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Process Automation as Enabler of Prioritized Values in Local Government - A Stakeholder Analysis
Linköping University, Department of Management and Engineering, Information Systems and Digitalization. Linköping University, Faculty of Arts and Sciences.
Linköping University, Department of Management and Engineering, Information Systems and Digitalization. Linköping University, Faculty of Arts and Sciences.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-4735-8697
Linköping University, Department of Management and Engineering, Information Systems and Digitalization. Linköping University, Faculty of Arts and Sciences.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-2784-863X
2021 (English)In: ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENT, EGOV 2021, SPRINGER INTERNATIONAL PUBLISHING AG , 2021, Vol. 12850, p. 288-300Conference paper, Published paper (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

Local government organizations (municipalities) in Sweden are encouraged to pursue process automation to face upcoming challenges. In this paper we focus on a case where these recommendations are put into practice and explore the views on process automation held by different stakeholder groups, related to which values they prioritize in their respective area of work. We do this by applying stakeholder theory and the model of value ideals by [1] as a combined theoretical lens. Our results show that different stakeholder groups prioritize different value ideals in their areas of work and that their views on process automation as able to enable these value ideals vary from optimistic, to hesitant to pessimistic. In the studied case, the achievement of process automation is in part reliant on workers themselves seeking it out, meaning that the pessimistic view on process automation poses a problem in that it becomes an obstacle for this to function. We discuss the possible reasons for the differently held prioritized value ideals as well as the differently held views on process automation. We conclude that the studied case shows that implementing process automation includes establishing new structures, roles and responsibilities and comes with certain issues, as those highlighted by our analysis. We found the combination of value ideals and stakeholder theory useful in studying e-government initiatives and make some further recommendations on possible future, related, streams of research.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
SPRINGER INTERNATIONAL PUBLISHING AG , 2021. Vol. 12850, p. 288-300
Series
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, ISSN 0302-9743
Keywords [en]
Automation; Public sector; Municipality; Stakeholder theory; Public values
National Category
Information Systems
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-184096DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-84789-0_21ISI: 000769437800021ISBN: 9783030847890 (electronic)ISBN: 9783030847883 (print)OAI: oai:DiVA.org:liu-184096DiVA, id: diva2:1650725
Conference
20th IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference on Electronic Government (EGOV), Univ Granada, Granada, SPAIN, sep 07-09, 2021
Note

Funding Agencies|AFA Insurance

Available from: 2022-04-08 Created: 2022-04-08 Last updated: 2024-08-19
In thesis
1. SOCIOTECHNICAL IMAGINARIES OF THE AUTOMATED MUNICIPALITY
Open this publication in new window or tab >>SOCIOTECHNICAL IMAGINARIES OF THE AUTOMATED MUNICIPALITY
2022 (English)Licentiate thesis, comprehensive summary (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

In the last few years, Swedish municipalities have striven to adopt automation to increase their internal efficiency by automating administrative processes. This E-Government initiative is taking place as part of the ongoing digitalization efforts by Swedish municipalities. To be able to automate processes, municipalities are introducing new types of software, such as Robotic Process Automation (RPA). This allows the need for human involvement to be reduced, by letting a software robot perform processes instead. In adopting automation, several different stakeholders are involved, ranging from the original suppliers of the software to the case workers performing processes that might be automated. The aim of this thesis is to explore and understand different stakeholder perspectives on automation. This is done by identifying sociotechnical imaginaries of automation amongst involved stakeholders by conducting a qualitative and interpretive analysis of the contents of the five papers that are part of this thesis. Sociotechnical imaginaries of automation are visions of the future that stakeholders imagine automation as able to bring. Three sociotechnical imaginaries of automation are identified: Automation is a new era of digitalization, Automation is a powerful tool, and Automation is just another software. These imaginaries are held and performed by six stake-holder groups: Suppliers, Developers, Policymakers, Strategists, Civil serv-ants, and IT Department. Underlying interests, closeness to real-life-practice, experience with automation and how stakeholders influence each other are discussed as possible reasons for there being different sociotechnical imaginaries. From this, it is concluded that different stakeholders have different ideas of what automation entails and thus what “the automated municipality” looks like. Contradictions between different sociotechnical imaginaries are potential obstacles of communication and co-operation as different stakeholders may plan and approach automation differently. This thesis contributes a novel way of how the adoption of automation in Swedish municipalities can be understood.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Linköping: Linköping University Electronic Press, 2022. p. 85
Series
Faculty of Arts and Sciences thesis, ISSN 1401-4637 ; 129
National Category
Computer and Information Sciences Other Social Sciences
Research subject
Economic Information Systems
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-183973 (URN)10.3384/9789179293093 (DOI)9789179293086 (ISBN)9789179293093 (ISBN)
Presentation
2022-04-27, ACAS, A-building, Campus Valla, Linköping, 13:00 (Swedish)
Opponent
Supervisors
Note

Funding agencies: Part of the research in this thesis has been conducted as part of a research project funded by AFA Försäkring.

Available from: 2022-03-30 Created: 2022-03-30 Last updated: 2025-06-04Bibliographically approved

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CiteExportLink to record
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Citation style
  • apa
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