Digital service standard

We have borrowed from similar guidance in other countries, and adapted the advice to suit the current New Zealand digital landscape and to refer to our local standards and guidance as well as international best practice. 

Request for comment

We are seeking feedback from agencies, industry and the public to guide the development of the digital service standard.

Digital service standard consultation

We want to hear what you think will make the standard a true reflection of what the New Zealand Government wants and needs. This standard should hold us to account, and help us keep people at the centre of all we do as we join the digital transformation movement.

In particular we will be seeking feedback on: 

• fitness for purpose of the standard — can it establish a sound base for encouraging greater consistency across agencies’ service delivery?
• completeness — in what ways should its scope be expanded or reduced?
• implementation challenges — do you foresee any difficulties that the standard might cause?
• assessment — how do you think assessment and monitoring against the standard should be managed?
• the text — do you have comments that would improve the content of the standard?

Digital service standard

1. Be clear about what you are trying to achieve

Understand the problem or opportunity that needs to be explored and if it can be addressed without imposing a burden on people.

2. Understand ongoing user need from user’s points of view

Research the holistic and real needs of your users. Explore the context of their interactions, as individuals, whānau/family and as part of their communities, across government and non-government services. Conduct ongoing validation with users.

3. Establish a diverse multidisciplinary team

Bring together the policy, design and delivery skills you need into 1 team that can represent and engage with diverse perspectives. Empower them to make decisions through the design, build and operation of the service.

4. Build a team culture that is adaptive, service oriented and collaborative

Lead and implement using modern methods and standards based tools such as Agile, co-design and service design. Provide ongoing training and learning opportunities to continually improve the skills of your team and the broader network.

5. Plan and resource for continuous and frequent improvement

Prepare from the outset to ensure adequate operational support, ongoing budget and procurement arrangements will enable agile development and be available to meet the changing user needs and landscape.

6. Be inclusive and provide equitable services

Build in inclusiveness taking into account official languages, disability, technological or access constraints, or a preference to interact with people instead of digital channels. Use plain language. Be consistent and concise.

7. Understand and address security and privacy needs proportionate to risk

Consider the user and business context. Evaluate security risk and privacy obligations and apply necessary treatments.

8. Work in the open

Open up your evidence base, decision-making, knowledge and research, and share your code to ensure the ongoing integrity of your work.

9. Reuse and enable reuse by others

Open up as Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) the data, transactions and business rules that underpin your services. Reuse your own and other people’s APIs. Build cloud first. Build fast and cheap using public cloud and open source. Use open standards.

10. Be accountable to the public

Measure and monitor the effectiveness, value and consequences of your service and report publicly.