Digital business innovation of public services

Abstract

The public sector needs to transform itself in order to reap full benefits of new digital technologies. In this regard, a paradigm shift is proposed from New Public Management (NPM) to Digital-Era Governance (DEG). Moving from NPM to DEG entails a full socio-technical change, and it is necessary to investigate what new business models will be needed, and what the impact will be on management, strategy, and governance. This research investigates the implications of moving from NPM to DEG. First, by applying Action Design Research (ADR) in the context of a government lab to examine the implications on strategy in a DEG context. Second, this thesis investigates how the literature is paving the way towards DEG by performing a literature review on open data case studies. In this specific aspect of DEG transformation, focused on ecosystem platforms, it explores how knowledge-based interactions are fostered by open data platforms. Together with the understanding of how to design a DEG strategy, this contributes to a holistic view on how to move towards DEG.