Towards e‐government: a survey of problems in organisational processes

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to look at process initiatives in the Swedish social insurance administration, focusing on the problems of crossing functional boundaries, co‐ordinating processes over inter‐organisational boundaries and the issue of whether to aim for radical or incremental change.Design/methodology/approachThe survey involved data collection including a study of internal documents and 16 individual personal interviews.FindingsThe organisation experiences collaboration problems when cross‐functional work and processes collide with the traditional and hierarchical command and control structures. These are not easily dismantled, meaning intensive work to change the culture and break functional mind‐sets. Furthermore the administration struggles with and can benefit from co‐ordination of processes over the inter‐organisational boundaries. Changes in the customer front‐line affect the rest of the organisation and its processes. The study has shown that both functional units and support processes deep inside the organisation, like the systems development process, are affected, and that deficiencies in the underlying structure and organisation are revealed. The process efforts so far are scattered, but it may be more important for organisations to deploy process change, as a continuous strategic initiative, rather than embarking on huge radical redesign programmes.Originality/valueLittle information regarding processes and the public sector exists, and problems likely to be encountered by other public organisations are pointed out. The survey also puts light on support processes – not only business processes – required for e‐government.