The Coronavirus pandemic has changed the way government agencies are working for the foreseeable future – and maybe forever. Prior to the crisis, many government organizations relied on in-office staff to carry out day to day functions. Now, forced to adapt to work from home mandates, government agencies are leveraging collaboration technology that keeps critical tasks moving forward and teams connected.
“Agencies are working around the clock, pushing the systems they rely on to their limits in order to provide constituents with essential services. What’s remarkable is the unheralded speed and innovation they’re demonstrating to get us all through these times,” said Mike Daniels, Vice President, Global Public Sector, Google Cloud. “Their ability to forge rapid public-private partnerships and scale to the crisis today will matter in the months ahead and will likely forever change the way they serve their missions.”
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Small Business Administration (SBA), and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) are just a few of the federal agencies relying on collaboration technology to continue to deliver on their mission. Enterprise-grade collaboration tools like G Suite make teleworking a reality, without the loss of productivity, security, or connectivity that many government organizations are facing with their legacy tools.
Currently, over 96 percent of the EPA’s workforce is teleworking, powered by collaboration technology. “EPA’s dedicated operations and support teams across the agency went above and beyond to quickly augment infrastructure, develop communications and collaborate in assisting and supporting our workforce in the transition,” an agency spokesperson said.
Government organizations need this technology that is not only reliable, but secure. Google Meet, part of the Google Cloud’s G Suite, can keep government teams connected with chats, audio and video meetings, no matter where they are. Meeting FedRAMP, HIPAA, and GDPR regulations, performance and security are paired, keeping agencies running.
Poojs Jhunjhunwala with the USAID, recently said that the agency’s successful teleworking transition was due to updated IT systems that are enabling 85 percent of U.S. staff to work remotely. IT systems such as Google Cloud Platform can increase security, productivity, and scalability. “We just flipped over without missing a beat, which was great. All the collaboration tools that we’ve put in place and being able to scale quickly—all of that worked,” said Small Business Administration CIO Maria Roat.
In times of crisis, it’s important to stay connected. With the right tools, government agencies can continue to deliver on their mission by leveraging technology that not only keeps the conversation going but that conversation secure. “While the full socio-economic impacts of COVID-19 remain to be seen, this crisis will be a defining moment to how quickly and effectively government can address the needs of citizens across the nation,” said Daniels.
