Abstract
This study qualitatively assesses the impact of the digital transition within the public administration through a literature review and the analysis of ten interviews with experts from the European Region Tyrol-South Tyrol-Trentino. It assesses requirements, influencing factors and consequences characterizing digital public business processes and demonstrates the role digital technologies have in making the public administration more resilient to crises and better prepared to support social and economic recovery.
Given the fact that this transition is far from being a simple technological modernization, this work is intended first, to offer guidance and support to the public administration throughout its digitalization journey and second, to further research in this field. The paper presents insightful aspects worth being considered to increase the likelihood of a successful digitalization that increases the performance, the efficaciousness and the responsiveness of the public administration.
Among else, the study proves that digitalization strongly impacts the culture and the structure of the public administration. Public employees must be trained to deal with digital processes and the processes need to be redesigned. They must become more standardized to ensure interoperability and more cus-tomer-oriented, all this while ensuring data quality and data security and protection. The public sector must avoid being overshadowed by the private sector to keep protecting social justice.