The European Group for Public Administration (EGPA) Study Group on e-Government

Deadline for proposals extended to 31 May 2023!

The 2023 Annual Conference of the European Group for Public Administration will be held in Zagreb, Croacia from 5^th to 8^th September 2023. The Conference is being organised by the EGPA/IIAS Secretariat in close cooperation with key partners. For this conference, the Permanent Study Group on e-Government requests: (1) abstracts for papers relating to the themed session on the Future of Agile in Public Service Organizations; (2) abstracts for a joint session on public administration, sustainability and the digital transformation, and (3) abstracts for the general sessions drawing on current research which is relevant to the interests of this Permanent Study Group.

1. Themed Session: The Future of Agile in Public Service Organizations

Over the last twenty years, agile methods have become standard practice in software design. The ‘Agile manifesto’ was an important starting point for this development, as it addressed the shortcomings of the previously dominant “waterfall” approach.  This approach encompassed planning, standardized processes, and relied on the assumption that service requirements do not change in the process. Agile, in contrast, adopts a more flexible approach and uses: less detailed planning; reflective learning; shorter development cycles; intensive collaboration; and continuous testing with clients. Importantly, the notion of ‘Agile Government’ goes beyond software design and IT, meaning that Agile practices can also be used in project management, process redesign, and to solve other complex challenges.

For the EGPA Conference, we are interested in strengthening our understanding of the emerging concept of Agile Government. We seek contributions in the areas of public management, project management, governance, public administration, public sector innovation, and citizen-orientated services, in connection with adjacent fields such as information systems, public policy, and public law. We invite researchers to submit abstracts for theoretical and/or empirical research applying rigorous qualitative and/or quantitative methods. Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• State-of-the-art academic thinking about the implications of Agile Government for traditional hierarchical and bureaucratic organizations, the politico-administrative context, and for key theories in the field of Public Administration/Management;
• Conceptual scholarship that contributes to increased conceptual clarity, better definitions of Agile Government, and clearer distinctions from other related concepts;
• Historical and comparative accounts of the development of Agile Government;
• Theoretical and practical considerations regarding the diffusion of Agile practices among and inside public service organizations, including collaborations between Agile and non-Agile units;
• Case studies of the drivers, barriers, and adoption mechanisms of Agile practices in public service organizations;
• Theoretical and empirical analyses of legal issues that may affect the adoption of Agile practices, including recommendations on how to overcome them; and
• Theoretical and empirical analyses on both the positive outcomes and the possible dark sides of agile government at the macro, meso and micro levels.

Strong contributions can be considered for publication in the special issue of Information Polity on this topic edited by Oliver Neumann (Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration) and Carina Schott (Utrecht University School of Governance). See: Special Issue on The Future of Agile in Public Service Organizations: Macro, Meso and Micro Perspectives | Information Polity. Please note that abstracts for this special issue need to be submitted before June 10. The EGPA Conference can be an excellent opportunity to present papers and obtain feedback before the full papers need to be submitted (October 10, 2023).

2. A Joint Session: Public Administration, Sustainability and Digital Transformation

Today’s governments are facing the need to meet the sustainability challenges while adapting to and using the opportunities provided by digital transformation. This means that governments face a double transition to be lead and managed, i.e., transition towards more digital and sustainable futures. At the same time, the European Green Deal explicitly states that digital transformation should be at the service of Green Transition. But we (should) know by now that this kind of twin transition will not occur automatically.

Our theoretical and empirical understanding of this ‘double transition’ is limited. We need strong empirical analyses and new theoretical frameworks to understand how this double transition actually works. This is a huge topic since we aim to connect two large bodies of literature but we feel that building this connection will produce insights that are both societally and academically needed.

We are looking for papers that provide conceptual contributions and empirical insights (both case studies and comparative papers) on these broader questions:

1. How are governments taking advantage of and steering the digital transformation processes to serve the needs of sustainability challenges?
2. What the key public sector capacities, capabilities and skills for this task? How to build and develop them?
3. What are the key digital solutions that PA systems are using or should use for tackling sustainability challenges on local, regional, national or trans-national level?

Papers on other topics in the broad area of public administration, sustainability and digital transformation are also welcome.

This special theme is jointly organized with the EGPA’s PSG XIV on Public Administration, Technology and Innovation (PATI).

3. General Sessions: Papers on e-Government

For those who may be new to the Study Group, please note that it is not necessary to address the theme set out above in your submission. This Permanent Study Group is a podium for broad discussion about e-Government with a specific interest on the administrative, political and organizational aspects of service delivery, as well as information flows in and around government, public services and policy. Papers on other topics in the broad area of e-Government, ICT in public administration and e-democracy are very welcome. In recent years, papers have been presented on a diverse range of topics, including: smart cities, big data, governance and regulation, privacy and surveillance, social media, accountability and trust, public policy, and national and international policy and practice around e-government, etc. We are also keen to encourage papers which explore innovate methods in the study of e-Government and those that set out and assess novel technological applications.

Publication of Papers

We aim to publish a collection of papers, around the theme of agile government, as a special issue of the journal Information Polity (https://informationpolity.com). Papers not relating to this theme may also be published in Information Polity, as well as in other academic journals such as the Electronic Journal of e-Government and in the International Review of Administrative Sciences. Subject to editorial and peer review, the best paper from the conference will be fast-tracked for publication in Information Polity.

Further Information

Up to date information on the Study Group, as it becomes available, will be mailed to you directly. The conference website can be found at:

EGPA Conference URL: https://www.egpa-conference2023.org/

EGPA Conference Management Platform: https://www.conftool.org/egpa-conference2023

Submissions should preferably be uploaded directly to the EGPA site, but if you are having problems with the site you can mail your abstract directly to the Study Group Co-Chairs.

As in previous years, we will try to organise our time so as to maximize opportunities to reflect on and discuss papers in depth. The EGPA Study Group on e-Government is dedicated to providing the strongest possible discussion forum for both established and new scholars in this field, and to give a good opportunity for scholars to present new ideas and have those ideas discussed and debated by their peers.

Acceptance

This call is for abstracts. In keeping with the aims of the Study Group, the co-Chairs will be looking for a number of key features in the proposed papers. These features are as follows:

• Abstracts should have a  succinct and relevant title;
• Abstracts should include author affiliations and contact details;
• Abstracts should be no longer than 500 words in length;
• Abstracts should be submitted in Microsoft Word, PDF or RTF formats;
• Abstracts should cover the main line of argument to be explored in the full paper;
• Abstracts should show evidence of innovative and creative thinking which is well grounded in theory or well argued;
• Abstracts should indicate whether the proposed paper is theoretical and/or empirical in orientation; and
• Abstracts should relate the proposed paper to contemporary discourse in e-Government;

In all cases, there should be evidence that the proposed paper emerges from contemporary debates within the sphere of public administration  and e-Government, broadly defined.

Timeline/Key Dates

The following are the key dates:

• Proposals should be uploaded through the EGPA submission website by 17^thMay 2023;
• Decisions about accepted papers by Co-Chairs notified to authors: 31^stMay 2023;
• Deadline for submitting complete papers to EGPA website: 17^th August 2023;
• Conference dates: 5^th to 8^th September 2023.

Papers should have a maximum length of approximately 8,000 words and should be submitted in PDF, Microsoft Word or RTF format. We will be asking some lucky participants to act as discussants for each of the presented papers. Discussants provide a further stimulus to valuable discussion on each of the papers presented.

Please note that we are keen to encourage new and existing scholars in the field to contribute to the Study Group. The group is open to new members and we ask senior members of the group to encourage younger colleagues and PhD students to consider submitting abstracts.

Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions regarding the conference and/or the Permanent Study Group. We look forward to hearing from you.

With best wishes,

Albert, William & Shirley (e-Government Permanent Study Group 1 Co-Chairs)

Professor Albert Meijer, Utrecht University, Netherlands: a.j.meijer@uu.nl

Professor William Webster, University of Stirling, Scotland (UK): william.webster@stir.ac.uk

Dr. Shirley Kempeneer, Tilburg University, Netherlands, S.Kempeneer@tilburguniversity.edu