Sharjah Government Employees’ e-Readiness

Abstract

Given the current coronavirus global crisis, e-services have never been more relevant as they are today. Like many countries and for many years, the UAE government has focused on the rapid adoption of smart government services in the public sector in orderto achieve the highest international standardsin the electronic-based services. The UAE has established its government strategic plan 2021 vision. In light of this vision, the government of Emirate of Sharjah formed a SupremeCommittee for Digital Transformation. This article aims to investigate Sharjah'sgovernment employees' readiness and preparation for the digital transformation.This article provides an assessment of employees’ readiness by examining how employees perceive e-government andthe extent to which they are ready to embark on the digital transition.The theoretical framework is based on Everett Rogers’ diffusion theory (1962). Diffusion of innovation is the process through whichnew technologies, products, or ideasare diffused and adopted in a social system. The paper used a survey of 110 government employees using both quantitative questions and open-ended qualitative questions. The paper found that while a lot of progress has been made, government employees are still ambivalent about the implementation of Sharjah digital transformation.