A Collaborative Governance Approach to Partnerships Addressing Public Problems with Private Data

The recent explosion of data, which is generated, collected, and exchanged, opens up new opportunities and poses new challenges. Actors in different sectors have recently began to explore how they can work together and leverage these data to help address ‘wicked’ problems. A novel form of cross sector partnership emerges, labelled “data collaborative”, which is normally focused on accessing private sector data and using it to address public problems. While there is emerging knowledge about how data can be shared in such partnerships, less is known about the collaboration dynamics of these partnerships. Are there any distinct collaboration mechanisms and challenges that come into play? In this paper, we examine this problem from the perspective of collaborative governance and propose a framework for understanding collaboration around data sharing for public good

Being smart: Emerging technologies and innovation in the public sector

Smart government is used to characterize activities that creatively invest in emergent technologies coupled with innovative strategies to achieve more agile and resilient government structures and governance infrastructures. However, there is no consensus in terms of what this term includes and how it is related to emergent technologies and innovation in the public sector. This introductory paper provides readers with ways to think about smart government and summarizes findings from twelve articles included in this special issue. These articles, which are the best papers of the 6th International Conference on the Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance (ICEGOV2012), contribute to emerging understanding of being smart in government settings. The articles span a great diversity of related topics such as smart cities, open government, and participation mechanisms. Collectively, the articles provide perspectives on the nature of smart governments and illustrate exemplar practices and initiatives on how governments are opening up and transforming service delivery to become smarter. The special issue in its entirety contributes to understanding governance structures, technical infrastructures, and other requirements geared toward supporting the operations of smarter governments around the world

Introduction to Transformational Government: Governance, Organization, and Management Minitrack

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Understanding the Success of Government Portals: The Role of Political Leadership, Standards, and a Powerful Centralized IT Agency

Information technologies have become an essential component of government administrative reforms and governance strategies around the world. Although Internet portals are now some of the most mature technologies, they continue to be the most important channel for governments to provide information and services to citizens and other stakeholders. However, studies about government portals still lack the level of detail necessary to better understand the specific variables that affect their success and, more prominently, how these variables intertwine. Based on institutional theory, particularly the technology enactment framework, and one in-depth case study in Mexico, this paper shows how leadership from the governor, the establishment of government-wide rules and standards, and the existence of a powerful centralized IT agency collectively affect the process of enacting a state government website and its potential results. The paper also identifies other variables and discusses some of their interactions and mechanisms of influence

Assessing the Role of Executive Involvement and Information Needs as Socio-Technical Determinants of Governance in IIS Success

This paper systematically assesses two determinants of governance in IIS initiatives: information needs and executive involvement. As literature suggests and our hypotheses imply, those determinants are perceived to hold close relationships to the success of information sharing and collaboration initiatives through the mediation of governance mechanisms. By taking a quantitative stand to a US-based national survey data, we use structural equation modelling (SEM) techniques to verify to what extent those determinants are significantly associated with governance. We also propose a framework to explain the relative relevance of these two variables in determining the success of IIS (Information Integration and Sharing) project using governance as a mediator. Overall, this study puts the concept of governance in perspective, opening paths to expand theoretical and conceptual boundaries associated to the role it plays on the success of IIS in the public sector

Providing Public Value through Data Sharing: Understanding Critical Factors of Food Traceability for Local Farms and Institutional Buyers

Many of the datasets that could contribute to solutions for current public problems are proprietary and reside outside of government agencies. Accelerating data sharing and collaboration between those who hold valuable data and those able to deliver solutions is key to generating public value from private data. There is still a limited body of literature, however, that addresses data sharing and collaboration between private and public organizations. Using a case study of food traceability from local farms to institutions, this paper contributes to this emerging field by identifying challenges and incentives in data sharing among different types of organizations. In particular, our goal is to study how small farms and institutional buyers can be incentivized to share their data in a way that contributes to food safety, public health, and other societal goals. Our findings demonstrate that initiatives which can show the benefits of having a whole-chain food traceability system, have clear policies and regulations, and opportunities for participation in training activities are key incentives

Addressing territorial digital divides through ICT strategies: Are investment decisions consistent with local needs?

Governments around the world are investing a great amount of resources in the development of an information society. These investments are particularly important as an attempt to close digital divides among countries and regions within countries. However, there is no clear evidence that suggests that current Information and Communication Technology (ICT) policies are helping align investments with the actual needs of the local contexts. Based on data about the allocation of 2014-2020 EU Funds, this paper analyzes the relationship between local needs and investment decisions aiming at bridging territorial digital divides. The results identify four different regional strategies developed around four policy goals: broadband, digital inclusion, digital government services, and the use of ICTs in enterprises. The results also show that unlike the past 2007-13 period, the allocations to these goals appear to be consistent with the ICT local context, i.e. funding for a given goal is higher in the regions that need it the most. Therefore, our main recommendation for the European Commission and Member States is to keep existing requirements for developing evidence-informed “Digital Growth” strategies for the next 2021-27 period. We also suggest to strengthen existing support tools for regional governments

Addressing territorial digital divides through ICT strategies: Are investment decisions consistent with local needs?

Governments around the world are investing a great amount of resources in the development of an information society. These investments are particularly important as an attempt to close digital divides among countries and regions within countries. However, there is no clear evidence that suggests that current Information and Communication Technology (ICT) policies are helping align investments with the actual needs of the local contexts. Based on data about the allocation of 2014-2020 EU Funds, this paper analyzes the relationship between local needs and investment decisions aiming at bridging territorial digital divides. The results identify four different regional strategies developed around four policy goals: broadband, digital inclusion, digital government services, and the use of ICTs in enterprises. The results also show that unlike the past 2007-13 period, the allocations to these goals appear to be consistent with the ICT local context, i.e. funding for a given goal is higher in the regions that need it the most. Therefore, our main recommendation for the European Commission and Member States is to keep existing requirements for developing evidence-informed “Digital Growth” strategies for the next 2021-27 period. We also suggest to strengthen existing support tools for regional governments