@techreport{HammerschmidPalaricRackwitzetal., type = {Working Paper}, author = {Hammerschmid, Gerhard and Palaric, Enora and Rackwitz, Maike and Wegrich, Kai}, title = {Meta-analysis of digitalisation strategies in eight European countries}, pages = {130}, abstract = {EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A large body of literature claims that ICT and digitalisation have triggered broad organisational and cultural changes in public organisations. These changes have led many to conclude that a new era has begun that is characterised by collaboration within intra-and intersectoral networks and this has become a key paradigm for public sector governance and innovation. Yet, empirical evidence of a shift towards "Networked Governance" remains limited, and few have explored further the linkages between digitalisation and collaboration in the public sector. Work Package 6 of the TROPICO project addresses this void by providing a meta-analysis of the design, coordination, and implementation of national digitalisation strategies in eight European countries with different administrative traditions (Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and UK). By coding the countries' first significant and most recent strategies, we examine whether there is evidence supporting the argument of a paradigmatic shift with respect to public sector governance and collaboration. The final analysis is based on 8496 codes and on an additional questionnaire filled out by the relevant TROPICO partners' country teams. Based on our results we cannot conclude that a Networked Governance is emerging in the era of digital government, but rather find confirmation that all reform paradigms are present in governments' digitalisation efforts. In fact, the way in which digital transformation of the public sector is put forward in the strategies may strengthen hierarchical patterns of command and control. Findings further indicate that over time collaboration has changed regarding scope and motives, while its intensity has remained relatively weak. Moreover, administrative traditions do not serve as explanatory approach for country variations in the context of digitalisation strategies. Rather, divergences are explained by the different geneses and purposes of the documents. However, we observe similarities in the perceived success factors: a common vision, cultural change, accessibility, leadership and trust are main recurring themes. Furthermore, we find no conclusive evidence that governance paradigms and collaborative arrangements in the digitalisation strategies influencethe performance of digital government. Lastly, in the conclusion of the report, we address some recommendations to practitioners for designing and implementing digitalisation strategies}, language = {en} } @techreport{RackwitzHammerschmidBreaughetal., type = {Working Paper}, author = {Rackwitz, Maike and Hammerschmid, Gerhard and Breaugh, Jessica and Palaric, Enora}, title = {Government Collaboration and Digitalisation: Comparative Case Studies on Collaborative Management for Government Digitalisation and Public Sector Innovation}, language = {en} } @techreport{HammerschmidPalaricRackwitzetal., type = {Working Paper}, author = {Hammerschmid, Gerhard and Palaric, Enora and Rackwitz, Maike and Wegrich, Kai}, title = {Internal collaboration as a cornerstone of national digitalisation strategies Empirical findings and recommendations}, pages = {4}, language = {en} } @techreport{BreaughHammerschmidRackwitzetal., type = {Working Paper}, author = {Breaugh, Jessica and Hammerschmid, Gerhard and Rackwitz, Maike and Palaric, Enora}, title = {Research Report on Collaborative Management for ICT Enabled Public Sector Innovation}, pages = {103}, abstract = {The process of digitalising government is rapidly gaining speed, resulting in a pressing need for increased inter-governmental integration and challenging the traditional silo structures of government. This has sparked the adoption of inter-governmental collaborative working arrangements and efforts to develop joint standards and solutions; yet little is known about how exactly this manifests itself in the context of ambitious digitalisation projects. This report provides new empirical evidence on the challenges and dynamics of collaboration within and between public organisations in order to drive digital transformation. The report begins with a literature review on collaborative management with a particular focus on collaboration in the context of government digitalisation. This literature serves as a basis for developing a set of five propositions regarding how intergovernmental collaborative digitalisation projects can be best designed and managed. Following the conceptual framework of the TROPICO project deliverable 6.3 developed by Rackwitz et al. (2020), the report investigates the interplay between system context, collaboration challenges and dynamics (i.e. complexity, risk and power imbalances), public management interventions (i.e. institutional design and leadership) as well as outcomes. Emphasis is placed upon the role of institutional design and leadership in order to cope with the challenges inherent to collaborative governance approaches. The framework and related propositions are then verified through the use of empirical findings from ten comparative case studies from five European countries (Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, and the United Kingdom). The case studies, presented in detail in TROPICO deliverable 6.3, examine the development of national government-wide online portals, as well as the implementation of municipal Smart City initiatives. The cases show that the system dynamics and challenges of digitalisation projects, such as size and scope, tend to generate resource-intensive and demanding working conditions. Creating hybrid structures that incorporate both network and hierarchical approaches has been a common approach to handling these conditions and balancing the demands of inter-departmental collaboration with the inherent accountabilities and existing working cultures of public organisations. At the steering level, a central coordinator with collaborative leadership skills was found to be key to driving the projects forward and achieving outcomes. Participatory, network-style approaches at the working group level were successful in balancing the demands of all collaborative partners and encouraging wide-scale engagement. In addition, opting for wide-scale inclusion, setting ground rules and clear processes as well as a focus on trust and social capital development proved essential. While most leadership approaches still maintain elements of transactional leadership in managing projects, collaborative leadership approaches such as bringing stakeholders together, mediating problems, and guiding and steering the process were used in many instances to handle the complexities inherent in the project objectives. In the conclusion of the report, contributions are discussed, followed by an outline for future research avenues.}, language = {en} } @article{RackwitzPalaric, author = {Rackwitz, Maike and Palaric, Enora}, title = {A shift towards collaboration? Evidence from national digitalisation strategies}, series = {dms - der moderne staat - Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Public Policy, Recht und Management}, volume = {16}, journal = {dms - der moderne staat - Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Public Policy, Recht und Management}, number = {1-2023}, doi = {10.3224/dms.vXiX.273808}, pages = {1 -- 20}, abstract = {This paper seeks to better understand the paradigm shift towards 'networked governance' in digitalisation discourse. Little is known about the link between digitalisation reforms and the main reform paradigms in public management studies. By analysing French and German national digitalisation strategies over time, we find that neo-Weberian, new public management, and networked governance discourses co-exist within the digital era, although networked governance rhetoric is increasingly influential. However, a closer examination reveals that this shift in discourse is unrelated to the increased integration of nonstate actors in actual decision-making and service delivery.}, language = {en} } @article{HammerschmidPalaricRackwitzetal., author = {Hammerschmid, Gerhard and Palaric, Enora and Rackwitz, Maike and Wegrich, Kai}, title = {A shift in paradigm? Collaborative public administration in the context of national digitalization strategies}, series = {Governance}, volume = {37}, journal = {Governance}, number = {2}, doi = {10.1111/gove.12778}, pages = {411 -- 430}, abstract = {Despite claims of a paradigmatic shift toward the increased role of networks and partnerships as a form of governance—driven and enabled by digital technologies—the relation of "Networked Governance" with the pre-existing paradigms of "Traditional Weberian Public Administration" and "New Public Management" remains relatively unexplored. This research aims at collecting systematic evidence on the dominant paradigms in digitalization reforms in Europe by comparing the doctrines employed in the initial and most recent digitalization strategies across eight European countries: Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and the United Kingdom. We challenge the claim that Networked Governance is emerging as the dominant paradigm in the context of the digitalization of the public sector. The findings confirm earlier studies indicating that information and communication technologies tend to reinforce some traditional features of administration and the recentralization of power. Furthermore, we find evidence of the continued importance of key features of "New Public Management" in the digital era.}, language = {en} }