BORIS Theses

BORIS Theses
Bern Open Repository and Information System

Digital Transformation of the Public Sector Using the Example of the Heritage Sector

Estermann, Beat (2024). Digital Transformation of the Public Sector Using the Example of the Heritage Sector. (Thesis). Universität Bern, Bern

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Abstract

This cumulative dissertation examines the digital transformation of the public sector using the example of the heritage sector. It gives an empirically grounded account of the transformative processes and presents instruments that facilitate this transformation in practical settings. At the core of the dissertation is the Open GLAM Benchmark Survey. The data gathered from 1560 heritage institutions in 11 countries show that the observed transformative processes result in increasingly integrated services, participatory approaches, and an emerging collaborative culture. These developments are accompanied by a break-up of proprietary data silos and their replacement with a commonly shared data infrastructure, allowing data to be freely shared, inter-linked and re-used. It argues that some of the transformations observed represent a breakaway from the New Public Management paradigm. It adapts and applies various instruments for leading change to the heritage sector and argues that the ecosystem metaphor is particularly well suited as an instrument to guide the digital transformation in its current phase. On a methodological level, it makes significant improvements to existing instruments and proposes an analytical framework for digital ecosystem governance. The framework is based on a condensed version of the state of the art from the literature and has been corroborated by data from an empirical case. The dissertation concludes by suggesting that complementary research should be carried out with a focus on the evolution of democracy and political participation, the establishment of trustworthy data spaces, and the widespread use of artificial intelligence.

Item Type: Thesis
Dissertation Type: Cumulative
Date of Defense: 19 September 2024
Subjects: 000 Computer science, knowledge & systems
300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology > 350 Public administration & military science
Institute / Center: 03 Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences > Department of Business Management > Institute of Information Systems
Depositing User: Hammer Igor
Date Deposited: 20 Jan 2026 17:32
Last Modified: 20 Jan 2026 23:25
URI: https://boristheses.unibe.ch/id/eprint/7063

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