The impact of using an ERP system on organizational processes and individual working behaviour in the public sector: A case study

This article reports the results of a research aimed at investigating the impact of an ERP system on organizational processes and individual employees in a public sector organi-ation (Italian Regional Council). Through a qualitative method (Focus Groups - FG) interesting results have come out: system introduction planning, organizational and technical aspects seem to be relevant issues to be addressed in order to improve ERP system’s effectiveness. Through a structured questionnaire, a larger sample of employees will be involved in the second phase, aimed at testing the constructs which emerged with the FG analysis and the relationships among the

We asked, you said, we did: assessing the drivers and effectiveness of an e-participation practice in Scotland

E-participation refers to the process of engaging citizens and stakeholders in policy and decision-making process to make public administration participatory and transparent. This chapter explores the main drivers behind the introduction of an e-participation practice in Scotland called We asked, you said, we did, and assesses its effectiveness. The combination of documentary analysis of Scottish public sector reform reports and a series of in-depth interviews reveals that the so-called Scottish Approach to policy-making has strongly influenced the adoption and use of We asked, you said, we did. The practice has contributed to the way the Scottish Government works in collaboration with stakeholders and citizens in designing and revising policy and has fostered the co-production of solutions to public policy problems. However, the Scottish Government need to utilize it at the ‘right’ time and on appropriate issues so that it can make a real difference to policy outcomes

The success of e-participation. Learning lessons from Decide Madrid and We asked, You said, We did in Scotland

Electronic participation (e-participation) has grown across the world in recent decades and many governments offer a range of opportunities for e-participation. However, there is a lack of comparative analyses of successful initiatives, which can be useful in supporting subsequent adopters. This paper identifies the best practices and areas for improvement of Decide Madrid and We asked, You said, We did in Scotland, whose software has been widely adopted by hundreds of institutions worldwide. Key common enablers include political leadership and senior management support, top-down approach, high levels of internal and external collaboration, embeddedness in the formal policy-making processes and careful consideration of design features. Most of these factors are related to processes, organizational or managerial dimensions, rather than being linked to the institutional context or ICT. Areas for improvement relate to the way the initiatives provide feedback, allow discussion and flexibility on policy options, incorporate possibilities for offline participation, and involve a wider range of stakeholders. An important contribution is the identification of factors contributing to the robustness and continuity of e-participation initiatives, combining the flexibility of collaborative network governance and the stability of public bureaucracy

The motivations for the adoption of management innovation by local governments and its performance effects

This article analyses the economic, political and institutional antecedents and performance effects of the adoption of shared Senior Management Teams (SMTs) – a management innovation (MI) that occurs when a team of senior managers oversees two or more public organizations. Findings from statistical analysis of 201 English local governments and interviews with organizational leaders reveal that shared SMTs are adopted to develop organisational capacity in resource‐challenged, politically risk‐averse governments, and in response to coercive and mimetic institutional pressures. Importantly, sharing SMTs may reduce rather than enhance efficiency and effectiveness due to redundancy costs and the political transaction costs associated with diverting resources away from a high‐performing partner to support their lower‐performing counterpart

Social Support Mediates the Relationship between Body Image Distress and Depressive Symptoms in Prostate Cancer Patients

Treatments for prostate cancer (PCa), the second most common cancer in men, may affect the body image (BI) of patients, increasing the risk of negative mental health outcomes. However, an enabling social support network may be a protective factor against the effects of BI distress on health. Therefore, the present study examined the mediating role of social support in the relationship between BI distress and depressive symptoms. Data were retrospectively collected from 197 PCa patients aged from 48 to 79 years (M = 67.19; SD = 6.83). The statistical package for the social sciences with PROCESS Macro was used to assess the direct and mediating effects with bias-corrected bootstrapping (10,000 samples). Results showed that BI distress was positively associated with depressive symptoms and that social support partially mediated this relationship. Moreover, among the different sources of social support, only friend support significantly mediated the association between BI distress and depressive symptoms. This study sheds light on the crucial role of social support as a dimension that can promote health in PCa patients

A cross-sectional study on demoralization in prostate cancer patients: The role of masculine self-esteem, depression, and resilience

Purpose: The current cross-sectional study had three objectives: (1) to assess the prevalence of depression and demoralization in a sample of prostate cancer (PCa) patients; (2) to examine whether masculine self-esteem and depression were associated with demoralization; and (3) to evaluate the role of resilience as a factor buffering the effects of masculine self-esteem and depression on demoralization. Methods: 197 PCa patients aged 48 to 79 years (M = 67.19; SD = 6.83) answered questions about masculine self-esteem, depression, resilience, and demoralization. An ANOVA was conducted to examine whether the association between demoralization and depressive symptoms was linear. A chi-square test was calculated to determine differences between depression and demoralization. Finally, a hierarchical multiple linear regression analysis with interaction terms was conducted to examine the associations between masculine self-esteem, depression, resilience, and demoralization. Results: Depression scores increased linearly with demoralization severity, but demoralization scores were higher than depression scores (21.3% vs. 15.2%). Lower scores on masculine self-esteem and higher scores on depressive symptoms were associated with greater demoralization. Resilience significantly moderated the association between masculine self-esteem and demoralization, but not between depression and demoralization. Conclusion: Assessment of depression, masculine self-esteem, resilience, and demoralization in the clinical setting is critical for improving the mental health status of PCa patients

Deconstructing complexity: A comparative study of government collaboration in national digital platforms and smart city networks in Europe

This research deconstructs complexity as a key challenge of intergovernmental digitalisation projects. While much of the literature acknowledges that the fundamental restructuring coupled with technical capacity that these joint projects require leads to increased complexity, little is known about how different types of complexity interact within the collaborative process. Using Klijn and Koppenjan’s (2014) work on substantive, strategic, and institutional complexity, we apply complexity theory in collaborative digital environments. To do so, eight digital projects are analysed that differ by state structure and government level. Using a cross-case design with 50 semi-structured expert interviews, we find that each digitalisation project exhibits all types of complexity and that these complexities overlap. However, clear differences emerge between national and local level projects, suggesting that complexity in digitalisation processes presents different challenges for collaborative digitalisation projects across contexts

Slégami Open Access - Manuale d'uso per ricercatori

Il seguente documento nasce nell’ambito delle attività svolte dal Gruppo di Lavoro (GdL) APRE dedicato al tema dell’Open Science e si sviluppa come un manuale d’uso per i ricercatori, con specifico riguardo all’Open Access e all’Open Data. La sua redazione ha coinvolto attivamente tutti i membri del GdL, i cui membri sono rappresentanti delle biblioteche e degli uffici di supporto alla ricerca di diverse università e centri di ricerca italiani (è possibile consultare la lista dei partecipanti nell’ultima pagina di questo documento). Il lavoro è un aggiornamento del manuale originariamente pubblicato nel 2019 e la cui prima edizione era il risultato di un lavoro svolto in 3 fasi: 1) un’iniziale raccolta delle domande più comuni poste dai ricercatori presso le strutture di supporto (siano esse biblioteche o uffici di supporto alla ricerca) degli enti partecipanti in materia di Open Access e Open Data; 2) una fase di consolidamento e classificazione delle domande raccolte in 6 categorie; 3) un’ultima fase di redazione, da parte di alcuni membri del GdL, delle risposte alle domande poste e successivamente emendate a più riprese dall’intero gruppo. Nel 2021 il GdL si è riunito nuovamente per lavorare ad un aggiornamento del manuale in ottica Horizon Europe. Seguendo lo stesso schema di lavoro in 3 fasi (raccolta, classificazione ed elaborazione), il gruppo ha identificato 76 domande aggiuntive rispetto al documento originale, le quali a loro volta sono state successivamente raggruppate e classificate in 10 categorie

The impact of using an ERP system on organizational processes and individual employees

This article reports the results of a research aimed at investigating the impact of an ERP system on organizational processes and individual employees in a public sector organization (Italian Regional Council). Through a qualitative method (Focus Groups - FG) interesting results have come out: system introduction planning, organizational and technical aspects seem to be relevant issues to be addressed in order to improve ERP system’s effectiveness. Through a structured questionnaire, a larger sample of employees will be involved in the second phase, aimed at testing the constructs which emerged with the FG analysis and the relationships among them