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1 – 10 of over 5000
Open Access
Article
Publication date: 12 August 2024

Amos Shibambu and Mpho Ngoepe

This study aims to explore how service delivery can be enhanced through digital transformation in the public sector in South Africa.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to explore how service delivery can be enhanced through digital transformation in the public sector in South Africa.

Design/methodology/approach

This case study used a qualitative research approach to obtain data through semi-structured interviews. The units of analysis were made up of individual professionals limited to purposive sampling to select chief information officers, investigators and administrative officers from national government departments and state-owned enterprises. The collected data from 12 participants was thematically analysed. The findings revealed that the government lacks legislation and strategy for digital transformation, leading to inconsistent implementation of digital transformation that enhances service delivery in the public sector of South Africa.

Findings

The findings revealed that the government lacks legislation and strategy for digital transformation, leading to inconsistent implementation of digital transformation that enhances service delivery in the public sector of South Africa.

Research limitations/implications

The study was limited to the public sector of South Africa; however, its recommendations are applicable to all organisations that need to provide their services using digital transformation.

Practical implications

Practically, the implications of this study will serve as a resourceful benchmark for the public sector and other organisations.

Social implications

Socially, the implications of this study ensure proper implementation of its recommendations to enhance service delivery in the public sector and other organisations.

Originality/value

Regarding the value that this study brings, it proposes an amendment of the current legislative framework in favour of one that covers digital transformation, which has become dominant in today’s enhanced provision of service delivery.

Details

Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-9342

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 13 August 2024

Natascha van Vooren, Esther de Weger, Josefien de Bruin and Caroline Baan

There is growing recognition that transformation of healthcare systems towards health and well-being systems requires a continuous learning process. This explorative study aims to…

Abstract

Purpose

There is growing recognition that transformation of healthcare systems towards health and well-being systems requires a continuous learning process. This explorative study aims to gain insight into the experiences with and investment in these learning processes within regional partnerships for health and in what they need to enhance their learning capacity to use the learning for transformation.

Design/methodology/approach

17 interviews were held with programme managers, data scientists, trusted advisors and a citizen representative, all involved in the learning process on a regional level in ten Dutch regional partnerships. The interviews were inductively and thematically analysed, focusing on the experiences and perceptions underlying the learning processes.

Findings

Regional partnerships invest in learning processes by organizing interactions between different groups of stakeholders and by reflecting on specific themes or on a region-wide level. Difficulty was found in region-wide reflection and in enhancing the learning capacity within the partnerships. Further enhancing the learning capacity required: (1) Investment in (the use of) expertise for translating learning outcomes into concrete action; (2) Leadership for change, underpinned by a shared sense of urgency to learn for transformation and (3) A facilitative environment for change which is both based on facilitative system structures and a basis of trust and commitment to learn and adapt.

Originality/value

The study highlighted the difficulty of learning on a region-wide level and the struggle to apply this learning for transformation. It provides insights into how learning processes and learning capacity can be further improved.

Details

Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 38 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 23 July 2024

Kristian Norling

This study aims to investigate the impact of bureaucratic culture on the formulation and content of digital transformation strategies in Swedish local governments.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the impact of bureaucratic culture on the formulation and content of digital transformation strategies in Swedish local governments.

Design/methodology/approach

This research uses a qualitative content analysis method to examine strategy documents from local governments in Sweden. The analysis is focused on identifying concepts related to the definition of digital transformation strategy, organizational culture and agility. Relevant themes and insights were extracted using concept-driven coding.

Findings

The research uncovered a significant influence of bureaucratic culture on the content of strategy documents, which manifests through a strong status quo bias. This bias leads to a cautious approach toward digital innovation, limiting strategies to incremental improvements and maintenance of existing processes.

Research limitations/implications

The findings highlight the need for a nuanced understanding of how organizational culture affects digital transformation. The study suggests avenues for further research, particularly in exploring mechanisms to balance bureaucratic stability with digital agility.

Practical implications

The research proposes recommendations for policymakers and public sector managers, advocating for an approach incorporating cultural awareness to foster a more conducive environment for digital transformation within bureaucratic settings.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the field by revealing the nuanced role of bureaucratic culture in shaping digital transformation strategies within the public sector. It offers a unique insight into the Swedish context.

Details

Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6166

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 12 July 2024

Malin Tinjan

The study aims to understand digital transformation as a socially constructed process with multiple stakeholders, influenced by internal and external forces. This perspective…

Abstract

Purpose

The study aims to understand digital transformation as a socially constructed process with multiple stakeholders, influenced by internal and external forces. This perspective stresses the importance of context, human interaction and narratives in the digital transformation within public sector.

Design/methodology/approach

The author uses a case study at a Swedish university undergoing digital transformation. Through first and secondary data, the author thematically analyzes the interaction between change agents, organizational realities and the digital transformation process.

Findings

The study finds that conflicts in pace and scope in the digital transformation drive self-defense mechanisms and the formation of a feedback loop of pending action. Contrary to previous studies, technological and external forces do not make digital transformation inevitable.

Research limitations/implications

Limitations stem from the empirical selection of a Swedish university, affecting the international and intersectoral transferability of the study. The impact of digital transformation differs from previous IT changes, which has implications for the design of the digital transformation process.

Practical implications

Stakeholders should, instead of considering structural and cultural barriers as facts, pay attention to the narratives within the organization as potential excuses to avoid action.

Originality/value

This research contributes to original insights into digital transformation. It uncovers how change agents, despite longing for change, can inadvertently foster inaction in digital transformation. This finding enriches the literature by highlighting the complex dynamics between the desire for change and the social constructs that contribute to stagnation, offering an understanding of barriers to digital transformation.

Details

Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6166

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 18 July 2024

Bo Zhang, Shengjun Wang and Ruixue Zhou

This paper examines the impact of corporate digital transformation on employee satisfaction. Therefore, this study extends our understanding of the economic consequences of…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper examines the impact of corporate digital transformation on employee satisfaction. Therefore, this study extends our understanding of the economic consequences of corporate digital transformation from employees’ perspectives.

Design/methodology/approach

The data used to construct our main proxy of employee satisfaction are collected from Kanzhun.com, which provides reviews by rank-and-file employees on their employers. This study uses a large sample of Chinese firms and adopts various empirical methods to examine the impact of digital transformation on employee satisfaction.

Findings

We find a significant positive relationship between corporate digital transformation and employee satisfaction. Moreover, we document that the relationship between corporate digital transformation and employee satisfaction is more pronounced in firms with higher labor intensity and in state-owned enterprises (SOE).

Research limitations/implications

One significant limitation is that corporate digital transformation is constructed based on word frequency analysis. This approach may be influenced by variations in corporate disclosure practices and might not accurately capture the true extent of corporate digital transformation. This limitation is not only present in our research but is also pervasive in many other studies that utilize similar methodologies. Therefore, our results should be interpreted with this caveat in mind.

Practical implications

Our study suggests that corporate digital transformation enhances employee satisfaction, providing direct evidence for managers and regulators to promote corporate digital transformation. Through digital transformation, companies can not only improve operational efficiency but also foster employee satisfaction. This dual benefit underscores the importance of investing in corporate digital transformation for long-term success.

Social implications

Our study suggests that corporate digital transformation enhances employee satisfaction, providing direct evidence for managers and regulators to promote corporate digital transformation. Through digital transformation, companies can not only improve operational efficiency but also foster employee satisfaction. This dual benefit underscores the importance of investing in corporate digital transformation for long-term success.

Originality/value

Our study contributes to the literature on the economic consequences of corporate digital transformation and extends existing research on the determinants of employee satisfaction. Additionally, it provides a novel measurement of employee satisfaction for a large sample of Chinese firms.

Details

China Accounting and Finance Review, vol. 26 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1029-807X

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 2 August 2024

Wojciech Czakon and Natanya Meyer

In recent years we have seen major technological advancements including the launch of large language models such as ChatGPT and the popularity of the digital transformation topic…

Abstract

Purpose

In recent years we have seen major technological advancements including the launch of large language models such as ChatGPT and the popularity of the digital transformation topic among professionals and academics. Despite this, the pace of digital transformation is surprisingly slow. We aimed to identify behavioral antecedents of an organization’s sluggish digital transformation.

Design/methodology/approach

We adopted the organizational level of analysis, which differs from prior analyses of technological revolutions that looked at the phenomenon from an aggregate labor market or society level of analysis.

Findings

We identified dehumanization as a key construct useful in examining the behavioral impediments to digital transformation. We indicated that the traditionally dual understanding of dehumanization needs to incorporate the actual involvement of non-human agents in operational and decision-making processes in organizations.

Originality/value

We complemented the predominant approach of digital transformation, which focuses on technology and related business model development, with a behavioral approach. We considered digital transformation as an extreme degree of change, similar to the Industrial Revolution. We paved the way for the conceptual development of dehumanization in the digital world and for developing managerial practices useful in alleviating concerns that impede the pace of digital transformation.

Details

Central European Management Journal, vol. 32 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2658-0845

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 30 May 2024

Johan Magnusson, Fredrik Carlsson, Marcus Matteby, Pamela Ndanu Kisembo and Daiva Brazauskaite

The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of deviant workplace behavior on digital transformation in the public sector. This contributes to the current literature on…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of deviant workplace behavior on digital transformation in the public sector. This contributes to the current literature on public sector digital transformation as well as to that of deviant workplace behavior in public sector contexts.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conduct a qualitative case study of a digital transformation initiative in a Swedish municipality.

Findings

The authors identify three types of institutional drift related to digital transformation, i.e. decelerating digital transformation, maintaining infrastructural stability and accelerating digital transformation. The authors categorize mediators for said drift and theorize on the role of deviant workplace behavior as a strategic driver for digital transformation in public sector organizations.

Research limitations/implications

With the study being a qualitative case study, it is limited in terms of generalizability and transferability. Through this study, the authors sensitize the notion of digital transformation and show how deviant behavior results in strategic polyphony. Future studies are informed through offering a new perspective to public sector digital transformation strategy.

Practical implications

Practice should view deviant workplace behavior as simultaneously constructive and destructive in lieu of planned digital transformation, as well as see its presence as a potential sign of subpar prerequisites for digital transformation in the public sector.

Social implications

Through this study, deviant workplace behavior is highlighted as a source of strategic polyphony and hence an important aspect of public sector digital transformation strategy.

Originality/value

Through being the first paper, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, to apply the theory of institutional drift to digital transformation settings as well as identifying the impact of deviant workplace behavior on digital transformation, the study offers novel insights.

Details

Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6166

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 10 June 2024

Paul Schmitter, Azar Shahgholian and Matthew Tucker

Facility management (FM) in healthcare is an organisational function that provides non-medical activities, ensuring operational functionality of critical health infrastructure. FM…

Abstract

Purpose

Facility management (FM) in healthcare is an organisational function that provides non-medical activities, ensuring operational functionality of critical health infrastructure. FM leaders are under pressure to implement the digital transformation, confronted with a highly complex and challenging operational environment. However, the current scope and understanding of the digital transformation in FM is rather limited, with a strong focus on technology. This perspective is inadequate to realise a digital transformation in healthcare organisations and requires a new framework. To ensure the practical applicability, a clearer depiction on how FM practitioners in the field, currently understand the digital transformation, is necessary.

Design/methodology/approach

A sequential exploratory mixed-methods design was chosen with a qualitative data collection and quantitative data analysis phase. A total of 23 semi-structured research interviews with professionals from FM in healthcare in Switzerland were carried out. Topic modeling was used to analyse, identify and cluster topics.

Findings

In total, nine distinct digital transformation topics were generated: ‘addressing future organisational and people needs’, ‘end-user-oriented processes’, ‘digitalisation management vs. digital tools’, ‘major organisational change’, ‘information exchange and work culture’, ‘digital systems’, ‘pressure’, ‘company-wide strategy’ and ‘management support and communication involving non-medical support services’. The findings indicate that FM practitioners perceive the digital transformation beyond the purely technological viewpoint, although they lack the know-how and instruments necessary to implement the digital transformation.

Originality/value

This study employs an innovative research design, resulting in foundational insights on how FM in healthcare perceives the digital transformation. As such, the study expands the notion on what the digital transformation means for the FM field.

Details

Digital Transformation and Society, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2755-0761

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 7 March 2024

Shuwei Zang, Mengyuan Sun, Qimeng Wang, Haofu Wang and Shanwu Tian

The purpose of this paper is to discuss how enterprises can effectively perceive and use the digital opportunities brought about by digital technologies and dynamic environments…

1086

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to discuss how enterprises can effectively perceive and use the digital opportunities brought about by digital technologies and dynamic environments and how they can enhance their capabilities to realize digital transformation and adapt to the development of the digital economy era.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the windows of opportunity theory and strategic cognition theory, this paper conducts an empirical analysis of the questionnaire data of 268 enterprises and discusses the influence of external windows of opportunity and internal windows of opportunity on the digital transformation of enterprises, as well as the action mechanism of strategic cognition and entrepreneurship.

Findings

The results show that both the external windows of opportunity and the internal windows of opportunity have significant positive effects on the digital transformation of enterprises. Strategic cognition plays a partial mediating role in the external windows of opportunity and the internal windows of opportunity influencing the enterprise digital transformation process. Entrepreneurship plays a positive regulatory role in the process of external windows of opportunity and internal windows of opportunity influencing strategic cognition.

Originality/value

This paper deepens the relationship between internal and external windows of opportunity and enterprise digital transformation and contributes a new theoretical cognition. This paper integrates the strategic cognition theory to clarify the complex process mechanism of digital transformation using external situational opportunities and internal capabilities. This paper introduces entrepreneurship into the path mechanism of digital transformation and expands the characteristics of the study of digital transformation antecedents to the individual level within the enterprise.

Details

Chinese Management Studies, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-614X

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 12 March 2024

Anna Karin Olsson, Kristina M. Eriksson and Linnéa Carlsson

The purpose is to apply the co-workership approach to contribute guidelines for manufacturing managers to exploit the potential of digital technologies through a human-centric…

1564

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose is to apply the co-workership approach to contribute guidelines for manufacturing managers to exploit the potential of digital technologies through a human-centric perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

A longitudinal single case study within manufacturing including a mix of qualitative methods with 18 in-depth interviews and focus groups with 25 participants covering all organizational levels and functions.

Findings

Findings demonstrate that to re-interpret manufacturing management through the lens of Industry 5.0 (I5.0), managers need to respond to the call for a more human-centric perspective by focusing on organizational prerequisites, such as holistic understanding, inclusive organizational change, leadership practices, learning and innovation processes.

Research limitations/implications

Limitations due to a single case study are compensated with rich data collected over time with the strengths of mixed methods through in-depth interviews and focus groups with participants reflecting and developing ideas jointly.

Practical implications

Managers’ awareness of organizational prerequisites to promote human perspectives in all functions and at all levels in digital transformation is pivotal. Thus, proposed organizational prerequisites are presented as managers’ guidelines for future innovative manufacturing.

Social implications

Findings emphasize the need for digital transformation managers to apply a human-centric perspective acknowledging how organizational changes affect the inclusion of employees, and thus challenge culture, structure, communication and trust toward I5.0.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the emerging field of I5.0 by applying an interdisciplinary approach to understand the elusive phenomena of enfolding technology and humans.

Details

European Journal of Innovation Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1460-1060

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 5000