so far.
