At the heart of technological improvement is the goal of an enhanced quality of life — and there’s no vertical where this goal becomes more apparent than in government. State, local and federal governments across the U.S. are all in search of ways to improve the lives of their constituents, and in a digital era, a great way to do this is enhancing services through advanced IT capabilities.
Transparency, application and service efficiency, and responsiveness (near real-time communications are standard in today’s world) will be what sets agencies apart, helping citizens to trust more deeply and engage more effectively. For government organizations, better data and networking solutions hold a vast amount of value for infrastructure projects, municipal service management — even for planning for eventual smart city initiatives or other innovations.
The future is bright for local, state, and federal governments when technology and service are working together in harmony, but getting the right solutions can be a challenge, especially when dealing with sensitive information. Here are a few tips on how to get the best data and networking services for government initiatives.
Scalability that Serves the Future of Government
Across the board, services are moving online. Users want to pay bills online, manage their utilities over the internet, make requests and inquiries on digital portals and more. Meanwhile, there is a growing amount of data being generated and collected by government agencies in order to better care for communities.
Outdated networks slow this progression toward digital service, creating lackluster, sluggish results for online applications, limiting government’s digital transformations with network congestion and hindered data mobility between offices and platforms. This is why enhanced network and data management is key — stress on existing systems will only compound exponentially as data demands quickly rise. Now, fiber-based solutions are the gold standard. Particularly, dark fiber can be the government’s best tool for future-proofed scalability that will help the network grow as new capabilities are incorporated.
With robust fiber in place, the sky’s the limit. Tomorrow’s smart city solutions can be supported, and today’s table stakes surrounding municipal service standards and data management can be seamlessly met.
Security and Reliability that Strengthens Trust
Nothing is more sacred than an individual’s personal data, and as the steward of personal data, government agencies have a unique obligation to maintain high levels of privacy and security for the information they collect.
So, as hacking and data leakage grows as a concern (In 2020, there were 1,001 cases of data breaches, and more than 155.8 million individuals were affected by exposures), enhancing IT to close security gaps and safeguard data is vital.
When it comes to security, not all networks are created equal. Dedicated connections through solutions like private Ethernet are the ideal solution for privacy-oriented goals. Public network connections don’t offer dedicated access, instead of sharing networks with other customers, which means IT attack vectors can multiply. Plus, shared connections also make service dependent upon other users — efficiency, latency, and throughput can change depending on how much other data is moving through the network at any given time. All in all: When reliable service and security are paramount, it’s time to reassess how your network connects.
Who Can Help?
Government has highly individualized needs, so finding a network solution that truly empowers today’s needs and tomorrow’s goals means finding an ideal, experienced partner.
Horizon has been designing and building fiber infrastructure that empowers governments and public institutions for decades, designing unique solutions that fit every deployment need and budget. Our advanced Ethernet and dark fiber networks, internet capabilities, and data center offerings provide agencies with greater flexibility, scalability, speed, redundancy, security and more — all with 24/7/365 locally monitored support. With us, you can leverage network solutions that include point-to-point and point-to-multipoint connectivity, electrical or optical IEEE 802.3 interfaces, optically switched or routed network topologies — even jumbo frames to ensure compatibility.
Want to learn more about how we can support your needs or help you meet your digital transformation goals? Request a consultation here.