eGovernment Benchmarking
Benchmarking the Digital Transformation of the Public Sector in European Countries
European Commission Framework Contract, 2005-2022
Since 2001, the EC’s annual eGovernment Benchmark monitoring instrument has provided insight into the use of information and communications technologies in the public sector. It is an internationally recognised benchmark in the field of egovernment services of Member States. The highly collaborative approach between the EC and Member States has ensured the sharing of good practices and a significant improvement in egovernment services over the years. IDC4EU has been involved in the benchmarking of egovernment in Europe on behalf of DG Connect since 2005, first delivering pilot studies (with RSO) and then with Capgemini in the benchmarking framework, contributing substantially to the renewal of the methodological approach and to the design and implementation of mystery shopping. IDC was primarily responsible for the development of the eprocurement benchmarking methodology, first for the DG Information Society and then as an independent benchmark for DG Markt in 2011–2012.
The main objective is to provide a quantitative overview of the status of modernisation in the public sector in 35 countries and disseminate this to interested stakeholders and to the public in general. This involves data collection, workshops and reporting, aimed at supporting the monitoring of innovation in the public sector.
The eGovernment Benchmark framework provides each country under assessment with an ideal opportunity to determine its strengths and weaknesses, and relate these to its own egovernment innovation strategy. In this way, each country can gauge whether it is on track to achieve its goals. It enables countries to identify opportunities for improvement and look at ways to potentially reconsider policy decisions. The primary goal of the exercise should not be to score 100% across all indicators, but to use the tool and its outcomes to determine where follow-up action is required in the context of the national egovernment strategy. It is not a prize-winning competition, but an instrument to learn and improve.
