Delaware is at a critical juncture with its "e-government" plans. The state has made a great deal of progress in providing services electronically -- for example, allowing businesses and individuals to file their tax returns online -- but now the challenge is to continue down that path by digitizing government agency by agency.

Under the leadership of State Treasurer Jack Markell, Delaware is beginning to do just that.

Newly elected Governor Ruth Ann Minner, who has made digitizing state government services one of her top priorities, appointed Markell chairman of a special steering committee charged with executing key aspects of her e-government initiative.

This April, there will be tangible progress: under Markell's leadership, Delaware will launch a new Internet portal that will serve as the primary gateway to all state information and services provided online. The site will feature an "intentions-based" design -- rethinking the way people relate to the role of state government and presenting resources according to areas of interest and need, instead of in a format that simply mirrors the structure of state bureaucracies.

But efficiently pointing people to what's already available online is only a step in the process. Long term, the portal will be the hub for a suite of integrated e-government applications. Markell and the steering committee have been laying the groundwork for that end goal by articulating a set of policy objectives and technical standards for state agencies, so they can move forward in step and avoid reinventing each other's wheels.

Markell was a good choice for this role. He is well-practiced in the art of applying lessons from the business world to the operation of government.

But in focussing on operational details, Markell doesn't lose site of the big picture. He has a broad perspective on Delaware's economy -- and on the every-day needs of its residents. Understanding the importance of economic literacy, Markell's office has sponsored a series of money-management seminars geared toward women. The office also joined a unique partnership with the University of Delaware Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Education, the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce and many of Delaware's leading banks, aimed at teaching elementary school children the fundamentals of money and savings (material that is tested on the state assessment test).

Elected State Treasurer in November 1998, Markell entered politics after a decade-long business career with the wireless telephone company Nextel, and later with Comcast Corp. Reared in Newark, he graduated from Brown University in 1982 with degrees in economics and development studies. He earned an MBA in 1985 from the University of Chicago. Markell and his wife, Carla, live in New Castle County with their two children.