Becoming digital – passages to service in the digitized bureaucracy

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 177-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anja Svejgaard Pors
Keyword(s):  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Street Level ◽  
Digital Era ◽  
Field Notes ◽  
Personal Competencies ◽  
Government Reforms ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Citizen Service ◽  
Street Level Bureaucracy

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of e-government reforms on street-level bureaucrats’ professionalism and relation to citizens, thus demonstrating how the bureaucratic encounter unfolds in the digital era. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on an ethnographic study of frontline work at a citizen service centre in a Danish municipality, and draws on empirical material generated through observations, field notes, interviews and policy documents. Findings – The paper shows that e-government changes the mode of professionalism in citizen service from service to support. An ethnographic account of how digital reforms are implemented in practice shows how street-level bureaucrat’s classic tasks such as specialized casework are being reconfigured into educational tasks that promote the idea of “becoming digital”. In the paper, the author argues that the work of “becoming digital” in client processing entails two interconnected changes in frontline agents’ practice: de-specialization of the task and intensified informality in relation to citizens. As a result, the frontline agent works as an explorative generalist whose professional skills and personal competencies are blurred. Originality/value – The study contributes to ethnographic research in public administration by combining two separate subfields, e-government and street-level bureaucracy, to discern recent transformations in public service delivery. In the digital era, tasks, control and equality are distributed in ways that call for symmetrical and relational approaches to studying street-level bureaucracy. The argument goes beyond technological or social determinism to find a fruitful intermediary position pointing at technological change as having both constraining and enabling effects.

Internal audits in the digital era: opportunities risks and challenges

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-217
Author(s):  
Petros Lois ◽  
George Drogalas ◽  
Alkiviadis Karagiorgos ◽  
Kostantinos Tsikalakis
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Internal Audit ◽  
Cyber Attacks ◽  
Continuous Auditing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Audit Firm ◽  
Digital Era ◽  
Specific Implementation ◽  
The Impact ◽  
And Training

PurposeThe aim of this study is to examine continuous auditing in the digital age from the perspective of audit firm employees. It also investigates contemporary factors affecting continuous auditing, as well as the techniques that could be utilised for its implementation.Design/methodology/approachInternal audit departments of private companies were contacted via email and given a questionnaire developed based on the extant literature. The sample consisted of 105 individuals employed in the largest audit institutions in Greece. Data were analysed using multiple regression.FindingsAs expected, technological advances are indispensable for the establishment of an effective digital auditing system. The impact of data protection measures against cyber-attacks as well as employees' skills and training were found to be significant. Particular attention should be given to the preparation and building of virtual auditing teams.Research limitations/implicationsThe fact that the digital era is still nascent with its final outcomes not yet visible makes it difficult to produce accurate predictions and draw conclusions. Further, there is a need to survey salient stakeholders in other country contexts beyond Greece pursuant of producing generalisable results.Practical implicationsThe actions taken by companies to ensure cyber security and the formation of virtual teams were found to be highly significant for the implementation of a real-time auditing process. Traditionally, factors such as cost and time play an important role in optimising internal continuous auditing. Technological advancements combined with careful, strategic and case-specific implementation have the potential to enhance the efficacy of older methods.Social implicationsThe positive propensity of staff to adopt technology and modern techniques illustrates how implementation difficulties can be overcome through the redefinition and scheduling of an organisation's objectives and training of its personnel.Originality/valueAudit firm employees highlighted the protection of personal data, the avoidance of cyber-attacks and training as major continuous internal auditing goals. The results indicate acceptance towards technology and modern techniques, provided companies ensure adequate preparation and staff training conditions.

Helping or intervening? Modes of ordering in public sector digitalization

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 265-279
Author(s):  
Bastian Jørgensen ◽  
Jannick Schou
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Frontline Workers ◽  
Second Mode ◽  
Policy Narratives ◽  
Customs Administration ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Citizen Service ◽  
Modes Of Ordering

PurposeThis paper examines how digital reforms affect the relationship between frontline workers and citizens in Danish public sector institutions. Using ethnographic research in two branches of public administration, the study highlights how frontline workers act in accordance with seemingly contradictory modes of ordering. Their acts problematize linear conceptualizations of change that often prevail in digital reforms.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on a comparative ethnographic study of frontline workers in the Danish tax and customs administration and municipal citizen service centers. The concept of modes of ordering is used to highlight new tensions that arise as frontline workers adapt to make digital reforms work.FindingsFrontline workers act according to two different modes of ordering based on the separation between helping citizens help themselves and helping citizens directly. National policies and strategies promote the underlying rationale of the first mode but, as this paper shows, this mode is sustained by a second mode, which involves the intervention of professionals when citizens cannot be helped to help themselves.Originality/valueThe paper, which contributes to our understanding of how digitalization is changing public administrations and the relationship between frontline workers and citizens, challenges applying a linear, technocratic focus in discourses on public sector digitalization and highlights the contradictory practices of frontline work. It demonstrates the necessity of going beyond policy narratives and calls for increased attention to how frontline workers adapt to make reforms work.

New ways to get policy into practice

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 809-824 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Nugus ◽  
Geetha Ranmuthugala ◽  
Josianne Lamothe ◽  
David Greenfield ◽  
Joanne Travaglia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Organizational Context ◽  
Mutual Influence ◽  
Social Needs ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Service Effectiveness ◽  
Street Level ◽  
Social Organizational ◽  
Street Level Bureaucracy

Purpose Health service effectiveness continues to be limited by misaligned objectives between policy makers and frontline clinicians. While capturing the discretion workers inevitably exercise, the concept of “street-level bureaucracy” has tended to artificially separate policy makers and workers. The purpose of this paper is to understand the role of social-organizational context in aligning policy with practice. Design/methodology/approach This mixed-method participatory study focuses on a locally developed tool to implement an Australia-wide strategy to engage and respond to mental health services for parents with mental illness. Researchers: completed 69 client file audits; administered 64 staff surveys; conducted 24 interviews and focus groups (64 participants) with staff and a consumer representative; and observed eight staff meetings, in an acute and sub-acute mental health unit. Data were analyzed using content analysis, thematic analysis and descriptive statistics. Findings Based on successes and shortcomings of the implementation (assessment completed for only 30 percent of clients), a model of integration is presented, distinguishing “assimilist” from “externalist” positions. These depend on the degree to which, and how, the work environment affords clinicians the setting to coordinate efforts to take account of clients’ personal and social needs. This was particularly so for allied health clinicians and nurses undertaking sub-acute rehabilitative-transitional work. Originality/value A new conceptualization of street-level bureaucracy is offered. Rather than as disconnected, it is a process of mutual influence among interdependent actors. This positioning can serve as a framework to evaluate how and under what circumstances discretion is appropriate, and to be supported by managers and policy makers to optimize client-defined needs.

scholarly journals Exploring product–service systems in the digital era: a socio-technical systems perspective

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 897-913 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ai Qiang Li ◽  
Nicholas Rich ◽  
Pauline Found ◽  
Maneesh Kumar ◽  
Steve Brown
Keyword(s):  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Service Systems ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Digital Era ◽  
Main Challenge ◽  
Product Service ◽  
Human Skills ◽  
Technical Systems ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Product Service Systems

PurposeIn the age of Industry 4.0, digital advancement is reshaping manufacturing models towards product–service systems (PSS). The drivers, readiness and challenges to move to a PSS model are not well understood, and the exploitation of the digital era presents the gap of this research.Design/methodology/approachThe research was conducted using semi-structured interviews in six manufacturers. Two forum debates were also conducted to supplement and validate the findings.FindingsSocial and economic motivations rather than environmental considerations were driving the change to PSS. Digital technologies could be an important driver if manufacturers reached a certain PSS maturity level. A high level of technical readiness was offset by a low level of social investments and the strategic development of human resources. Value co-creation was a main challenge though manufacturers had the advantage of digital connectivity, which indicated new human requirements; the greater the enabling power of digital technologies, the greater the need for advanced human skills.Practical implicationsHuman resource management has underpinned lean models; yet, the role of employees within PSS is underdeveloped despite the impact of staff in exploiting digitalisation and value co-creation. A “learning organisation” and socio-technical fit are required for the “diffusion of innovation” of PSS.Originality/valueThis research attempted to explore drivers, readiness and challenges for PSS from a socio-technical systems (STS) perspective. Three levels of PSS maturity with STS features were derived from the research, providing guidance for manufacturers.

Challenges to ethical publishing in the digital era

2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirjam Jessica Curno
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Electronic Publishing ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Publication Ethics ◽  
Electronic Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Digital Era ◽  
The Impact

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to lay out some of the more complex issues arising in the area of publication ethics. The impact of electronic publishing and electronic information is a main focus of the paper. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws in particular upon the work of the Committee on Publication Ethics including illustrative cases discussed at the forum, guidelines and discussion documents. Findings – Three areas are highlighted to stimulate discussion around challenges of publication ethics in the digital era. These are the role of the internet in facilitating misconduct, the issue of confidentiality in publishing and how incentives in research assessments drive author behavior. Originality/value – The paper brings together a variety of issues discussed under the broader umbrella of electronic information and new technologies in publishing.

Breaking through barriers: the impact of organizational culture on open government reform

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 335-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erna H.J.M. Ruijer ◽  
Richard F. Huff
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Culture ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Government Reform ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Practice Gap ◽  
Government Reforms ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of organizational culture on open government reforms by developing a theoretical framework bridging the theory and practice gap. Design/methodology/approach An exploratory qualitative study consisting of a document analysis and a case study was conducted. Findings An open organizational culture is a precursor to effective open government. A network strategy as a facilitator for developing an open culture was used in one US federal agency, breaking across boundaries within the organization, creating greater symmetrical horizontal and vertical openness. Originality/value Much of the focus in both theory and practice has been on the use of technology as a vehicle to increase government openness. This study argues that a movement toward openness is beyond the technical. Organizational culture is a key to openness and may need to be changed. A networks strategy may be one way to facilitate a transformation to a more open culture.

Displacement through incarceration: an opportunity for personal re-engagement

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-45
Author(s):  
David N. Eades
Keyword(s):  
Interpersonal Relationships ◽  
Interpersonal Relations ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Significant Other ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Formerly Incarcerated ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Field Notes ◽  
Carceral Geography ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to highlight that interpersonal relations within a visits venue in a carceral space can be restorative. This provides implications for staff working in institutions to support a visits programme to assist those incarcerated. Design/methodology/approach The experiences of those formerly incarcerated are captured through an ethnography of engagement by way of semi-structured interviews and field notes. In methodology it draws upon the fields of criminology and prison sociology, and in particular using an ethnographic approach within the field of Carceral Geography. Findings Interpersonal relationships developed, with a “significant other” within the liminality of displacement, are therapeutic in nature and potentially contribute to ongoing healthier relationships than previously experienced, once a person is released from incarceration. These also assist those incarcerated transition into the community when released. Research limitations/implications The sample within the study was only small, did not include the impact of family members, nor the impact of not having visitors upon people who are incarcerated. The feedback received was all positive. Other people might have had alternative experiences that were not captured in this study. Practical implications A practical outcome of this research is to encourage the development of interpersonal relationships and the reconstruction of social networks for those incarcerated as a means of early intervention for their recovery and future progress reintegrating back into society. Social implications The impact of a significant other helps those formerly incarcerated to value the importance of close supportive relationships in contributing to the lives of others socially. Originality/value Assisting those incarcerated develop a relationship with a significant other provides a unique protective element as a social intervention. Staff within institutions have a unique role within their service to facilitate visitors and to encourage those incarcerated to connect with a significant other so as to help their mental health, support their general well-being and give them hope for the future.

Professionals, discretion and public sector reform in the UK: re‐visiting Lipsky

2006 ◽  
Vol 19 (7) ◽  
pp. 629-642 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Taylor ◽  
Josie Kelly
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Managerial Control ◽  
Public Sector Reform ◽  
Sector Reform ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Street Level ◽  
Street Level Bureaucrats ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Rule Making ◽  
Street Level Bureaucracy

PurposeSeeks to examine how far Michael Lipsky's theory of discretion as it relates to public sector professionals as “street‐level bureaucrats” is still applicable in the light of public sector reform and in particular the introduction of increased managerial control over professionals.Design/methodology/approachThe main thesis in Lipsky's work, Street‐Level Bureaucracy, that street‐level bureaucrats devise their own rules and procedures to deal with the dilemmas of policy implementation is linked to public sector reform over the past 25 years or so. The article differentiates between three forms of discretion, rule, task and value and assesses the extent to which these different forms of discretion have been compromised by reform. Examples are drawn principally from the literature on school teachers and social workersFindingsThe findings suggest that the rule‐making (hence bureaucratic) capacity of professionals at street‐level is much less influential than before although it is questionable whether or not the greater accountability of professionals to management and clarity of the targets and objectives of organisations delivering public policy has liberated them from the dilemmas of street‐level bureaucracy.Research limitations/implicationsThe work has focussed on the UK and in particular on two professions. However, it may be applied to any country which has undergone public sector reform and in particular where “new public management” processes and procedures have been implemented. There is scope for in‐depth studies of a range of occupations, professional and otherwise in the UK and elsewhere.Practical implicationsPolicy makers and managers should consider how far the positive aspects of facilitating discretion in the workplace by reducing the need for “rule‐making” to cope with dilemmas have been outweighed by increased levels of bureaucracy and the “de‐skilling” of professionals.Originality/valueLipsky's much cited and influential work is evaluated in the light of public sector reform some 25 years since it was published. The three forms of discretion identified offer the scope for their systematic application to the workplace.

4.0 digital transition and human capital: evidence from the Italian Fintech market

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Filomena Izzo ◽  
Viktoriia Tomnyuk ◽  
Rosaria Lombardo
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Regression Models ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Critical Factor ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Digital Era ◽  
Structural Capital ◽  
The Impact

PurposeIn the intellectual capital literature, no studies have examined the causal relationship between Italian Fintech companies' performance and intellectual capital, especially the impact of digital industrialization on human capital. This paper aims to fill this gap in measuring human capital efficiency in the Italian Fintech market.Design/methodology/approachThe authors adopt Pulic's model and define the intellectual capital through three components (human capital, structural capital and capital employed) and perform an exploratory analysis of the Italian Fintech companies by using principal component analysis. Then the authors investigate the effects of the intellectual capital and its components on the Italian Fintech companies' performance by using parametric and nonparametric regression models.FindingsResults of regression models reveal that human capital and employed capital are positively related to the companies' performance, except for the structural capital.Research limitations/implicationsThe study focuses on the Italian level, and future research could be extended to different European countries or to the global Fintech market. Moreover, it is advised to explore more components that contribute to intellectual capital measurement inside the companies operating in the 4.0 industrial revolution, such as the innovative capital and the relational capital.Practical implicationsThis study proposes a new vision for managerial procedures to find which features are critical for achieving profitability in this digital era. The study offers interesting reflections on the management decisions for both companies and public decision-makers. Results suggest that, among intellectual capital components, human capital plays a strategic role for the knowledge-intensive companies that are interested in potentiating their performance and competitiveness. Furthermore, this study finds that human capital is critical factor for achieving profitability in this digital era.Social implicationsThe Fintech sector is one that most benefited from the Digital Revolution, and if it is adequately managed, it can bring great benefits in terms of major employment, especially for the young population, and bring major financial inclusiveness all over the world.Originality/valueThis is the first study that examines the Italian Fintech market and analyzes the dependence relationship between companies' performance and intellectual capital components, identifying the role of human capital in a new completely digital sector. The analysis findings are strategic for the business decisions-making process.

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