Government seeks digital chief
The Government plans to setup a new department dedicated to improving the effectiveness of its digital communications.
Whitehall chiefs are currently recruiting for an “executive director of digital” who will be responsible for online marketing and communications, be it via websites, email or Twitter.
The successful appointee, who on a salary of £142,000 will be paid almost as much as Prime Minister David Cameron, will be responsible for setting up a new digital service to deliver the Government’s digital strategy.
The move, which combines the work of the Directgov chief executive and some of the tasks of the director for digital engagement and transparency, follows Lastminute.com founder Martha Lane Fox’s review of online services last year. Lane-Fox claimed money could be saved by bringing responsibility for digital communication oversight under one team’s remit.
The Government wants to move more information services online to cut costs. It also wants to utilise the websites it owns to deliver public information campaigns for less than would be spent on TV ads.
In his recent Government-commissioned report on the future of Government communications, outgoing permanent secretary Matt Tee recommended that departments should increase their use of cheaper digital channels.
