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Technological Forecasting & Social Change

This research examines the challenges of e-government implementation in small countries, focusing on the Republic of Cyprus. It identifies key factors influencing e-government adoption, including financial stability, e-readiness, infrastructure, and socio-cultural characteristics. The study aims to provide recommendations for improving e-government initiatives based on these findings.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
12 views11 pages

Technological Forecasting & Social Change

This research examines the challenges of e-government implementation in small countries, focusing on the Republic of Cyprus. It identifies key factors influencing e-government adoption, including financial stability, e-readiness, infrastructure, and socio-cultural characteristics. The study aims to provide recommendations for improving e-government initiatives based on these findings.

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shelby
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We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Technological Forecasting & Social Change 152 (2020) 119880

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Technological Forecasting & Social Change


journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/techfore

E-Government implementation challenges in small countries: The project T


manager's perspective

Loukas Glyptisa, Michael Christofib, , Demetris Vrontisb, Manlio Del Giudicec,d,e,
Salomi Dimitrioua, Panayiota Michaelf
a
University of Central Lancashire, 12 – 14 University Avenue Pyla, 7080 Larnaka, Cyprus
b
University of Nicosia, 46 Makedonitissas Avenue, CY-2417, P.O.Box 24005, CY-1700, Nicosia, Cyprus
c
Link Campus University, Rome, Italy
d
Paris School of Business, Rue Nationale, Paris, France
e
National Research University Higher School of Economics, Cyprus
f
Accountant at the Treasury of the Republic of Cyprus, Cyprus

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: E-Government is a global trend with far-reaching benefits if implemented in the optimal way. All nations, ir-
E-government respective of whether they are considered developed or developing economies, invest in the development of
E-projects strategies furthering their e-government agenda. While e-government has attracted extensive interest for over a
Project management decade, leading to a maturing field, small European Union (EU) members have some particularities that must be
Knowledge management
taken into account. This research focuses on the critical success factors of e-government adoption, using the
Critical success factors
Republic of Cyprus as a case study. These findings show that the financial position of a nation and its e-readiness
level, as well as the infrastructure facilities and technological innovations for effective knowledge management
and communication, political and legal frameworks, are key factors that influence the level of e-government
adoption. Furthermore, organizational and institutional aspects, as well as the socio-cultural characteristics,
should not be underestimated, as these factors are crucial barriers to e-government adoption. Finally, the specific
country's environmental cognition and consciousness is found to be more influential in this case than what
literature on other cases suggest.

1. Introduction transformation into a digital public sector is a necessity, which is re-


quired in order to enhance efficiency, effectiveness, accountability and
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) provides busi- transparency, improving communication and access to information of
nesses and industries (del Vecchio et al., 2018), including the govern- stakeholders (Christofi et al., 2019; Al-Shafi and Weerakkody, 2009).
ment sector, several benefits such as the ability to increase transparency Fully utilizing e-government is necessary for nations to remain com-
and efficiency (Santoro et al., 2019; Alsaad et al., 2018; García- petitive in the 21st century globalized world. Influencing factors on e-
Sánchez et al., 2012; Ahn and Bretschneider, 2011), improve commu- government's adoption arise in both the internal and external en-
nication and offer better services (Norris and Reddick, 2013). At the vironments of the government, as demonstrated by
same time, it enables citizens to have easier access to information, and Savoldelli et al. (2014) model.
improves services utility (Ziemba et al., 2014). ICT provides the infra- Despite the overall benefits that occur from transforming the public
structure for better decision-making (Simon, 1976) and is a key de- sector into a digital one, in practice, this transformation is a difficult
terminant of a nation's growth (Avgerou, 2010). However, without e- task that needs to take into consideration the characteristics of the
government operating effectively it is harder to achieve government country's public sector, as well as the characteristics of the country it-
growth, economic growth, poverty reduction, the prosperity of citizens self. A prominent example of this argumentation is the Republic of
as well as a nation's sustainability (Del Giudice et al. 2019; Cyprus, whose Ministry of Finance has a vision that is indicative of the
Hanna, 2010). The reformation of the public sector and its emphasis placed on e-government, as it is their aim to provide all major


Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: [email protected] (L. Glyptis), christofi[email protected] (M. Christofi), [email protected] (D. Vrontis),
[email protected] (M.D. Giudice), [email protected] (S. Dimitriou), [email protected] (P. Michael).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2019.119880
Received 19 September 2019; Received in revised form 6 December 2019; Accepted 10 December 2019
Available online 19 December 2019
0040-1625/ © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
L. Glyptis, et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 152 (2020) 119880

services electronically (Department of Information Technology


Services, Ministry of Finance, 2017). The major goals of the reformation
are to create government e-tools that will enhance efficiency and ef-
fectiveness in the public sector (Republic of Cyprus, 2016). Despite the
vast efforts of the government over the past ten years to concentrate its
efforts to meet the above objectives, the Cypriot e-government has
achieved a low level of adoption and provision of e-services, as in- Fig. 1. e-government, from vision to implementation.
dicated by the UN e-government survey, raising a question why this
happens. Other countries with the same level of income and following
the nation's e-government maturity are vital (Kachwamba and
the same directives are shown to perform better (Teo et al., 2008;
Hussein, 2009). Fig. 1.
Kim, 2007).
Others find that micro factors determine the success or failure of e-
Based on these realities, this research investigates the critical factors
government. Oyomno (2004) identified organizational factors, such as
that affect the adoption of e-government by Cyprus, particularly when
human resources, provision of ICT infrastructure, leadership and senior
considering the increased and continued investment that has been de-
management as the most influential drivers for adoption. Additionally,
voted to this purpose. A primary outcome of this project is to propose
Reddick (2004a) suggested that the manager's abilities and pro-
an abductively-informed model, which will combine findings from this
fessionalism, website maturity and the size of the organization are de-
research with the literature regarding success and failure factors per-
cisive factors as well.
tinent to e-government adoption in order to inform academic debate
Therefore, e-government implementation is not a straightforward
and practice. The research question seeks to identify and analyse the
process but a more complex procedure necessitating a blend of micro
factors that affect the implementation of e-government in a small
and macro factors: technological, institutional and organizational, so-
country and how and whether these factors differentiate from those
cial and cultural, economic, as well as legal and political
applicable in countries larger than Cyprus: What factors affect the
(Choudrie et al., 2005). The main challenges and barriers impinging on
adoption and implementation of e-government, including e-services and e-
e-government adoption and implementation are illustrated in Table 1.
projects in Cyprus? By addressing the above research question, the re-
search aspires to offer recommendations that the public sector could
utilise as part of its e-government implementation initiatives. 2.1.1. Economic factors
The rest of this study is structured as follows. First, we provide an
analysis of extant literature, and we formulate our theoretical basis for Savoldelli et al. (2014) claimed that managerial and economic
our study. Next, we describe the suitability of Cyprus as an ideal re- factors can influence the adoption of e-government. An important step
search setting for this study and we report the methodology applied. We in the adoption of e-government is to invest in ICT assets such as both
then analyze and discuss the findings of the study based on the iden- hardware and software systems, communication networks and broad-
tified success factor categories. Finally, we discuss the theoretical and band. Back and front office ICT systems were also argued to be im-
practical contributions of our findings, report the limitations of our portant. Furthermore, a nation's budget is an economic indicator which
study and propose future research directions for further enhancing this affects the full implementation of e-projects. Most nations prepare one-
research stream. year budgets, which prevent them from adopting long-term and high
cost e-projects (Gil-García and Pardo, 2005). In Central and East EU
2. Theoretical background countries, the investment associated with the implementation of e-
government is frequently co-funded by several fund units supported by
Building trust between the government and its stakeholders is vital the EU, enabling and facilitating e-government adoption (Ziemba et al.,
(Alzahrani et al., 2017). Lewicki and Wiethoff (2000) argued that trust 2014).
is the way that people interact and build a positive relationship. This is
particularly true in online collaboration (Cheng et al., 2013), sharing 2.1.2. Technical factors
information (Chen et al., 2017) and making transactions online
(Zarifis et al., 2015). Where governments fail to build trustworthy re- Technological difficulties arise during the implementation and
lationships, the legitimacy of the reforms made will be questioned and adoption of e-government. Such impediments include the lack of shared
may not be supported. ICT is a means, which facilitates trust by way of standards and compatibility on infrastructure among departments,
increasing citizen engagement (Leonidou et al., 2018; Christofi et al., something that raises concerns regarding information security and the
2018). The online consultation and feedback by e-service users, the privacy of information. Any assurance from the government on matters
involvement of citizens in the government's policy-making decisions, of information security and privacy will not be sufficient unless these
the citizens’ participation in the designing of e-services, and tools en- technical challenges are overcome and procedures become more
abling citizens to express their opinions or complaints are some enga- transparent before e-government can be considered (OECD, 2003).
ging tools that enhance e-participation, e-election and promote e-de-
mocracy. Table 1
Nevertheless, e-government is a tool that requires rethinking ex- e-government influences.
isting processes and changing organisational behaviour so as to deliver
Category Barriers/Enablers
public services more efficiently. Therefore, the factors that affect its
fruitful implementation should be considered, so nations, policy-makers Economic ICT cost of acquisition
and practitioners benefit. The section that follows presents the critical High maintenance cost
High cost of Training and education on ICT
success or failure factors that arise from the literature.
Technical ICT Infrastructure
Privacy
2.1. E-government implementation and influencing factors Security
Social Culture
The extension of e-government is not a straightforward process, and Digital Divide
Organizational and institutional Human factors
therefore, a nation should be aware of the factors that affect it
Internal rules and long-term goals
(Kumar et al., 2007). Macro factors play a decisive role for e-govern- Legal and Regulation systems Legislation
ment. For instance, the social, political and economic state in relation to

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L. Glyptis, et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 152 (2020) 119880

The level of a nation's communication infrastructure influences the transformation and facilitates e-government acceptance. A vague
adoption of e-government. A limited communication infrastructure and strategy, absence of procedures, policy and regulations, poor leadership
capacity (Layne and Lee, 2001) is considered a barrier to adoption and, and management, as well as poor security policy, are other organisa-
thus, implementation. E-readiness and ICT literacy are in turn con- tional factors that become barriers to e-government projects
sidered important enablers of using e-government applications (Meijer, 2015).
(Kachwamba and Hussein, 2009). The human capital of a country is another organizational parameter
Raghupathi and Wu (2011) stated that there is a positive relation- that influences the level of e-government adoption and implementation.
ship between citizens’ access to e-government, the quality of informa- Insufficient ICT skills and awareness in the public sector, the level of
tion the government has and the effectiveness of governance. The sys- education, and limited communication and marketing of e-government
tems’ technological compatibility is also demonstrated to be critical services are some of the human factors which may lead e-government
factors since they affect the sharing of information and the connectivity initiatives to fail (Kappelman et al., 2006). Zhao (2011) identified that
of systems across the government (Henningsson and Van the higher the level of education in a country, the higher the acceptance
Veenstra, 2010). and usage of e-government. Moreover, individual interest and asso-
Privacy refers to the guarantee of a suitable level of protection ciated behaviour of civil servants lead to resistance to change which is
concerning information accredited to an individual (Basu, 2004). considered as a significant barrier (Gil-García and Pardo, 2005).
Consequently, privacy and confidentiality are critical factors for the
adoption of e-government (Layne and Lee, 2001). Governments should 2.1.5. Legal and political strategies
embark on the creation of e-networks with privacy and confidentiality
safeguards, thereby ensuring the security of personal and financial data As e-government has an institutional dimension, there must be an e-
collected in order to enhance individuals’ confidence (Ebrahim and government policy in place supported by laws and regulations. Without
Irani, 2005). Security involves any preventive mechanisms introduced a legal basis, the adoption of e-government is threatened (Esteves and
regarding information and systems, and which aim against the dis- Joseph, 2008). Where there is no legal basis, the decision-making
closure to illegal access, illegal amendments, destruction of personal process of e-government should be formalised to ensure transparency
data or any protection against viruses and worms (Udo, 2001). Privacy (Henningsson and Van Veenstra, 2010). On the other hand, some
and related security issues are facets that need to be addressed ade- scholars have argued that restrictions posed by laws and regulations
quately (Reddick, 2004b). may lead to a mismatch with e-government procedures (Mahler and
Regan, 2002), while others have argued that the absence of laws aimed
2.1.3. Social and cultural factors at the protection of citizens’ rights, data protection and data security
leads to distrust in e-government and therefore to failure
Zhao (2011) supported that the culture of a nation may influence (Choudrie et al., 2005).
individuals’ expectations, orientations, preferences and experiences
regarding e-government. His research pointed out that, overall, na- 3. Research methodology
tional culture affects e-government development. Specifically, nations
that are in favour of individualism or with long-term orientations are 3.1. Case selection and research setting
positively related with e-government development.
Kovacic's study (2005), however, showed that individualist character- Following Ball (2010) and Yin (1984), a case study strategy was
istics and power distance are more strongly related to e-government chosen for two reasons. First, there is scarce research that focuses on the
adoption, stating that the overall national culture has a moderate im- critical success factors of e-government adoption that take into con-
pact. sideration the particularities of small states in the EU. Second, based on
Social factors have a significant role in the adoption of e-govern- the scarcity of this research stream that the study focuses on, the single-
ment. The social divides within a country are shaped by the level of case design represents a 'revelatory case' (Yin, 1984), as it is ideal for an
education of citizens and government employees, income, age, geo- in-depth analysis of complex phenomena (Crossan and Berdrow, 2003;
graphical location, gender and family type (Edmiston, 2003). Con- Pandey and Dutta, 2013). Third, we conducted a single-case study that
straints in e-government implementation arise from two perspectives: employs theory-based sampling, whereby researchers find a prominent
the citizens and the government (Al-Hujran et al., 2015). Regarding the example of the theory and engage it in a real-world setting to test the
citizens’ perspective, the generation gap, the language barrier, dis- theory's validity (Lee, 2010; Miles and Huberman, 1994; Mason and
parities in ICT knowledge, experience in e-government and the inability Pauleen, 2003; Joia, 2004; Solitander and Tidström, 2010). Our ex-
to get access to information are vital. Furthermore, the individual's ample is the case of the Republic of Cyprus (RoC).
social influences from friends, family and colleagues strongly affect his/ It may be recalled that the objective of this research is to investigate
her behaviour towards e-government (Rana and Dwivedi, 2015). the critical factors that affect the adoption of e-government in small
countries within the EU. Our case fits neatly into the proposed research
2.1.4. Organizational factors objective, as it forms a particularly illuminating case (Pemer and
Skjølsvik, 2017; Eisenhardt and Graebner, 2007), due to the fact that
The transformation of government into e-government is not only a the RoC is a small, homogenous country, with a large public sector that
technical issue but it also involves an institutional and organizational has devoted an increasing and continued investment to this purpose. In
issue, as the human component is decisive. Lack of qualifications and particular, a review of the RoC Ministry of Finance's vision is indicative
training, resistance to change, long-term goals and limited management of the emphasis placed on e-government, as it is their aim to provide all
capabilities are major barriers to implementation (Savoldelli et al., major services electronically, creating e-projects that possess several
2014). According to Edmiston (2003), managers’ behaviour, support interactive functionalities, providing services on a 24-hours basis, im-
and attitude towards ICT projects are crucial factors influencing the ICT proving citizens’ service and satisfaction by simplifying procedures,
restructuring of the public sector (see also Ajmal et al., 2010; enhancing transparency, improving the quality of the services, reducing
Disterer, 2002; Hanish et al., 2009; Ismail Al-Alawi et al., 2007). costs and raising citizens’ trust (Department of Information Technology
A lack of a measurement system for e-government procedure, per- Services, Ministry of Finance, 2017). The motivations behind this re-
formance and outcomes acts as a barrier to successful implementation formation strategy are to enhance the public sector's operational and
(Besharov et al., 2013). Establishing rules and procedures encourages service delivery capacity, provide flexible, accessible and complete e-
the engagement of employees in the whole process of government services to citizens while also reducing operating costs. The major goals

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L. Glyptis, et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 152 (2020) 119880

of the reformation are to create government e-tools that will enhance factor category. Finally, the data was verified. Specifically, in order to
efficiency and effectiveness in the public sector (Republic of ensure the trustworthiness of the results, we contacted the respondents
Cyprus, 2016). a second time, showed them the research results in the form of reports,
After the financial crisis and the bailout of Cyprus in 2013, the ci- and asked for feedback (Homburg et al., 2014). Overall, participants
tizens’ trust in government decisions diminished, and, therefore, im- agreed strongly with the results of the study. The inductive analysis
proving accountability and transparency is a priority so that the citizens processes involved organizing the data through coding, categorizing the
have better perceptions of government. However, despite the vast ef- data into subjects and determining connections among the themes
forts of the government over the past ten years to concentrate its efforts (Miles and Huberman, 1994).
to meet the above objectives, Cypriot e-government has achieved a low
level of adoption and provision of e-services, as indicated by the UN e-
4. Findings
government survey, which raises a question of why this happened.
Other countries at the same level of income, following the same di-
This research used Savoldelli et al. (2014) model as a starting point.
rectives, are shown to perform better.
This model identifies economic, technological, legal, organizational and
Considering the abovementioned facts, the RoC case was deemed
institutional determinants of e-government adoption and implementa-
suitable for our aim of elaborating extant theoretical understanding on
tion. For a better understanding of their nature and impact, we cate-
the key success factors for the adoption of e-government projects in
gorized the responses into themes and sub-themes. This research con-
small countries.
tributes the additional factor of employees’ environmental
consciousness as influencing e-government adoption.
3.2. Data collection

The objective of this research was to explore the implementation of 4.1. Financial factors
e-government projects and to identify critical factors for effective
adoption. Based on this, this exploratory research aimed to obtain data Financial barriers have to do with the economic situation and the
from civil servants directly involved in e-government project im- financial position of a country, as well as the intention to invest in ICT,
plementation. Adding to this, the use of the single-case study design including e-tools and e-projects. The financial situation of a nation
helped us towards this purpose, as it is well suited to identify compli- plays a crucial role in the restructuring procedure (Savoldelli et al.,
cated procedures and processes throughout time and to identify key 2014).
events and actors in the development (Pemer and Skjølsvik, 2017; Economic Crisis: All of the participants claimed that the financial
Jasimuddin, 2008; Eisenhardt and Graebner, 2007; Cuganesan, 2005). crisis in 2012 and the IMF's strict regulations had a negative impact on
Interviews were conducted with 26 civil servants, all key project the government's perception and intention to invest in such projects,
managers involved in strategy formulation, approval and implementa- especially on expensive e-projects. This resulted in decelerating the
tion of e-government. The selection of the participants ensured the best process of e-government adoption:
combination of experience on e-projects. All of the interviewees are e-
“Projects […] have been delayed over the last decade because of the lack
project managers in their departments and 12 of them are e-project
of funds, mainly after the financial crisis and the restricted regulations
managers participating in the reform procedure. Their decisions af-
imposed by IMF, which prevent the government expenditure.”
fected past implementation of projects and they are responsible for
future projects. EU funded projects: The interviewees claimed that e-government
All participants were informed that anonymity of volunteers and projects subsidized by EU funds still have economic constraints, al-
organizations will be guaranteed. The interviews lasted between one though not as much: “EU funds should enable the whole e-government
and one and a half hours, depending on the participant's responses. The transformation procedure.”
interview consisted of open ended questions and the procedure was Budgetary restrictions: All interviewees referred to the economic
semi-structured. The participants were asked six questions in total, each factor and budgetary constraints. If a ministry or department wishes to
containing some sub-questions. The questions were based on the spend more on ICT projects, then it has to reduce other administrative
Savoldelli et al. (2014) model. Pilot tests were implemented with two or operating expenses:
participants to ensure the clarity and relevance of the questions. We
“Important e-government projects are approved by the e-Government
audiotaped and transcribed the interviews except in four cases in which
Board that decides which (and effectively the type of the) projects to be
the interviewees did not allow the researchers to record them. For those
implemented. The decision is based on the importance and usefulness of
four cases, we drew up written protocols during the interviewing pro-
the project and not the type of the project. Of course at the end, if the
cess (Homburg et al., 2014).
budget is not available (mainly because the ministry/department exceeds
the budgetary ceilings), the project cannot proceed.”
3.3. Analysis and interpretation
High investment costs: Participants claimed that maintenance and
To identify the critical success factors and the particularities that upgrade costs are considered as upfront costs at the time of purchase.
govern such factors based on the country size, we turned to grounded An amount is integrated into the assessment process for subsequent
theory coding, which involves open, axial, and selective coding (i.e., measurements over a five- to ten-year period. Furthermore, inter-
Strauss and Corbin 1998). Following Miles and Huberman (1994), the viewees argued that some e-projects have a large cost for updates and
analysis of the data was conducted in two stages. First, a data reduction maintenance, which are disproportionately high when compared to
was made and then a data display was followed. In particular, two their cost of acquisition or delivered benefits. To this end they claimed
members from the research team began by independently undertaking that:
open coding, paragraph by paragraph, to identify the relevant data in
“Maintenance and upgrade costs are a significant factor to consider
the verbatim transcripts (Ulaga and Reinartz, 2011). Any success fac-
when developing a new system.”
tors that emerged during the analysis were transcribed in the margins
and then labeled with descriptive codes (Strauss and Corbin 1998). We All interviewees claimed that a cost benefit analysis is required
compared our results, discussed any differences in coding outcomes, during the approval stage, meaning that there is care taken to approve
and jointly developed a preliminary coding plan that (1) listed the only ‘cost beneficial’ projects by the e-Government Board, which
success factors identified, (2) provided an epexegesis for each success overlooks the overall procedure:

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L. Glyptis, et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 152 (2020) 119880

the interviewees claimed that the new legislation, which was in-
“But, in fact, some projects are considered to be more beneficial
troduced in early 2017, regarding the obligatory use of e-signatures was
(cost benefit analysis) than others, even though they cost millions.
a result of political pressure. As soon as the appropriate government
Those projects can be promoted as well if they fully comply with the
bodies have installed e-software tools to support the implementation of
e-government strategy.”
e-signatures, and once e-signature authentication is put in place, then e-
government adoption will be boosted, because government depart-
4.2. Legal factors ments will accept electronically signed documents as having the same
legal validity as originally signed documents.
All of the interviewees acknowledged that the legal and legislation The respondents claimed: “The e-government strategy should be part of
barriers are crucial factors affecting the smooth implementation of e- the political agenda and not part of the government agenda.” They ex-
projects. They referred to the difficulties they faced with legislation that plained that, if e-government is part of the political agenda, it will be
could cause an e-project to be postponed or cancelled. treated as a law or regulation, which will give support to government
Existing legal framework vs. e-government: All participants claimed employees enabling e-government adoption. If it remains as part of the
that the existing legislation was an impediment to the full im- government's agenda, then the appropriate ministries and departments
plementation of e-government: will rely on existing law and regulations, ignoring the circulars on e-
government issued by the authorities if they are contradictive to law
“When implementing e-government projects, it is inevitable that you
and regulations. The lack of political commitment and coordination on
come across legal issues and you need to deal with it. If the law is a
establishing a clear e-government strategy makes the whole procedure
barrier and cannot be changed, you have to find ways to bypass the
of adopting e-government less effective:
problem and implement a workaround. This may delay or dis-
continue the whole process, but you have to adapt and wait until it “The establishment of the e-Government Board, in the last two
is overcome.” years, which consists of both politicians (ministers) and government
employees (heads of reforming departments), gives prestige to the
Most interviewees claimed that “old legislation should be revised”, as
process and decision-making, ‘forcing’ government employees to
it often clashes with new legislation needed to embrace the e-govern-
follow and adopt the e-Government Board's decisions.”
ment approach. The revised legislation should become an enabler when
implementing e-projects.
EU regulations and directives: The majority of interviewees claimed 4.4. Infrastructure factors
that Cyprus, as an EU member state, has to follow EU directives and
policies. This obligation may become either a barrier or a facilitating All participants referred to infrastructure factors, either commu-
factor, as, frequently, problems or difficulties have been resolved nication infrastructure or technology infrastructure, as significantly
through an EU regulation: hindering e-government implementation: “Even though the e-readiness in
Cyprus is a high standard, there is certainly room for improvement.”
“In the procurement area we have the eProcurement System and
Technological factors: All interviewees said technological factors
electronic catalogues that stem from the latest EU Directives, which
played a crucial role in hindering the e-government reforming proce-
at the end facilitated the adoption of e-government.”
dure. They also mentioned that it is necessary to get access to advanced
Additionally, they claimed that “the e-signature legislation is an EU technology in order to promote the implementation of certain e-pro-
directive which we had to follow”, which is considered an enabling factor jects. Nevertheless, they argued the procedure to acquire such specific
facilitating adoption. and advanced technology can cause significant delays due to the length
Furthermore, some seemed to believe that following EU regulation of the procurement cycle procedure, resulting in postponement of the e-
may delay the implementation of the e-project. Interviewees claimed government process: “The specifications for these [technologies]are drawn
that the length and complexity of the public procurement process, as it in detail and are usually acquired through tenders, resulting in a time-con-
has been amended to comply with EU directions, can lead to project suming e-procurement procedure.” The interviewees argued that “major
delays and obsolete technology: [technological] needs relate to data warehouses and internet speed”, which
both play an instrumental role in the implementation of e-government
“Legislative barriers arise from old legislations which did not allow
projects. All interviewees also mentioned the privacy and security is-
us to implement in full the e-government approach in the public
sues regarding recording, accessing and communicating data as im-
sector. But we are still in the transition stage; it will be time-con-
portant prerequisites for the adoption and implementation of e-tools to
suming, since each department has to change its own policies and
safeguard the privacy and security of information, which is stipulated
procedures according to our [the departments legislation on e-sig-
by laws and regulations:
natures]. Also we have to adapt our legal framework to the direc-
tives imposed by the EU.” “Security of information is established through various technologies
embracing the security policy. Privacy of information is established
Lack of e-government legislation: Finally, interviewees claimed that
through software mechanisms that ensure access to information is
they follow informal guidelines, as legislation to enable the im-
given only to the owner of the information or to official agencies
plementation of e-projects is not sufficient. An interviewee argued that
that have the right to collect the information or are given the right to
the e-government strategy is unofficially communicated to both em-
access the information.”
ployees and citizens. They also mentioned that there is draft legislation
covering e-government projects, which will facilitate the e-government Another related consideration for the impact of technology in the
process: “It has been sent for legal inspection to the Legal Authority of the implementation of e-government, was the varying and often in-
Republic of Cyprus.” Once the e-government legislation is approved, compatible software and technological infrastructure requirements of
then the adoption will be facilitated. different e-tools that the various ministries need to employ. These
technological requirements result in a lack of interoperability of e-
4.3. Political issues government across the different ministries and departments, impeding
their ability to share data and information among them, and thus, ul-
Most of the respondents argued that political pressure should not be timately discouraging the adoption of e-government tools: “Software
underestimated, as its impact has a key effect on e-government adop- and technology newness is, therefore, needed in order to eliminate in-
tion, which they described as being either negative or positive. One of compatibility and enhance interoperability.”

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L. Glyptis, et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 152 (2020) 119880

Communication infrastructure: All the interviewees referred to the and the full implementation and provision of e-services. “The identifi-
communication infrastructure as being a factor which may either pre- cation policies differ across the public-sector entities”, as some departments
vent the smooth implementation of e-projects or, alternatively, enhance use the social insurance number, some others the identity card number
their development. The interviewees claimed that the internet speed is or even the tax identification number. This variability in the identifi-
slow throughout the public sector and that the communication infra- cation of individuals and businesses makes the adoption of an effective
structure should be further upgraded to prevent delays or even dis- e-government tool impractical. Senior managers must adopt a common
ruptions to operations. This often discourages public servants from e- and unique identification code, such as the identity card number. Until
government. then, the effective adoption of e-government will be hindered.
Lack of effective policies and procedures: Each department has to
4.5. Organizational and institutional factors apply to the D.I.T.S., which is the public body accountable for facil-
itating the planning and implementing of an e-tool that cooperates with
Andersen and Henrisken (2005) argued that organizational struc- various departments and ministries. D.I.T.S. prioritizes the e-projects
ture and clear policies enable the transformation process of adopting e- according to its own availability and knowledge (supply), ignoring
government. Organizational issues also play a important roles in the ministries’ and departments’ needs. Next, the e-Government Board is
successful implementation of e-government. The lack of effective or- asked to approve the project. In relation to the above procedure for
ganizational strategy, the lack of effective communication on policy implementing e-government tools, the Department of Electronics and
cycle management, the lack of a common identity card code and the Communication also facilitates implementing e-government tools by
lack of coordination are demonstrated to be the main barriers which are providing the communication infrastructure. They also stated that
faced by e-project managers in Cyprus when implementing e-govern- “there is a predefined procedure, which needs to be followed during the
ment tools. planning and implementation stage of an e-tool, and which varies on the e-
Lack of effective strategic direction: The majority of the inter- project's scale”.
viewees expressed their worries about the e-government strategy and Low scale e-projects require no predefined procedure for planning
the fact that it is stipulated and communicated via an unofficial docu- and implementing. On the integration stage, however, they clarified
ment. All interviewees argued that there is a lack of effective commu- that “all necessary procedures and measures are taken at the organization
nication regarding the e-government strategy, policy procedures and level (i.e., at the ministry or department)”. They also stated that “each
structures: ministry/department works autonomously according to the top manage-
ment's decisions and the department's needs”, resulting in the development
“The e-government strategy is expressed in a general policy state-
of e-projects which facilitate the ministry and department only. The
ment that is not well communicated, and which the public sector is
lack of prioritization on e-projects leads to the development of e-pro-
mostly unaware of. […] There is no effective strategic planning and
jects with low priority, and this does not facilitate the whole of the
strategic decision-making.”
government restructuring procedure:
The interviewees also declared that the absence of a strategic di-
“There is no effective e-government strategy at the governmental
rection is one of the most critical factors preventing them from fully
level. The D.I.T.S. provides the role of the coordinator of the e-
implementing their e-projects and pursuing the smooth adoption of e-
government strategy according to its department's supply, ignoring
government on the basis of a consistent and ubiquitous direction. It is
demand (departments’/ministries’ needs).”
often the case that ministries and departments create their own e-
government strategies, satisfying their own needs, while disregarding Lack of coordination on common e-tools: The majority of the in-
the interoperability, connectivity or even integration across e-govern- terviewees claimed that there is a lack of coordination for departments
ment tools. This in turn results in a waste of resources and goal in- and ministries to commonly employ e-tools. They also stated that the
congruence: harmonization of the e-government strategy across the various entities
of the public sector is the responsibility of D.I.T.S., whose duty is to act
“A focal point to guide and monitor the progress towards a strategic goal
as a facilitator in making the appropriate arrangements to build or reuse
does not effectively exist; and the adoption and even the prioritization of
a common e-tool. An example would be avoiding setting up separate
e-projects rests with lower levels of decision-makers or even the internal
databases. Cooperation and official approval must be pursued by
IT suppliers, i.e. D.I.T.S. [Department of Information Technology
management, and this is something that may delay the process, mainly
Services]”.
because each department's and ministry's needs or the priority for the
The interviewees claimed that the absence of strategic direction development of such common e-tools varies. Therefore, management is
does not facilitate e-government adoption and implementation: “The dependent on decisions being taken or approval being given:
priorities of government employees differ, naturally leading to unexpected
“There are a number of cases in which departments may have similar
delays of e-projects and other operations.”
needs, but still, they build and use separate tools. The lack of co-
They also mentioned that the “absence of a well-structured strategic
ordination results in a waste of resources.”
plan prevents the creation of a well-communicated plan”, which would
facilitate e-government adoption. Additionally, they mentioned that, Furthermore, the interviewees stated that there is a lack of co-
“in cases where an e-tool was adequately communicated and promoted to ordination and co-implementation in order to pursue a shared e-tool.
both government employees and citizens, the e-tool had the highest usage, The process of identifying, controlling and collecting the information
from both parties.” needed to satisfy the operational requirements for a shared e-tool is
Lack of a common identity code: Most of the interviewees argued complicated, since the different departments’ needs vary. The inter-
that: viewees also mentioned that “the coordination process within the gov-
ernment is not promoted and supported” when additional resources are
“the process to reach a high level of e-government adoption in
needed, whilst “availability of human resources is limited”. Most of the
Cyprus will be a difficult task, which requires substantial effort in
interviewees stated that the best way to achieve a common e-tool which
order to be crowned a success, since we lack a common identity code
will satisfy e-service needs is to establish an interface between or ex-
to identify an individual or a business across the various systems of
tension of the current e-tools in order to meet the needs of other de-
the government”.
partments:
They explained that the connectivity of various systems across the
“Throughout my personal experience, such projects are difficult to be
government cannot be enhanced, hindering systems’ interoperability

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designed and implemented and of course to be coordinated, as depart- 4.7. Human resources
ments have different needs which affect the e-tools’ specifications. The
process which these departments usually follow is to design their e-tools Just as human resources is one of the most important factors in all
separately, and then a connection between e-tools of various departments organizations to run their businesses and offer services, so too is it
can be arranged and achieved when necessary.” important in the public sector in offering services to citizens. The level
of knowledge and previous experience, as well as the scarcity resources,
are factors that can determine the evolution of e-government.
Lack of available resources: All interviewees claimed that the
4.6. Socio-cultural factors
Cypriot financial crisis and the restricted regulations imposed by IMF
regarding the number of employees affected the evolution of e-gov-
Zhao (2011) found that the socio-cultural characteristics of a nation
ernment. The lack of available human resources, especially specialized
should not be underestimated, since those affect the individuals’ per-
employees, delays the successful implementation of e-government: “It is
ceptions of a specific matter. This research identified that the socio-
the management's decision to speed up the process of e-government im-
cultural characteristics of Cypriot public servants affect the successful
plementation, apply for consulting (outsourcing) on the implementation of e-
implementation of e-government. The socio-cultural characteristics that
projects, and follow public procurement procedures.”
affect e-government implementation in Cyprus fit under those identi-
Absence of training: All interviewees claimed that there is lack of
fied from existing literature and refer to civil servants’ resistance to
training within the public sector. Some employees are IT-literate and
change, top and senior managers’ attitudes, civil servants’ attitudes and
some are not: “There is low usage of technology in performing their duties,
lack of long-term goals.
as most of them are untrained and are unfamiliar with what it really offers to
Resistance to change: The interviewees claimed that government
them.” On the other hand, they argued that public employees are in-
employees initially resist change, such as adopting an e-tool, because
crementally increasing usage and reliance on technology, especially the
they want to enjoy the security and comfort that they have when
younger ones. They also said that their reliance on ICT depends on the
sticking to their working routines. One of the respondents claimed that:
qualifications and experience of each employee:
“There is resistance to the adoption of new tools. The magnitude of that
“As in many cases, the IT usage depends on the type of the employee.
resistance, and the smoothness of the introduction of any new technology
There are pioneers and early adopters as well as skeptical ones who resist
tool in the organization greatly depends on the “micro” culture of the
change.”
organization and the demographic characteristics of the employees.”
Lack of expertise: The majority of the interviewees claimed that
One interviewee claimed that the resistance of employees to adopt
there are different kinds of employees; some of them may facilitate the
new e-tools is limited when they are allowed to use both the embedded,
whole procedure and some may not. The e-project managers also stated
traditional and routine way of undertaking one's duties and the new ‘e-
that they faced difficulties relating to the lack of experience of em-
way’. This provides employees with the option to experiment with the
ployees across different departments, limiting the projects’ evolution:
e-tool, while keeping appropriate safeguards for their capacity to de-
“Some of them [employees] are highly educated, being task-oriented and
liver their work to the appropriate standard. The interviewees stated
hard workers; and some others are just doing their duties and they become
that providing adequate training can help in overcoming resistance,
alert when there is either political or top public management pressure.” They
facilitating the transformation process. They also claimed that the
also mentioned that they, as managers, “lack such experience and they
adoption of e-tools varies between employees according to their literacy
employ consultants to assist them”. In such cases the expertise and the
on ICT, their e-skills and their previous experience and engagement
know-how of the consulting activities shift outside of the government;
with e-tools. Specifically, one interviewee stated that resistance from
this is automatically transformed into a barrier to e-government
younger employees is rarely exhibited, as they are IT-literate: “This has
adoption.
to do with computer literacy of the younger generation”. Furthering their
Facilitation from low-ranking and younger employees: The inter-
arguments, they stated that resistance from older employees is more
viewees argued that lower ranking and younger employees are mostly
common and more challenging to eliminate: “The problem arises from the
enabling factors in adopting e-government. They are IT-literate, more
older people who do not know how to use technology and they are not ef-
willing to learn new technologies and they are considered hard workers
ficient and effective.”
enabling the reformation procedure: “Key personnel are selected to act as
Senior public managers attitude: One of the interviewees stated that
the coordinators for the introduction stages on new e-tools” enabling the
civil servant employees are “facing the problem of blaming” and, there-
adoption procedure. They reasoned that employees are more confident
fore, they avoid taking responsibilities or promoting and supporting
in using new e-tools when two important factors exist “in top manage-
initiatives. This is usually the case with higher-ranked employees (se-
ment, backing and adequate training and management support”.
nior public managers) who “are those who regularly delay the process until
the official approval is gained, which is usually a long-term procedure.”
4.8. Environmental cognition and consciousness
Civil servants’ attitude: The propensity of civil servant employees to
rely on the use of technology when performing their duties affects the
Sustainability and environmental issues are matters that concern
fruitful implementation of e-tools: “The employees’ attitude towards IT
society increasingly during the last decades (Cillo et al., 2019). Most
and internet was positively related to the use of specialist computer software
interviewees claimed that the adoption of e-government is also affected
systems, intranet systems, chats and other tools which arise within the public-
by an individual's sensitivity to the natural environment and how in-
sector community.” For those whose attitude towards IT and the internet
volved an individual is in sustainability projects. Civil servants with a
is negative, their intention to provide e-services to citizens is limited.
high perception of environmental issues are more likely to use e-ser-
Absence of long-term goals: A minority of interviewees also stated
vices than others:
that “Government employees have no long-term goals, while in most of the
cases they do not meet their deadlines” unless management or political “It is much easier to curb resistance and convince civil servants on
pressure occurs. They also mentioned that they are not task-oriented, as the usefulness of e-tools if they are highly sensitive to environmental
the evaluation system in Cyprus is not comprehensive or entirely ef- issues. There are cases where they also promote a campaign in order
fective. One interviewee claimed that the facilitation given to him by to activate the consciousness of others, via their emails, like ‘Think
each employee on e-projects depends on the employee's previous ex- Green’.”
perience, qualification and willingness to facilitate the procedure.
On the other hand, civil servants, and generally Cypriots, are not as

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Table 2 In detail, the financial crisis and economic recession were seen to
Emerging e-Government barriers and enablers. have impacted on the government's readiness to spend on e-tools.
Barrier Enabler Nevertheless, the government's commitment to restructuring and re-
forming the Cypriot public sector involves the transition to an e-gov-
Budgetary Restrictions ernment era, which necessitates the revival of investment in e-govern-
Financial Crisis EU funds
ment tools. Therefore, while government commitment to reformation is
High investment on e-projects acquisition Cost Benefit analysis
High Maintenance and Update costs
present, financial restrictions are taken into consideration when deci-
Outdated and e-government provision- EU directions sions are made concerning expensive e-projects.
lacking law and regulation Vs e- With regards to legislation and the legal base of e-government in
government concept Cyprus, the research reveals that even though there is lack of an e-
Absence of Law New law on e-signature
government legal foundation, there is an intention for one to be es-
Political presure
Absence of specific technology Security and Privacy of tablished, as political pressure is increasing on this front. Nevertheless,
information currently applicable legislation should be revised, as in many cases it
Technological incompatibility appears to be an obstacle to fruitful e-government implementation.
Technology newness
Relatedly, EU directives are considered success factors in the Cypriot
Lack of interoperability
Internet line speeds
context, since regulations based on EU regulations result in raising ci-
Absence of organisational strategy tizens’ e-government decisions (awareness? engagement?) and thus
Lack of effective policy cycle management- enhancing their trust. This supports previous research that found that
unclear policies and structures for small states external partners can act as a catalyst for implementing
Lack of a common Identity Code
new processes (Dimitriou and Zarifis, 2015). Political pressure in the
Absence of coordination
Managers’ attitute towards procedures Cypriot context is considered to have an effect on this reformation
Civil Servants’ attitutude and perception process. In the case of Cyprus, political pressure is pushing the process
Absence of long-term goals forward, either by facilitating new legislation or by intervening in the
Resistance to change implementation of e-projects.
Absence of adequate tranning Low-ranking and younger
employees
Another important area which impacts on e-government is the in-
Absence of available human resource frastructure in Cyprus. Although the e-readiness of the public sector
Absence of expertise human resource seems to be maintained at a high level, the communication infra-
Lack of environmental Envirnmental perception and structure is lagging. Some advanced communication infrastructure that
cognition of government
exists affects e-government adoption positively, but, as technology de-
employees
velops quickly, it will always be a matter for consideration.
The major themes that this study has shown to have the highest
environmentally conscious when compared to other Europeans influence on e-government adoption are the organizational and in-
(EPI Country Rankings, 2017). This may become a factor that hinders stitutional factors. The strength of these factors, in the case of Cyprus,
the process of adopting e-government: appears to be affected at the institutional level by the absence of a
“Unfortunately, in Cyprus, we consider the environment less than other government strategy at a high level in the political agenda. To this end,
countries; we don't try to find ways to enhance our perceptions. We are not political intervention and commitment is considered as the most in-
‘accomplished’ in that specific area; we could use i-clouds or share points to fluential means for implementing e-government in the Cypriot context.
offer e-services in order to save resources, time and money, but we are stuck Additionally, the absence of a strategic direction creates several in-
to the traditional way of thinking and doing things.” consistencies across the public sector, as different divisions are allowed
to follow strategies that meet the requirements of the specific ministries
they report to. Therefore, the absence of coordination and the policy
4.9. Summary of factors affecting e-government
cycle management of e-projects appear to be obstacles to embedding e-
government coherently.
Legal and political issues, as well as organizational and institutional
Additional to the organizational and institutional factors, human
issues, are seen to form the most influential factors in the adoption and
resources is a substantial factor which prevents the e-government
implementation of e-government. Financial, infrastructure, socio-cul-
transformation procedure. The lack of adequate training, the absence of
tural and human resources are also considered influential factors, but
appropriate human resources, as well as the lack of expertise from both
they can be positively influenced by their enabling sub-themes.
government employees and managers, were found to have a negative
Environmental consciousness also emerged from this research as a
effect on the implementation of e-projects. We argue that this is a result
factor that seems to affect the perception of civil servants regarding the
of the absence of strategic direction. This study also indicates that
adoption of e-government services. Table 2 exemplifies the factors
younger employees, occupying lower-ranked positions, are acting as
which affect e-government adoption from the government's perspective,
facilitators to the e-government implementation process, mainly be-
identifying those that can be characterized as barriers or enabling
cause they are well educated and have a positive attitude towards ICT.
factors, as they transpired from this research:
Another critical factor to e-government is the socio-cultural beha-
viour of Cypriots, which underpins senior managers and low-ranking
5. Discussion and conclusion employees alike. This research indicates that managers’ attitude and
perception towards public and administrative procedures and their re-
The question underpinning this research was: “What factors affect luctance to take responsibility are barriers to e-government adoption.
the adoption and implementation of e-government, including e-services Resistance to change in the adoption of e-government was mainly at-
and e-projects, in Cyprus?” Several factors that influence e-government tributed to the lack of management support, an absence of adequate
adoption in Cyprus were identified. Most emerge from the micro-en- training and the lack of effective communication.
vironment and some from the macro-environment of the public sector. Finally, the implementation of e-government is affected by the
Most of these factors are supported by the literature, indicating, perception of civil servants and their cognition regarding the environ-
therefore, their capacity to explain e-government adoption in the con- ment. The findings highlighted that Cypriots are not characterized by
text of a small country like Cyprus. Nevertheless, one new factor high environmental consciousness and this is a parameter identified as
emerged, which has not surfaced in extant literature on e-government. playing a role in hampering the acceleration of e-government adoption.

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L. Glyptis, et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 152 (2020) 119880

The research demonstrated that civil servants with high environmental transformational leadership style can motivate, build trust, create a
consciousness and cognition are more likely to adopt and promote e- shared vision and generate the necessary environment within their
services. team and other stakeholders for change.
In addition, this study concludes that policy-makers of small coun-
5.1. Contribution to theory tries should consider how to utilize the EU funds in a more appropriate
and efficient manner in order to accelerate e-government adoption and
This research contributes to the literature by confirming most of the implementation where financial, organizational and institutional em-
factors that have been manifested in previous studies, as identified by beddedness restrictions apply. This could by operationalized, for ex-
Savoldelli et al. (2014). Adding to this, the results of the study also ample, by pursuing e-projects subsidized by EU funds over and above
contribute to the broader literature on the diffusion of innovation in the the budget ceiling of each department and ministry for the years during
case of e-government, within a scarcely researched context, that of a the implementation stage.
small country, and from a new perspective and unit of analysis, that of In conclusion, senior managers, project managers, practitioners,
the project manager. Moreover, the technological factor appears to be policy-makers, politicians and others should consider all the critical
more significant for e-government adoption in Cyprus than the research factors that impede the effective adoption and implementation of e-
on other countries suggests. For example, the lack of a unique identity government in small EU countries and take appropriate actions to
number for a legal or physical entity prevents public employees from transform them into critical success factors. Likewise, they should be
proceeding to develop common or connected e-tools across the gov- aware of the enablers of the e-government so as not to accidentally take
ernmental departments. Additionally, a contribution of this research to actions that may deem them barriers to this approach.
the literature and particularly to Savoldelli et al. (2014) model is that it
should encompass the civil servants’ environmental consciousness and 5.3. Limitations, future research directions and conclusion1
cognition with regards to the factors that affect the adoption of e-
government. The civil servants that embrace environmental con- Our study, like any other quantitative or qualitative research, has its
siderations promote and use e-services on a daily basis, saving time, limitations, and it is worth considering them. First, the applied quali-
lowering costs, whilst minimising the effect on the environment. Our tative, single case study approach was well justified for the purpose of
findings lead us to argue that this is a parameter, which should inform this research and has provided various significant contributions for both
scholars’ further research endeavours in terms of examining whether e- theory and practice. We also argue that our findings could be gen-
government implementation in less developed countries is associated eralized to other small countries within the EU with similar institutional
with the level of environmental consciousness and education that per- frameworks and regulations. However, to generalize the conclusions
tains to these jurisdictions. drawn from this study, further empirical research is needed; thus, the
conclusions should be taken into consideration carefully, due to the fact
5.2. Pragmatic implications that they are based on the evidence of one case study within one
country.
This study also contributes to the establishment of a well-structured Hence, the findings identified through this qualitative single case
e-government approach in a small country exhibiting similar patterns to study should be studied further through a quantitative testing and va-
the Republic of Cyprus in the presence (or absence) of factors enabling lidation in other geographical contexts and sectors as well. We also
the successful implementation of e-government. The absence of an e- propose that studies be performed in countries with different govern-
government strategy and the absence of a legal framework conducive to mental framework and regulatory systems. Moreover, while using a
the adoption and implementation of e-government are parameters of single case study was appropriate for understanding the nature of these
paramount importance. Therefore, policy-makers and practitioners, as critical success factors of e-government adoption by small developing
well as politicians should work together to establish a common “e- EU countries, a multiple case study setting might enable us to identify
government strategy” that should be applicable to all areas of the public the drivers or barriers in adopting technology successfully in the con-
sector seeking to establish harmonisation in the form and pace of e- text of the government sector within a heterogeneous institutional
government adoption and implementation across. Then, clear and context. Second, our study was limited to one profession's perspective
realistic directions should be provided to practitioners and government in one organizational setting, that of the project manager. Our data
employees, engaging them in e-government practice. In addition, an were generated in a profession with direct involvement in the appli-
efficient communication plan, regarding the e-government strategy, cation of digital technology in a public sector organizational context.
including the vision and mission of the government, perhaps subsidized We do, however, speculate that a single perspective may not capture all
by EU funds, should be established. This will enhance the awareness of critical success factors in the implementation of e-government projects.
civil servants and citizens as well. Thus, future research is needed to explore the focus of this research
Additionally, public sector senior management should engage with from a variety of perspectives in order to capture other possible factors
e-government project managers, empowering them to review current that play a key role in the adoption of digital technologies in the public
legislation or to identify missing legislation in order to highlight in- sector setting. We hope that the insights of this research will stimulate
consistencies or deficiencies to policy-makers and politicians. The aim additional research towards this research path and be of interest to both
of this lobbying approach should be for e-government project man- researchers and practitioners.
agers, as agents of e-government implementation, to encourage policy-
makers and politicians to proceed with the necessary revisions of the Acknowledgement
legal framework with the aims of facilitating e-government adoption
and implementation across the public sector. Public sector management The authors thank Alex Zarifis for his helpful comments and sug-
should also take advantage of the ratification of the e-signature legis- gestions. Manlio Del Giudices’ contribution to this article is based on
lation and accelerate the procedures to embark on using it. the study funded by the Basic Research Program of the National
Project managers implementing the government e-projects can have Research University Higher School of Economics (HSE) and by the
a greater impact in overcoming the challenges. Challenges such as in- Russian Academic Excellence Project '5-100'.
sufficient authority and training, limited long-term goals, civil servants’
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