Citizens expect and want timely information, programs and services from their local governments, which they can access on the Internet. For this purpose, government organizations need a government CMS – Content Management System – that provides them with the ideal framework to create, manage and update every aspect of their website content. Governments cannot provide their citizens a website that is dynamic and interactive unless they are using an unsurpassed content management solution. The right CMS can take a government website design to the next level and improve the experience of their online visitors.

Features of a Government Content Management System

Security

Security of a government website is the first and foremost feature. When creating a government website, from the instance of the content management system to the server have to be looked at. When creating the government website design, it is best to start with latest versions of the CMS, locking down the CMS, file extensions and the server, and secure extensions. There should be a list of security processes that should be followed.

Publishing Workflow

Another feature that should be implemented in a government CMS is a workflow publishing system to publish content. For a government organization, it is necessary to have a staging environment where content can be previewed and approved internally before it goes live.

Tracking Access Logs

A content management system can make it possible a government organization to keep track of which areas in the system are accessed, and hold relevant people responsible for actions, if something goes wrong. This is an important feature that can enable a government organization to be aware of the content being accessed by different users and any mistakes made by them. This means that the areas where mistakes are being made can be pinpointed. This can help a government organization to determine if further training is required in the CMS to reduce incorrect actions and mistakes in the future.

WCAG Compliancy

It was back in February 2010 that the WCAG 2.0 accessibility guidelines were announced, and ever since then, all National Government agencies must comply with them. Therefore, a government CMS should meet those guidelines. Although some state governments have yet to apply the requirements to meet WCAG 2.0, but moves are taking place to ensure that all government website comply with these guidelines in the future.

Access Level Control

The latest release of a content management system should come with access level control. This way, administrators of a government website get full control over who can access what content within the website. This is excellent when certain areas of a website need to be locked down to certain Departments within a Government Agency. Some simplified access level control should be implemented in the content management system so that access to certain users can be restricted.

A variety of factors have to be taken into consideration when websites are being designed and developed for a government organization. It becomes necessary to look at certain aspects, such as accountability, internal workflow, processes and website accessibility. These requirements can be fulfilled by incorporation the right government CMS into a government website design.