Andrea DiMaio

I’ve been in Singapore many times, although just for a few days each time, and I’ve come to the conclusion that it is one of my favorite destinations.

It all starts with experiencing one of the best flight services in the world (certainly the best I’ve tried). Does not matter if one travels business class or coach, staff courtesy and helpfulness is unmatched.

Then the city, ever changing but always well organized. I can see a new building, or a new airport terminal, or a new F1 car track, or a new attraction at every single visit, but I never experience any sort of disruption. Change seems to be part of the environment, designed in the way the city is laid out and run.

Finally, and most importantly, the people. Be they clients or colleagues or waiters or taxi drivers or concierges or just bystanders, they are always nice, polite and very helpful.

I still remember the first time I went to Singapore as a Gartner analyst. Chatting with a  client I had just met I said that I was looking for what would have become my first digital camera. The client did not just provide me with lots of technical advice, but after work and before my flight he drove me to a non-touristic area in Singapore where I could buy the camera at a bargain price. I remember that the price was just for cash and I had only a credit card (and one of those that the merchant would not accept): the client was so kind to convince the merchant to keep the same price and take my credit card. By the way, the client was a rather senior government official: could you ever imagine such an attitude in many European countries?

I have plenty of these stories, where government clients have invited me for lunch or for dinner, offered to spend time with me, helped providing advice about staying in Singapore.

But what is most remarkable is something else. Singapore has always been a beacon for governments in other parts of the world in terms of innovative technology deployment: think about their electronic road pricing system that was developed many years before the much publicized congestion charge system in London, or their constant leadership in e-government. Yet, government officials are always prepared to listen, to be challenged and to engage in discussions. In spite of the “big brother” reputation that Singapore has – drug trafficking is subject to death penalty, and you do not want to experience their fines for littering -  its officials are amongst the most open-minded I’ve ever met.

That’s why visiting Singapore is always a pleasant experience for me both as a tourist and as an analyst. And that’s why I believe Singapore leads in so many areas when it comes to government modernization.

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Category: e-government     Tags: employee-centric, Singapore

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