What is end-to-end digital transformation?

With digital transformation currently leading initiative throughout every corner of the UK public sector, it’s no wonder common digital trends are emerging to meet these unique and evolving requirements. As more councils, healthcare providers, police forces, housing associations and higher education institutions continue to innovate, end-to-end transformations have recently come to the forefront of many public sector digitisation projects.

In this edition of tech-bytes, we’re exploring end-to-end digital transformation in further detail. Interested in leveraging modern front-end technologies alongside potentially legacy back-office systems? Keep reading to learn more about end-to-end's benefits and relevance in the UK public sector.

Connecting front-end capture to back-office systems

In terms of public sector digital transformation, end-to-end usually refers to fully digitised processes – from initial front-end data capture and input, to communication and synchronisation in back-office systems. Put simply – an end-to-end process will successfully handle a task digitally from start to completion.

This concept takes many forms in the modern UK public sector – but predominantly involves utilising a combination of front-end interfaces, such as mobile apps and eForms, alongside a method of back-office management, such as robotic process automation (RPA). An example of a typical end-to-end digital process could look like the following:

1. Data is captured digitally through a mobile application or eForm. Input restrictions and navigational design guide the user through correct data input, resulting in congruent and accurate information.
2. Data received through apps and eForms is then submitted directly into an integrated back-office system, prompting an automated response or confirmation to chosen recipients via email and SMS.
3. RPA then synchronises this information across a range of other predetermined locations, ensuring information held across disparate systems and departments is consistent and accurate.

The benefits of end-to-end integration

As previously mentioned, end-to-end capabilities are becoming increasingly important in the UK public sector – but why exactly is that? End-to-end digital transformation bears a wide range of advantages particularly attractive to the UK public sector, including:

• High efficiency: Implementing RPA, mobile app and eForms individually can have massive impacts on process efficiency – and this only increases when used simultaneously.
• Data accuracy: End-to-end processes combine the abilities of apps and eForms to guide accurate data input with RPA’s data cleansing and synchronisation capabilities.
• Digital-first: A leading priority across the public sector, end-to-end processes allow the public to initiate or complete processes digitally in the first instance.
• Data security: Fully end-to-end processes often remove the need for human intervention, protecting confidential information from loss (or falling into the wrong hands).
• Automated synchronisation: With many services now accessing shared information in the public sector, instant synchronisation ensures effective delivery in all areas.
• User experience: Streamlining public services, end-to-end transformations use technology to enhance both staff and public experience.
• Cost savings: Often times removing printing, travel, storage, and resource costs associated with legacy processes, end-to-end digitisation can lead to significant savings.
• Environmental benefits: Especially when streamlining originally paper-based or manual processes, end-to-end digitisation can directly reduce carbon emissions.

Interested in learning more about the benefits of end-to-end transformation, or digital transformation within the public sector? Join the NDL Community in one of our many industry-leading online and in-person events, and keep up with all of the latest industry news via the NDL blog.