This article introduces the AI4GOV Canvas, an evidence-based framework designed to identify and develop the competences needed by individuals working with artificial intelligence (AI) in the public sector. Recognising the need for functional specialist profiles in AI management, use and implementation within public administrations, we address the challenge of combining a variety of domains, such as technology, management, and policy, ethical and legal expertise. The AI4GOV Canvas was developed through a three-step process of competence identification, clustering, and validation, involving a review of research and grey literature, expert interviews (N=5), and an online survey (N=54). It is structured around three dimensions: technology, management, and policy/legal/ethical, with each dimension further categorized into three levels of abstraction: meta-competences, governance competences, and operational competences. The Canvas serves as a practical tool for mapping existing competences, identifying training needs, and designing functional specialist profiles that balance competence importance with the difficulty of obtaining them. We provide concrete examples of how the Canvas can be used to create personas, such as the "TechnoSteward" and the "Policy Sentinel", which highlight the framework's ability to guide the development of realistic and multi-disciplinary competence profiles. We conclude by outlining lessons learnt and future steps.

There is an increased interest amongst governments and public sector organisations about how to best integrate artificial intelligence into their day-to-day business processes. Yet, a large majority of technical know how is concentrated within the private sector, requiring most public sector organisations to rely on public procurement for AI systems. While many governments may have experience with traditional forms of public technological procurement, this paper argues that the public procurement of AI is different and new insight is needed to understand this differentiation and procure AI better. This paper offers an initial contribution to the public administration and management literature by describing this difference, and identifying the challenges associated with the public procurement of AI. In order to achieve this contribution, the research studied guidelines in four European countries (Estonia, Netherlands, Serbia, and the United Kingdom) to generate insight into the challenges faced, and potential solutions to these challenges, during the public procurement of AI process.

The digital transformation of public administrations contributes to the re-design and re-structuring of the organizational processes and practices. Research on the digital transformation of public administrations often focuses on responding to the needs and providing benefits to external stakeholders and users, such as citizens and businesses. The study presented here focuses on one specific stakeholder, the employees of a department within the Federal Government of Lower Austria. Using a multi-method and granular qualitative research approach, the results are interpreted in the context of Perez's (2009) four phases of the digital transformation paradigm. The results show how the department is implementing the recommendations made in the literature and digital strategies: an extensive use of ICTs, the development of information-based services, and an acceleration of transactions and interactions with external stakeholders. At the same time, their perspectives point out some barriers regarding the implementation and use of new digital tools such as digital signatures, the legal frameworks at the national and regional level, and the need for an organizational culture that supports innovation. This study empirically contributes to the literature by providing an analysis of the digital transformation of a public administration as perceived by the employees.

This article discusses social innovation in the digital age, bringing to the fore the debates on the potential for transformative changes that digital technologies can have regarding social systems at different levels. It first proposes a critical reflection on the social innovation concept to further examine how the digitalization of society and the use of digital resources, can positively or negatively impact it. Through two exemplary cases it then illustrates diverse types of implications linked with digital technologies and applications for advancing social innovation processes in the urban context and in the field of welfare services. The article concludes on how digital transformations may continue to expand and require all of us to learn how to make the best possible use of the opportunities and efficiencies they can trigger, socially speaking.

There is great interest to use artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to improve government processes and public services. However, the adoption of technologies has often been challenging for public administrations. In this article, the adoption of AI in governmental organizations has been researched as a form of information and communication technologies (ICT)–enabled governance innovation in the public sector. Based on findings from three cases of AI adoption in public sector organizations, this article shows strong similarities between the antecedents identified in previous academic literature and the factors contributing to the use of AI in government. The adoption of AI in government does not solely rely on having high-quality data but is facilitated by numerous environmental, organizational, and other factors that are strictly intertwined among each other. To address the specific nature of AI in government and the complexity of its adoption in the public sector, we thus propose a framework to provide a comprehensive overview of the key factors contributing to the successful adoption of AI systems, going beyond the narrow focus on data, processing power, and algorithm development often highlighted in the mainstream AI literature and policy discourse.

Artificial Intelligence is increasingly being used by public sector organisations. Previous research highlighted that the use of AI technologies in government could improve policy making processes, public service delivery and the internal management of public administrations. In this article, we explore to which extent the use of AI in the public sector impacts these core governance functions. Findings from the review of a sample of 250 cases across the European Union, show that AI is used mainly to support improving public service delivery, followed by enhancing internal management and only in a limited number assist directly or indirectly policy decision-making. The analysis suggests that different types of AI technologies and applications are used in different governance functions, highlighting the need to further in-depth investigation to better understand the role and impact of use in what is being defined the governance “of, with and by AI”.

Facing global, regional and even local uncertainties could be easier. More bearable, at least, by adopting a rational and ethical use of the different digital technologies, and especially what are now commonly defined Artificial Intelligence systems that already coexist today with more traditional decision-making mechanisms. What is lacking, however, is the political will, the competence and the transparency necessary to undertake this desire for machine and human beings to complement each other and use technology to the progress of society through democratic governance. The objective of this paper is to outline by steps what we mean by Technology Diplomacy and how practical this “art” can be to contribute helping solving dire societal challenges. To this end, building on previous work, we discuss the fact that whatever the value of supportive digital tools and applications might be, we must go much beyond this instrumental usage of technologies. As a matter of fact, every technology is often itself a stake, to be understood, mastered, negotiated or protect oneself from, depending upon the situations, within multi-stakeholder interactions and an unclear if not entirely open-ended future, which we may precisely shape in interactions with other stakeholders we are confronted with, being them like-minded or not. In this respect, the ambivalence characterizing most technologies, can generate a variety of different dynamics – with different implications on the development of our democratic systems. In the paper we provide some examples of how diplomatic negotiations are ital. for governing both digital and non-digital technologies impact at the global level, and we formulate some key postulates for Technology Diplomacy’s pro-democratic moves. This requires a needed consideration of regulations, but ensuring the complexity of such process is correctly addressed, in a future-oriented perspective..

The e-Government Survey carried out by the United Nations has been a powerful tool for capturing the evolution of digital government in countries across the world, and to promote benchmarking and bench-learning, since its inception in 2001. Building on indicators measuring the adequacy of telecommunication infrastructure, the ability of human resources to promote and use Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), and the availability of online services and content, the Survey represents the most comprehensive overview of digital government progress at a global scale, and has achieved the status of well-established point of reference for practitioners and scholars alike. In a rapidly transforming global context, however, the Survey faces new challenges to capture the complexity of digital government evolution. In particular, the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing relevance of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) identified in the UN 2030 Agenda require the Survey to be revised and refined. Building on work carried out in preparation for and during the 2021 Expert Group Meeting (EGM) on the E-Government Survey organized by the UN Department for Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), this paper highlights critical issues, and suggests areas of development for the existing Survey, facing the challenges of a post-COVID digital society, and the ones of the SDGs.

The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are shaping the global agenda by extending the notion of sustainability beyond the realm of environmental impact, to include economic divides, social inclusion, and institutional impacts in a coherent whole. Digital technology in general, and digital government initiatives in particular, can play a key role in supporting the achievement of these goals. In this paper, we focus on the relevance of the SDG agenda for digital government research. Based on our analysis of 291 studies in the area of digital government and sustainable development, we map examples of empirical studies against each of the 17 SDGs, highlighting foci and gaps in the existing body of research. Drawing on the findings, we provide inputs for a research agenda in digital government that systematically tackles the way digital government can help achieving the United Nations’ Agenda 2030.

The paper investigates the role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in enabling social innovation and civic engagement. The purpose is to advance a typology for better understanding whether such a phenomenon might contribute to a paradigmatic shift in the relationship between the governments or the administrations and citizens. This framework is based on the review of recent literature on social innovation and ICTs, studying the relationships between government and citizens emerging from 41 cases. The analysis highlights how ICTs underpin innovation in civic engagement initiatives in two main ways: 1) by modernising existing processes and 2) by integrating new services.

This chapter is set to provoke a debate on how to envision the future of welfare systems, with a specific focus on the European society. To this end, building on the discussion of the man trends and implications of the digital transformation on social protection systems, an institutional perspective to navigate through the social innovation narrative emerged in the last decade, with a particular attention to the role of Information and Communication Technologies to shape a new generation of social services and design policies to foster more resilient communities is proposed. The chapter goes on debating the drivers of change and possible governance innovation mechanisms required for addressing the macro-trends identified and defines two main dimensions of impact directing the future social development of our societies. These will be characterized by the trade-off between stability and change on the one side, and openness and engagement in the digital world. Within this context solidarity and collaboration emerge as key values upon which welfare production mechanisms will be built and resulting in a mix of welfare arrangements based on competition, cooperation and partnership models. The resulting scenarios are then presented, depicting four possible future welfare systems as thought-provoking proposals. While the Collaborative Multi-Layer-Nested Welfare Model represents somehow the ideal scenario to which we should aspire, how to reach such a future is not easy to be answered. Some suggestions are however outlined in the conclusions of the chapter, where it emerges clear that new governance systems and a profound institutional redesign are needed to address old and new societal challenges and make sure that collectively we can build a more resilient welfare society, where solidarity, openness and cohesion are the keyword for a renewed inclusive growth, which take advantage of the potential of digital technologies combined with social innovation and innovative financial mechanisms.

Building on results of the research on 'ICT-Enabled Social Innovation to support the implementation of the Social Investment Package' (IESI), this chapter aims to contribute to the debate on the development of new smart governance models in the social innovation domain, leveraging on the potential of digital technologies for enhancing collaborative governance and civic engagement. In this perspective, after discussing the approach followed to conceptualise ICT-enabled social innovation through literature review and analysis of initiatives gathered in sequential rounds of mapping, the chapter provides insights from the analysis of the European landscape and the policy debate around social innovation and policy reforms. In particular, the evidence gathered shows that systemic initiatives are mainly happening at the local level, and public authorities have a key role acting as catalysers and enablers of social innovation and digital governance. Involving beneficiaries of specific services is often a key driver to improve the ability of cooperation of stakeholders and to expand the collaboration with the wider local community, with particular importance for 'smart city' governance. Innovative public–private collaborative practices emerge to strengthen the modernisation of the European social agenda, with public actors acting as orchestrators and amplifiers of innovation and resilience into a varied array of welfare policies and governance models. The results of the analysis have clear implications on the smart governance and smart cities debate at both academic and policy level. First of all, it is clear that ICT-enabled social innovation has a strong potential to empower citizens' participation in the life of a community and thus enhance civic engagement which can result into innovative collaborative governance. At the same time, leveraging on the capacities of digital technologies, new services can be designed and delivered providing personalised solutions to improve conditions of disadvantaged groups and help shape a better community's life.

Europe faces today unprecedented challenges including increased life expectancy, changes in family structures, new forms of consumption and production, sedentary lives, with a growth in chronic diseases. These trends, coupled with an increasingly interconnected economic space disrupted by the spread of digital technologies, raises questions about the role and functioning of the Welfare State. After introducing the need for envisaging the future of welfare, the paper presents the approach followed and the resulting scenarios proposed. Four scenarios are created, resulting from identifying two key uncertainties: low or high levels of sustainability, and low or high levels of engagement. The four scenarios of the future of welfare are then discussed showing different implications for how welfare is understood, financed, organized and the roles of different actors. Our discussion aims at opening up the debate on where the evolutionary paths of welfare systems could lead European societies in light of the impact of the digital transformation, and the required rethinking of their functioning and role. This would provide support in identifying innovative trajectories outlining possible further research directions, and implications for European policies with an impact at national, regional and local level.

This paper presents findings of the literature review on the recent developments of digital government transformation. It aims to inform the current debate about the dynamics and potential impacts of such transformation. The review covers the literature on the topic developed in the past decade, with a special focus on the conceptual transition from eGovernment towards Digital Government and the intervening factors that allowed the use of digital technologies to revolutionise public services, policymaking and public governance. The literature reviewed for this paper confirmed that the barriers and preconditions for a successful digital government transformation are complex and often not technology related. In fact, the introduction of new technologies by governments is always mediated by organisational, institutional, legal, ethical and social factors. Digital technologies may transform virtually every process, system and structure of government, resulting into redefinition of responsibilities and work routines of public officials. Nevertheless, they also create issues and trade-offs that merit careful consideration and preparation before a full-blown change is introduced. In conclusion, to enable to move from eGovernment to Digital Government transformation the application of new emerging technologies is the starting point but should not be considered in isolation from other intervening factors, from their possible combination, and from their specific characteristics.

The rush to understand new socio-economic contexts created by the wide adoption of AI is justified by its far-ranging consequences, spanning almost every walk of life. Yet, the public sector's predicament is a tragic double bind: its obligations to protect citizens from potential algorithmic harms are at odds with the temptation to increase its own efficiency - or in other words - to govern algorithms, while governing by algorithms. Whether such dual role is even possible, has been a matter of debate, the challenge stemming from algorithms' intrinsic properties, that make them distinct from other digital solutions, long embraced by the governments, create externalities that rule-based programming lacks. As the pressures to deploy automated decision making systems in the public sector become prevalent, this paper aims to examine how the use of AI in the public sector in relation to existing data governance regimes and national regulatory practices can be intensifying existing power asymmetries. To this end, investigating the legal and policy instruments associated with the use of AI for strenghtening the immigration process control system in Canada; "optimising" the employment services" in Poland, and personalising the digital service experience in Finland, the paper advocates for the need of a common framework to evaluate the potential impact of the use of AI in the public sector. In this regard, it discusses the specific effects of automated decision support systems on public services and the growing expectations for governments to play a more prevalent role in the digital society and to ensure that the potential of technology is harnessed, while negative effects are controlled and possibly avoided. This is of particular importance in light of the current COVID-19 emergency crisis where AI and the underpinning regulatory framework of data ecosystems, have become crucial policy issues as more and more innovations are based on large scale data collections from digital devices, and the real-time accessibility of information and services, contact and relationships between institutions and citizens could strengthen - or undermine - trust in governance systems and democracy.

Digital government technologies, practices, and service provision offer substantial opportunity to improve or innovate how governments, citizens, and communities engage in governing and governance; collaborate to resolve societal, community, and global challenges; and foster new forms of deliberative and data-driven processes.Both practice and research communities suggest that the use of information and communication technologies (ICT), or different forms of digital technologies, in governments and societies at large has substantial innovation potential.