A Qualitative Study of Legacy Systems Modernisation for Citizen-Centric Digital Government

Abstract

Legacy systems are valuable assets in most public sector agencies that have been in use for a long time. These systems support government service delivery to the citizens and maintain vital public administration functions and data. However, legacy systems are often related to technical difficulties that impede innovation efforts. The maintenance of the systems has become challenging and incompatible with the demands of digital transformation in the public sector. Due to their importance, the systems cannot be easily discarded. Rebuilding the old systems from scratch entails a long development timeline, high cost, and the loss of critical service functionalities. These circumstances encourage the public sector agencies to implement the modernisation of legacy systems. However, the modernisation effort for legacy systems in the public sector is not straightforward. Besides technical aspects, it should also consider non-technical aspects, including the requirements of the new era of citizen-centric digital government. In order to achieve this aspiration, a complete strategy must be developed to serve as a guide for government agencies. Hence, the purpose of this study is to develop a comprehensive guideline for the public sector. The research has been developed using a qualitative methodology that incorporates the theoretical and empirical phases. The theoretical phase was conducted through a literature review of previous studies related to the research topic. The empirical phase in the public sector was implemented and analysed using phenomenology and grounded theory methods. A total of 19 informants were involved in the individual and focus group interviews conducted. The study results revealed that human, process, product, and organisation aspects as well as the related characteristics of the citizen-centric influence the legacy systems modernisation in the era of digital government. The findings contribute as a complete guideline for the public sector agencies in modernising the legacy systems in line with the citizen-centric digital government vision.