2.5. Holistic understanding of eParticipation within eGovernment

Holistic reference framework for eGovernment service provision: The holistic reference framework for eGovernment service provision is based on the socio-technical approach of Cherns (1976), the Business Media Reference Model (BMRM) of Schmid (1999), the Information Architecture of Mok (1996), an elaboration of the BMRM by Gisler (1999) who extended the Schmid model with legal aspects and a discussion of Lenk (2001) who elaborated the BMRM from the point of view of different stages in service delivery. What can be learned from these approaches is the multidimensional consideration (from the strategic layer to the technical layer) of distinct aspects (organizational, judicial, security, process modelling, access, services, workflow, etc.) and the core phases of an electronic public service (from information to transaction and settlement - including an aftercare phase). The strengths of these approaches have been merged to a holistic reference framework. This concept supports the understanding of complex public services from three distinct points of view:

• Abstraction layers: different points of detail
• Progress of public services: different phases of progress of a public service
• Different Views: distinct foci on issues

Figure 1:  Holistic reference framework for eGovernment developed by Wimmer (2002)

The holistic reference framework is not restricted to eGovernment; eParticipation services and processes should be investigated likewise.

Holistic understanding of eGovernment and eParticipation:

Applying a holistic approach for designing socio-technical systems is becoming more and more important (Wimmer, 2000, p. 148). Complex interactive systems such as being deployed in eParticipation are formed by a multitude of aspects. One can identify a series of research questions emerging especially from the interaction among the four key aspects as depicted in figure 2 (Bicking et al., 2006):

• Research in society evolution, people using ICT as a daily support tool, people refusing or being unable to use ICT, people expecting governments to serve in traditional mode, problems of societal change such as digital divide, ICT illiteracy, ICT addiction, etc.

• ICT related research, including new and innovative technologies that might be of interest in future eGovernment and eParticipation applications.

• Government modernization research, including organizational change, networked governments, legal groundings, new business models, new public management, citizen integration, customer orientation, eSkills required by certain stakeholders, etc.

• Research in effectiveness, efficiency and economic values in Government modernization based on ICT diffusion, including public value of new ICT tools and technologies in eParticipation contexts;

Figure 2: Holistic consideration of eGovernment and eParticipation socio-technical systems (Bicking et al., 2006)

As can be recognized and as indicated with the arrows in figure 2, the four main areas cannot be considered in isolation. Instead, interaction among the four pillars and their interrelationships are of particular interest. Just to exemplify one relation: eParticipation success is shaped by the interrelation of how Governments use ICT in order to provide their participation services to citizens and thereby reaching certain performance criteria such as public value, effectiveness, quality of participatory service, cost savings at the administrative side, etc. One could make a long list of examples of such relationships indicating the multidisciplinary nature of eParticipation (Bicking et al., 2006).

Digging further into these interrelationships thereby exploring the particular (eParticipation and eGovernment) processes of these interactions is a means to gather a proper understanding of the system and its contextual environment.

Guideline for comprehensive Business Process Management:

Effective process management has recently regained attention[1]? as a key success factor for successfully implementing eGovernment and eParticipation projects (Wimmer & Klischewski, 2005). The analysis and simulation of the models deliver advice for the optimisation and quality assurance on one hand. On the other hand, effective business process management leads to more effective process execution, and it paves the way to comprehensive and knowledge-based process reengineering and process performance management. Consequently, Business Process Management (BPM) - often used as a generic term for Business Process Reengineering (BPR) - includes the organisation of business processes, reengineering of service processes, management and documentation of process knowledge, performance and quality management as well as transferring process chains into technical implementations such workflow management systems (WfMS?), web services, and service chains.

A guideline to comprehensive process analysis and design was developed by Wimmer (2005). It suggests the following steps for process management:

1. Identify the range of processes relevant for being implemented in eGovernment and eParticipation thereby also indicating which services and process chains can be supported with ICT (process landscape and portfolio with prioritization of processes to be investigated first).
2. Identify the key stakeholders involved in these processes: who carries core responsibility and who does what in the full process chain.
3. Set up a team for process management (analysis and design, modelling) including experts of the domain of application and experts in process management.
4. Select a proper process modelling / process management tool (or tool-suite) for modelling, documentation and reengineering of the selected processes.
5. Carry out the process analysis and documentation (the field work of analysis of the current processes) with the aim of getting a proper understanding of the processes to be reengineered or newly designed.
6. Execute process reengineering and process design (the field work and experts work for designing and reengineering processes by means of process modelling) with the aim of designing / reengineering the new processes (how these should be executed with the help of ICT and in online environments).
7. Evaluation of analysis and design results with users external to the project team as set up in step 3.
8. Transfer and integration to the technical and organisational environments (some parts may be transferred automatically, some process design issues are to be transferred via changes in organisation, training of people, etc.)

The steps 5 – 7 are iterative, following an evolutionary approach, because the analysis and design of complex processes usually requests time and cannot be done at once. Also, gathering the proper understanding in terms of analysis of a domain is usually time-consuming.

[1]? After a first hype of BPM and BPR in the mid 1990s which was driven by an outstanding book of Hammer and Champy (1993) on Business Process Reengineering

References

Bicking, M., Janssen, M., & Wimmer, Maria A. (2006). Scenarios for Governments in 2020: Towards a Roadmap for future eGovernment research in Europe. In Proceedings of eChallenges Conference 2006 (to appear).

Cherns, A. (1976). The principles of sociotechnical design. Human Relations, 29(8), 783-792.

Mok, C. (1996). Designing Business: Multiple Media, Multiple Disciplines. MacMillan? Computer Publications.

Wimmer, M. A. (2000). Designing interactive Systems – Key Issues for a Holistic Approach. PhD? Thesis, University of Linz. Linz: Trauner Verlag.

Wimmer, M. A. (2002). Integrated service modeling for online one-stop Government. EM – Electronic Markets, special issue on e-Government, 12(3), 1-8.

Wimmer, M. A. (2005). Ganzheitliches Vorgehen in der Prozessgestaltung für E-Government: Erfolgsfaktoren und Leitfaden. In M. A. Wimmer, & R. Klischewski, R., Wissensbasiertes Prozessmanagement im E-Government (pp. 95 – 109). Münster et al: LIT Verlag.

Wimmer, M., & Klischewski, R. (2005). Wissensbasiertes Prozessmanagement im E-Government: Herausforderungen und Handlungsmöglichkeiten. In R. Klischewski, & M. A. Wimmer, (Eds), Wissensbasiertes Prozessmanagement im E-Government ( pp. 7-27). Münster et al: LIT Verlag.

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