UP TO DATE: how public organizations remain fit in an ever-changing, increasingly digital world

Abstract

The digital transformation of societies and markets requires public organizations to be exploratory and adaptable. Yet they must do so within an organizational and institutional context where stability and reliability are dominant. Caught between these competing demands, public organizations struggle to change enough, and fast enough, to keep pace with their rapidly digitalizing environment. In this dissertation, I investigate how public organizations can organize for adaptability. Drawing on empirical research in Dutch public organizations, I examine how digital transformation unfolds over time, how dedicated innovation units function, how organizations adopt and implement artificial intelligence, and how leaders foster employee support for digital change. Integrating insights from strategic management, digital government, and public administration, I show how public organizations structure, cultivate, and lead adaptability - and so remain fit and ‘up to date’ in an ever-changing digital world.