Dawn of e-government – an institutional analysis of seven initiatives and their impact

Most countries have defined strategies for e-government. The objectives for implementing e-government are often defined but the means for fuelling the adoption and diffusion of e-government are typically less well clear in the policy statements. The present study assesses the impact of latest Danish initiative implemented to stimulate e-government adoption. The e-Day initiative simply yet powerfully states that ‘one governmental authority has the right to demand that its communication with another authority must be in electronic format’ which is expected to create ripple effects both internally and externally. The e-Day initiative represents a drastic change in the former policy statements concerning IT adoption and diffusion in Danish government. The policy statements had previously been based on voluntary adoption focusing on visions and pedagogical intervention in governmental agencies, but the e-Day initiative marked a departure from that strategy and the carrot has been exchanged by the whip, and the voice is imperative.

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