Till Örebro universitet

This thesis addresses the question: How can a Digital Index Framework (DIF) provide an assessment of digitalisation of core processes in government agencies? It aims to understand how digitalisation can be assessed in the context of public administration and core processes. The research is grounded in the multi-disciplinary field of digital government and applies mixed methods: literature review, design science and case studies. The thesis finds that benchmarking digital government faces recurring criticism regarding how assessments are conducted and what they measure. By examining the design of a DIF, the thesis proposes design principles for assessing digitalisation, focusing on how digital technologies support administrative processes. This includes a process view highlighting interaction with society, internal case handling and data exchange. Examining digitalisation through a DIF highlights core processes and contributes to scholarly discussions on linking public administration with digitalisation. Focusing on core processes, the thesis presents a classification of eight types, which can support both assessing digitalisation and studying phenomena such as artificial intelligence and digital services. The thesis also contains results concerning the influences from the practical implementation of the DIF among practitioners in government agencies. The engagement with the DIF fostered skill development, deeper reflections on cross-government processes and led to policy learning and change.