IT leaders have called for an 'update' to digital thinking in the public sector, while highlighting difficulties with 'red tape' and cost.
A survey of central and local government IT executives by KnowledgeKube has found almost 60% believe there was a need to 'update existing legacy processes' in digital transformation.
A third of respondents said integrating and connecting applications and data was a priority.
Some 30 chief information officers, chief technology officers and 'innovation leaders' in central and local government were interviewed as part of the research.
Half of the respondents said 'red-tape culture' and 'old style leadership' were barriers to digital innovation.
Some 46% said the cost of innovating was holding them back.
Almost a quarter said a lack of resources and training was an issue, while 42% said the 'scale if the challenge' posed by digital improvement was often too daunting.
Peter Robbins, managing director of Mercato Solutions creators of KnowledgeKube, said: 'The combination of an IT skills shortage, high perceived cost, and therefore risk, associated with going digital, coupled with a fear of failure, are qualities that undermine the very ethos of driving rapid innovation and change.
'This is holding back experimentation required for digital glory.
'In order to progress, there needs to be a greater focus on the ability to re-engineer and optimise existing processes with greater speed and efficiency.'
