Our Team, Our Purpose

There is a lot to learn when you join the Digital Services Georgia Team. There’s a lot that we do, but essentially we have two overarching purposes and serve two different audiences:

1. Serving the citizens of Georgia through Georgia.gov by providing them with accurate information on programs, services and events in an easy-to-find way.
2. Hosting state agency and elected officials websites on the GeorgiaGov platform to provide a consistent user experience for constituents as they search for information and services.

Our Purpose

The purpose behind our team is multi-faceted with one underlying intention for which everything is done. At the core is our platform and outreach. From there, we provide training and education, marketing, professional services, governance, platform enhancements, best practices, and much more. However, all of this done with one purpose: to provide valuable information to the constituents of Georgia, and to help agencies do the same.

Without our constituents, our content is irrelevant; and, without valuable content, the information we provide is impractical. Our constituents are the reason our websites are necessary and why providing accurate content in a simple way is so important.

Constituents come to our websites to find answers to their questions. If we can find ways to provide them with accurate answers in a faster, easier way, then we have done our job. This is what we strive to do with Georgia.gov — provide accurate, timely information on a vast array of topics that will provide answers and an action plan for their questions.

Our Team

I’ve never had the opportunity to work with such a skilled team. From user experience to content strategy to training and support, each team member is an expert at what they do. Being around such a smart group of people every day can be a bit intimidating. But, it didn’t take me long to figure out that this environment has been shaped and molded from its leadership.

Our team leaders are ambassadors for career and personal growth, recognizing that one begets the other. They ask for the best from everyone by being their best and fostering an environment that promotes idea-generation, trial and error, and thinking forward. We are always encouraged to improve our practices and invent new ideas.

It is this type of thinking and ability to try and fail that makes this team great. Yes, we have best practices, documented workflows and set tasks. However, it’s the freedom to brainstorm and opportunity to offer ideas without ridicule that renders success.

Our Role in Your Work

Although we own and maintain Georgia.gov, where we are responsible for the design, the content and the technology, our other major initiative is the GeorgiaGov platform. However, one of the biggest differences in Georgia.gov and the platform is that we are not responsible for the content for other agencies.

Let me rephrase that: We are not responsible for adding, maintaining or updating content for other agencies. It may seem simple but, as I stated above, content is just a fictional story without value. And if you were recently at our latest GOVTalks event, you know how much we stress this in our work.

As I’ve said before, we have a great team of people who understand web design, usability, the importance of mobility and accessibility, and how performance affects a user’s experience. You probably experience benefits every day that come from being on the GeorgiaGov platform and may not even know it.

Not having to deal with security updates, the overall technology, implementing and testing of new features, and general maintenance to your site are things that we handle for you on the back end while you maintain your content.

We’re always working to improve how you work on our platform and are interested in what your needs are as an agency. Find a bug on your website or have idea that might improve the overall functionality of the platform? You can submit all of your ideas and requests through our Support Page.

Perfection is impossible in the ever-changing world of web design. Progress is what we strive for every day — progress in web design, team purpose and providing valuable information to our citizens. Could it be: progress > perfection?

Related to: 

• CMS