State governments must update their engagement technologies to stay relevant with private sector constituents, according to Conduent’s 2018 citizen experience report released on Monday. The national survey, consisting of more than 2,000 citizens, aims to help understand Americans’ feelings toward government service delivery, according to a press release.

With digital transformation technology spending expected to reach $1.3 trillion in 2018, and $2.1 trillion by 2021, state governments need to move quickly to keep pace. Citizens reported wanting new technologies, voice-activated services, mobile services, and user-friendliness from state government websites and services, said the release.

SEE: IT leader’s guide to achieving digital transformation (Tech Pro Research)

The majority of respondents said governments should be experimenting with new technologies (62%) and voice-activated services (54%), to more effectively communicate between groups.

Mobile services is definitely a must moving forward. While only 38% of respondents said they accessed government solutions from a mobile device, 73% said they plan to in the future, said the report. For example, users hope to pay taxes, get a new driver’s license, pay vehicle registration, and more, using a mobile app.

Respondents also reported complaints of user-friendliness on state government sites. More than half have experienced problems using online services in the past, said the release. If state governments can clean up their websites, more people would venture inside.

Security remains a huge concern for Americans, even on government sites. In fact, 51% are worried about hackers targeting government sites, and 36% were concerned not enough security is in place.

“This report provides an important blueprint for long-term government IT planning,” said Marcus Collier, group chief executive of Conduent Government, in the release. “States must adapt to the needs of an increasingly tech-savvy population and implement ways to improve every digital interaction government agencies have with citizens–from enabling easy state park reservations on a mobile device to providing simple navigation to benefits information on a state website.”

Check out this TechRepublic article for tips on how to jumpstart technology updates in your business.

The big takeaways for tech leaders:

  • Americans want more efficient communication methods with state governments, pointing to new technologies and voice-activated services as major solutions. –Conduent, 2018.
  • Individuals are also concerned with security measures, or lack thereof, in government sites. –Conduent, 2018