e-GOVERNMENT IN FINLAND - ePractice.eu

strategies but also the ability to set up an IT infrastructure that suits an organisation’s needs. At the central
government level, the coherence and flexibility of the IT structure require centralisation of know-how and
resources.
349. Traditional management skills need to be updated to meet the needs of the information society,
which is characterised by rapidly evolving technology, non-hierarchical relations and increased
outsourcing. The ability to design, create and implement an effective e-strategy is increasingly linked to the
development and enhancement of specific skills at both the personal and the organisational level.
350. The OECD survey included a section on skills, with particular emphasis on IT and updated
management skills. These skills were broken down into four skill types: technical skills, managerial skills,
project management skills and change management skills.
351. Survey respondents were asked to rank a lack of these skills as a very important challenge, an
important challenge, a challenge of little importance or not an important challenge. Overall, they ranked
change management and project management skills as a more important challenge than technical and
managerial skills (Figure 33).
Lack of change management skills
Lack of project management skills
Lack of managerial skills
Source: OECD
Lack of technical skills
Figure 4.24. E-government challenges: skills
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Very important challenge Important challenge
Challenge of little importance Not an important challenge
352. According to respondents, the biggest challenge was change management skills; 61% of
respondents listed this as an important or very important challenge. Also considered an important challenge
was the lack of project management skills: 61% of respondents listed this as important or very important
Managerial and technical skills were considered somewhat less important.
353. Agencies generally rank lack of technical skills, insufficient opportunities for training, mentoring
and coaching regarding e-government skills as well as problems in attracting and retaining a qualified,
highly skilled ICT work force much higher than ministries. Ministries rank lack of managerial skills as
well as resistance to change among personnel higher than agencies. Both agree on the importance of
project and change management skills.
354. As agencies are more service-oriented than ministries, the lack of technical and IT expertise is
considered a major obstacle for implementing e-government services: the need for a fast decision-making
procedure and a customer-oriented focus calls for more attention to training and coaching activities.
122