Content area
Full Text
Abstract
Purpose - Integration is a critical success factor for achieving a mature level of e-government. This research seeks to identify barriers to e-government integration (EGI).
Design/methodology/approach - Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 consultants with significant experience of e-government projects. The interview transcripts were analysed by the researcher to identify barriers in EGI.
Findings - The findings resulted in a set of 17 barriers which were organised into one of four categories: strategy, technology, policy and organization. Strategy barriers include common e-government goals and objectives, delivery timeframes, and ownership and governance. Technology barriers include architecture interoperability, data standards and legacy systems. Policy barriers include citizen privacy, data ownership and policy implications. Organization barriers include pace of government reform, legacy government processes and management and technical skills.
Research limitations/implications - One of the limitations of the research is that it involved in-depth interviews with a relatively small number of individuals. In addition, improvements in research procedure, such as the use of multiple interviewers, will go some way towards increasing the reliability of the research findings.
Practical implications - EGI is not simply a technical matter of getting IT systems to talk to each other. Stakeholders should engage in strategic planning and change management.
Originality/value - The paper has identified a set of barriers in e-government. Certain barriers, specifically in the area of policy, are particular to e-government projects. A model of EGI, based on a synthesis of government relationships, is also proposed.
Keywords Government, Communication, Critical success factors
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Ambitious e-government initiatives have been launched in many countries. In December 2002, President George W. Bush signed the e-government Act into law, signalling a major step towards modernizing public sector IT in the US (CIO, 2004). In the UK, the target set by Prime Minister Tony Blair is to have 100 per cent of all government services online by 2005 (SUN, 2003). More generally in Europe, a major goal of the European Union's eEurope 2005 plan is to have modern online public services in e-government. Similar broad-sweeping e-government initiatives exist elsewhere across the globe (Chatrie and Wraight, 2000; Worldbank, 2000; Robb, 2003). The drivers for e-government are numerous, and include greater efficiency, broader access to government services, improved levels of...