Even though I was born and raised in Washington, DC and spent most of my adult life in the area, my entire career has been in the commercial sector not the public sector. The public sector seemed like an entirely different universe with its own unique rules and regulations–worlds away from the tech-heavy career path I’m familiar with. So when Savi recently hosted an Open House specifically for our public sector customers at our Alexandria, VA headquarters, it was quite eye opening. What I learned, in a nutshell, is that the commercial and public sectors aren’t so different after all.
Here are two key examples:
- They are agile. Yes, agile. With civilian employment at nearly 3 million people and the US Armed Forces adding close to another 1.5 million, one may not think the public sector can turn on a dime, but they can. The public sector craves, seeks out and makes sense of what the commercial sector would call “market forces.” But it’s a lot more serious than the latest business book and a “blue ocean” strategy—people’s lives are on the line. The public sector adjusts and adapts as the world changes, protecting the safety of our country and its citizens, whether they are within our borders or located half way across the world. That’s not only agility–it’s agility under tremendous pressure.
- They embrace technology. Just like commercial organizations, the public sector recognizes the value of technology. They use technology to increase efficiency, eliminate manual processes, and store & analyze data to improve decision-making and results for the people they serve. And they rely on technology—imagine if the Census Bureau had to count and analyze 100 million surveys by hand! In fact, the 1890 Census was the first ever to use electronic tabulating machines. And it’s not just the statistical wonks. Savi customers were some of the first—not just in the public sector, but in any sector—to recognize the value and uses of wireless technology such as GPS, RFID, etc. So the public sector often is not only an early adopter, but the first adopter, of technology that re-shapes our world.
So it turns out that commercial and public sectors are not worlds apart after all….and both benefit from Savi’s solutions whether it’s the US Army leveraging our technology for sense & respond logistics, or the commercial sector seeking supply chain predictability & intelligence. And that’s the value of knowing, brought to you by Savi.