1. Trends Shaping the Future of Public Sector Information Access Accessing Transportation Information Resources Worldwide St. Petersburg, Florida July 31, 2001 Mike Burk Chief Knowledge Officer Federal Highway Administration mike.burk@fhwa.dot.gov

2. 2 Emerging Trends Shaping the Future of Public Sector Information Access Distributed Networks Distributed Networks Government as Active Partner in the New Information Economy Government as Active Partner in the New Information Economy eGovernanceDirect Citizen Interaction eGovernanceDirect Citizen Interaction

3. 3 Emerging TrendDistributed Networks Traditional Model Traditional Model –Access information from people you know and trust or a central, controlled repository New Model New Model –Access information from communities you know and trust, including people youve never met –Distributed ownership of knowledge ExampleVirtual communities exchange and evaluate knowledge using Web technologies ExampleVirtual communities exchange and evaluate knowledge using Web technologies –Bound by common interest or expertise –Distributed across organizational and geographic boundaries

4. 4 New ConceptAccessing Tacit Knowledge On-Demand Process of information generation and evaluation totally different Process of information generation and evaluation totally different –Distributed, not linear –On-demand, customized responses –Information and sources (people) evaluated, validated, credentialed by community as a whole New distributed model adds context and relevance to traditional explicit information New distributed model adds context and relevance to traditional explicit information Tacit knowledge becomes more broadly available and can be rapidly converted to explicit knowledge in response to requests Tacit knowledge becomes more broadly available and can be rapidly converted to explicit knowledge in response to requests –Ideas and solutions generated and presented more quickly –Relevant knowledge applied in contextnot information overload

5. 5 Emerging TrendGovernment as Active Partner in the Information Economy Traditional Model Traditional Model –Oversight role, use knowledge for Federal oversight purposes –Control knowledge, Federal government as THE source New Model New Model –Share knowledge as widely as possible with those who will be making decisions –Broker knowledge from Federal and many other sources –Government adding value through use and exchange of knowledge

6. 6 New Public Sector RoleActive Partnering for Information Access and USE Partner with constituencies to see that knowledge is put to best use Partner with constituencies to see that knowledge is put to best use –Go beyond information collection and organization… –From passive to active information delivery –Build trust with potential users of information Deliver other peoples knowledge Deliver other peoples knowledge –Federal organizations uniquely positioned to be high-value broker of knowledge from Federal, state and local, academic, and industry sources

7. 7 Emerging TrendeGovernance Traditional Model Traditional Model –FOIA request (if you know what to ask for) –Public comment (if you can afford to travel to meetings, understand processes) –Special Interest Groups and Lobbyists have greater access to knowledge New Model New Model –Level information playing field Citizens and lobbyists have same information accessCitizens and lobbyists have same information access –Direct voice in process Electronic processes and outreach for comments and inputElectronic processes and outreach for comments and input Citizens/businesses are brought closer to the governing process Citizens/businesses are brought closer to the governing process

8. 8 Potential New Role on the Horizon? Publish Information to Devolve Governance Emerging Examples of New Model Today Emerging Examples of New Model Today –Re:NEPAOutreach to states and industry on FHWA environmental processes and approaches http://nepa.fhwa.dot.govhttp://nepa.fhwa.dot.govhttp://nepa.fhwa.dot.gov –FMCSA Strategic PlanningOutreach to constituencies not represented in traditional strategic planning and public input processes Direct interaction with citizens and constituentswhere will it lead? Direct interaction with citizens and constituentswhere will it lead? –What impact on relationship between citizen and government services? –What impact on representative (vs. direct) system of government?