A hybrid fuzzy group ANP–TOPSIS framework for assessment of e-government readiness from a CiRM perspective

• We propose an e-government readiness assessment framework.
• We synthesize qualitative judgments and quantitative data.
• The framework is usable by the municipal, state, and federal governments.
• The framework could be used as a ranking or benchmarking tool.

Electronic government (E-government) readiness assessment is a relatively new concept that has been given impetus by the rapid rate of Internet penetration and advances in information and communication technologies (ICT). Over the years, various e-government readiness assessment methods have been proposed by different organizations. These methods use a wide range of indicators to assess a community's e-government readiness. However, most of these methods suffer from poor data quality and fragmented measurement efforts. In this paper, we propose a hybrid fuzzy model, based on the group Analytic Network Process (ANP) and the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), to assess a community's overall e-government readiness from a Citizen Relationship Management (CiRM) perspective. For practitioners, we present the results of a pilot study to demonstrate the complexities inherent in e-government readiness assessment.