Digital disruption on the Potomac

[Commentary] The way the world conducts business and how we live our daily lives is fundamentally changing. Some has termed this change a "digital disruption wave." Consider the following passage from Tom Goodwin — variations of which have gone viral on social media — that encapsulates this phenomenon: "Uber, the world's largest taxi company, owns no vehicles. Facebook, the world's most popular media owner, creates no content. Alibaba, the most valuable retailer, has no inventory. And Airbnb, the world's largest accommodation provider, owns no real estate."

How does this private-sector digital disruption potentially translate to federal government sectors like health, security, education, transportation, agriculture, energy, etc.? There are recent initiatives (among others) that comprise government's transition to digital citizen services: Open Data, Smart Cities and the Opportunity Project. According to a Forrester report from 2014, "Social and mobile technologies have recast citizens' expectations for service, and improved data collection and analysis, coupled with innovative thinking, allow governments to deliver new and more appropriate programs and contacts."

[Brooks serves as the vice president for government relations and marketing at Sutherland Government Solutions. He is also vice chairman of CompTIA's New and Emerging Technologies Committee. Logsdon is the senior director of public advocacy for CompTIA.]