National Association of Government Web Professionals - NAGW - To self-host, or not to self-host...with apologies to William Shakespeare

To self-host, or not to self-host...with apologies to William Shakespeare

A comparison of website hosting and content management options for modern governments. My capstone project for my CGDSP certification in Nov. 2021 analyzed some of the leading options for the hosting, management and overall production of government websites and attempted to discern the pros and cons of these various options. This session would be taking these findings (for which I was highly lauded by my CGDSP class and instructors) and present them to a larger audience, which, from my understanding, has always been the intended goal of these types of research projects in the CGDSP program.

The goal of this session is to inform and educate other technology and communications professionals about these myriad options, and hopefully, to assist them in instances where they are faced with choices about content management systems, and the form their government website and its infrastructure should take. This session will attempt to show that there truly is no “one-size fits all” or “correct” answer. Websites, especially government websites, have so many variables and different conditions to account for, that to say one way is truly better than another would be sheer folly. This session will instead simply try to lay out various options and compare and contrast those options on several key elements, such as cost, technical knowledge considerations, ease of use, security, and overall output.

The session will structure these comparisons within the following topic areas and will incorporate real-world examples (including from NAGW professionals) into its discussions: 1. The question of hosting: Self-hosting vs. Third-party hosting platforms vs. Total third-party solution: The government-focused website providers. 2. The question of cost: A comparison of the costs associated with these three types of hosting, based on data provided by select hosting platforms and surveys of multiple government web managers in jurisdictions of varying sizes across the United States. 3. Conclusion: The most important question: Does it really matter what type of system you use if the front-end product works well for the citizen/customer?

Key Takeaways:

Pros and Cons: Attendees will get an extensive overview of the true pros and cons of these different types of hosting options, and they can use this information to assess if their current setup is really the best for them.
Costs: Attendees will see real-world examples of costs from various hosting providers and real-world examples of what other NAGW members and their organizations are paying for their web services. They can, again, use this info to assess whether their current setup is the most cost-effective for them.
The Most Important Question: Does it really matter what type of system you use if the front-end product works well for the citizen/customer? It’s a question that many of us don’t necessarily want to answer. It’s a question that makes us look at what we’re doing and why, rather than just being comfortable in our own ecosystem. It’s also a question that makes us examine what a government website truly is and should be, and what our role should actually be in making that happen. The answer is YES…and NO. There is a balance that we must strike as we consider our governmental websites. Yes, they must work for us, but more importantly, they must work for the public. And that is why there truly is no right or wrong answer when selecting your website’s hosting platform and infrastructure. The paths all lead to the same goal. We can’t lose sight of that or get bogged down in the technical or the mundane aspects of our jobs. Our roles in relation to our websites must be more than just tech people. We must always remember that we are public servants, and our duty is to provide our citizens with the best possible digital services, no matter what form the back end takes.

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