An evaluation of an implementation of electronic document management in the Ostalb-county of Baden-Württemberg

Abstract

Whilst most of the literature on electronic document management in public administration focusses on the implementation, papers on evaluations after the implementation are quite rare. Some years ago, this electronic way of administration has been implemented at job centers run by the Ostalb-County (Federal State of Baden-Württemberg, Federal Republic of Germany); so an impartial evaluation was on the agenda. That particular Electronic Document Management, which by 2020 will become mandatory within the public administration of Baden-Württemberg, is a huge step towards a transparent, effective and customer-oriented public administration in the 21st century. Although, it is also obvious, that it is not a "sole remedy", and it is not good for anything on its own, without other aspects, like user awareness and user readiness, it is still a great technical asset. The current paper is mostly based on empirical analysis - except for the introduction of the technological, management and legal background, and connecting fields, like the relevant pieces of EU-regulation, and issues of data security. The assessment was done by staff of the Job Centers of Ostalbkreis, who were interviewed in extensio, so the article is in an overwhelming part based on primary data. This is why the reader will encounter only a few references to the otherwise vast professional literature of the topics involved. The interviews and the assessment carried out by the staff, have been digested in the bachelor thesis of the lead author, Ms. Pahnke. Hence valuable
lessons learnt can hopefully be derived from this contribution.