Obama's transparency proposals seen as ambitious

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama's plan to use information technology to create a more efficient government is ambitious, but perhaps unrealistic given the state of the economy and ongoing reluctance in government to adopt new processes, industry officials say.

Comment on this article in The Forum.In a Green Bay, Wis., speech on Monday, the Illinois senator pledged to increase transparency in government through the use of such innovative "Web 2.0" technologies as wikis, social networking tools, publicly searchable databases and online video streaming of agency deliberations in real time.

"Conceptually, I think we all agree this is a good and valuable initiative," said Stan Soloway, president of the Professional Services Council, an Arlington, Va., group that represents contractors. "[But] how to operationalize it effectively, how to determine what information to [make available] publicly, and much more, are all critical details that still need to be worked out."

Some question how the government would cover the upfront expense of such initiatives and whether federal agencies and constituents would accept changes in how information is communicated.

"I don't think, in the current economic environment especially, that these types of initiatives are going to be a serious priority," said Deniece Peterson, a senior analyst at Reston, Va.-based market research firm INPUT. "While IT is important, this would require a whole lot of congressional support, a significant increase in money and staffing, beefed up security and training, and change management. These are people that don't necessarily like change."

Such a plan could also cater too specifically to generations X and Y, said Ray Bjorklund, senior vice president and chief knowledge officer at the McLean, Va.-based market research firm FedSources.

"This may be a little too modernistic," he said. "While a lot of good things are coming out of Web 2.0, I don't know that the constituency at large is ready for it. So are you going to have multiple channels for [getting] this information out? That's always been a difficult part of electronic government -- you can't take it too far, or you'll lose part of the disenfranchised or disadvantaged."

Obstacles not withstanding, Obama's vision could see gradual adoption as technologies that are now considered cutting edge become more pervasive. This would require the full support of Congress and the White House and probably the benefit of two full presidential terms, said Alan Balutis, director and distinguished fellow at Cisco System Inc.'s Internet Business Solutions Group. Policy agencies would have to be bulked up to drive IT initiatives, he said, and appointees would have to be vetted to ensure they are on board with the efforts from the beginning.

"The Obama plan is a very ambitious and aggressive one -- but also well developed and well thought out," Balutis said. "Technology will continue to bring about major changes in government and governance under the next president, just as it did in the 20th century. A confluence of factors -- the so-called retirement tsunami, growing concern that we may be relying too much on the private sector and confidence in government at a historic low -- creates a tremendous opportunity."