libraries catapulted into the limelight. The clever ones have taken advantage of this early

pioneer status, and consolidated their position as key information providers for the

community. It may not remain that way forever, however. In the UK, other players, 

especially the post office, will enter the market in due course as part of a government

strategy to keep rural post offices open, and thereby contribute to social cohesion.

People feel safe in libraries, and they trust library staff. Many people in the community

have been introduced to the Internet at their local library. We can use this goodwill to

further develop the community's e capacity. Online transactions can be introduced at

the library   renewing books online, reserving material, checking the catalogue, and

looking up the status of a library card. Library staff can be on hand to help people 

conduct their other transactions online   paying taxes and fines, booking venues, and

registering animals. 

Many libraries would like to be able to provide information anytime and anywhere,

and see themselves as community  centres.  These two roles are complementary to a

local government's goal of e government. One of the major barriers to achieving 

e government is the digital divide, and libraries by their very nature are in a position to

bridge this divide. Strong leadership will identify how libraries can best do this.

Libraries have a corporate contribution to make to the e government agenda and it is

library engagement in this agenda that is important, rather than control of it. In many

councils, the head of ICT may be the champion of e government. Other councils may

have a specially designated position. These advocates need support and depend on team 

work. They are also usually very keen to develop content and libraries are in an ideal

position to provide quality content. 

Change management

 For companies that were not born digital, the big problem is change. And learning to

use truly revolutionary technology isn't even the half of it. When their e ventures fail, it

isn't anything inherent about the Internet that trips them up. It's most often 

organisational issues like top management short sightedness and long standing internal

barriers.  (Rosabeth Moss Kanter, January 2001)

Most successful local governments deal with electronic service delivery (ESD) not as a

technical issue, but as a means of achieving the council's core aim of continuous

improvement in the delivery of services.

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