The Online Access Act - Challenges

The challenges of digital administrative services

Citizens have reason to rejoice: soon there will be no need to go to the nearest competent authority to make use of administrative services. No more pulling out a ticket and waiting to be called. This is because all administrative services are to be offered digitally by the end of 2022. Not everyone is happy about this: administrations, especially local authorities, are facing considerable challenges and are struggling with uncertainty.

Puzzling out the big picture

A puzzle is a game in which you try to put the individual puzzle pieces back together to form a whole. The situation is similar with the comprehensive digitalisation and standardisation of German administration. This can only be achieved if the federal government, the 16 federal states and the 11,000 local authorities work together successfully. The extent of the coordination effort is huge.

Who hasn't experienced it when doing a jigsaw puzzle: pieces seem to fit, then when you put them together you suddenly realise: "Oops, they don't fit in this place." This is mainly the case for individual municipalities.

According to a survey by BearingPoint, employees in the German administration see a need to catch up when it comes to implementing the OZG in their municipality.

Max Mustermann

But let's start the puzzle from the beginning. The 1000-piece puzzle is spread out on the floor, all the pieces are turned face up. Now the question is "Where do I start?" First the edges, then continue to the centre. The edge of the OZG is formed by the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community (BMI). This coordinates all interest groups and ensures that the digital administration of the future is adapted to the needs of the people.

The first step has been taken, the edges have been put together and the framework is in place. The next parts, which are joined to the edge, provide more stability. This is the IT Planning Council, the central body for federal cooperation in information technology. In implementing the OZG, the IT Planning Council oversees two projects:

The Federal Digitisation Programme and
The Portal Network

The aim is to develop and implement an optimal federal IT strategy and architecture. To this end, the Federal IT Cooperation (FITKO) was established.

Thanks to the interaction between the BMI and the IT Planning Council, the framework is stable. So only the centre needs to be put together. When putting the puzzle together, you look at the color, motif and shape of each individual piece. When implementing the OZG, many more factors need to be taken into account.

Requirements that will become challenges

At this point, we will cover just a few of the many requirements that the law entails and where local authorities see the greatest challenges in implementation.

At a glance:

Legal framework of the OZG
Digitised processes of 575 specialist procedures
Use of secure electronic identities
Compliance with IT security
Implementation of information security in the sense of an information security management system (ISMS)
Automated data exchange between systems
Compliance with existing and expected laws, z.e.g. the GDPR
Availability of IT solutions and IT infrastructure
Adaptation of existing processes and organisations
Budget
Employee motivation

Data from a BearingPoint survey conducted in August 2019

A survey conducted by BearingPoint in August 2019 among municipal representatives from a large number of authorities in nine federal states revealed that they see a need to catch up when it comes to implementing the law in their municipality. 23 per cent of those surveyed stated that their own local authority is only paying minimal attention to the implementation of the OZG.

The biggest challenge for administrative staff is the adaptation of existing processes and organisations (81 per cent) and the budget (45 per cent). Employee motivation and the availability of IT solutions and IT infrastructure (both 42 per cent) also pose a considerable challenge. This point is extremely critical, as compliance with IT security is mandatory for all organisations in the OZG. BSI baseline protection is recommended as a working basis for administrations. In addition, only 16 per cent of respondents feel that their current IT service provider is well prepared for the implementation of the law. Centralised support services, such as the so-called Software as a Service offerings from the federal government or FITKO, are particularly desirable.

Administration employees also do not feel sufficiently prepared, as a full 77 percent of survey participants stated that personnel management was not a focus of their municipality's work when implementing the OZG. Around half of those surveyed do not know what the OZG will mean for the local authority - in other words, there is a lack of knowledge. For example, 55 per cent of respondents stated that they did not feel their local authority was sufficiently involved in state and federal activities. There is a growing desire for binding agreements, reliable commitments, defined responsibilities and standardisation.

It becomes clear: many pieces still have to find their place before the puzzle is put together into a whole.

Max Mustermann

If you need support with the parts IT security and IT infrastructure please feel free to contact us. We will work with you until every piece fits together perfectly and we can look back on a well-functioning digital administration.

The Online Access Act - challenges