A Local-State Government Spatial Data Sharing Partnership

A Local-State Spatial Data Sharing Partnership Model to Facilitate SDI Development
improved outcomes at the local level. Spatial information is proving to be a valuable tool
to support the management and decision making for the delivery of social services.
Finally, the geographical context was identified as being an important characteristic at both
jurisdictional and institutional levels. The local government questionnaires identified that
LGA organisational size and geographical remoteness were closely related to ICT capacity
and hence the ability of the organisation to participate within the data sharing partnerships.
The analysis found that the larger LGA organisations (usually urban LGAs) typically had
greater ICT capacity, whilst the smaller sized LGA organisations (usually rural LGAs) had
limited ICT capacity, which was often further exacerbated by their remoteness.
Institutional Environment
The research found that institutional or organisational factors appear to be the most
prevalent issues arising from previous literature, the case studies within state government
and the LGA surveys. Just as the jurisdictional environment influences the institutional
environment, institutional factors can have a significant influence in shaping the
collaborative strategies which support spatial data sharing environments.
Policy development within a government agency is closely aligned to its higher level
jurisdictional policies. However, the leadership and vision shown at an organisational
level are critical in shaping partnership strategies and policy development. The support of
management influences the provision of resources, communication efforts between
organisations, ICT priorities and the degree of formality for engaging with external
organisations. The awareness by the organisation of their responsibilities to the
community and other government agencies can influence attitudes to participate beyond
their immediate environment. Loss of control or power has been identified in many areas
of literature as a common issue associated with inter-organisational collaboration and
efforts need to be taken to minimise the risk to partnerships due to control issues.
Importantly, the research identified that each of the partner organisations must attempt to
align their organisational business needs with the goal of the partnership. It is of little
value to have a partnership arrangement that does not serve the needs of both organisations
or a wider community obligation. The challenge with state-local government partnerships
is that a single state government agency could be dealing with hundreds of potential
partners. The governance arrangements in this situation are particularly important and
provide a forum for negotiating common goals, performance measures and future
strategies.
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