Digital mindset: Becoming a techno-relevant bureaucrat

This article is written by Naufal Virindra. Naufal is an Indonesian civil servant working on the Indonesian Civil Service Commission (KASN RI).

• The problem: Bureaucrats are getting older while technology is growing faster.
• Why it matters: Bureaucrats need to stay relevant with the latest technology development to overcome future bureaucracy challenges.
• The solution: Developing a digital mindset for bureaucrats.

Technology development is growing rapidly and is disruptive in every sector, including the government. New technologies are helping the government to reform its service delivery processes, and bring high-quality service to the people. The study from EY Tech 2022 Horizon Survey showcased that cloud, data and analytics, the internet of things, artificial intelligence and machine learning are in the spotlight for technology investment in the near future. Going forward to 2030, KPMG predicts that there will be five areas of digital disruption in 2030: Machines equipped with cognitive capabilities, government decentralised models with Web 3.0 and the metaverse, decentralisation of data with self-sovereign data aspects of Web 3.0 and quantum computing, democratised coding, and digitalisation that helps environmental, social and governance (ESG). Furthermore, Technology Trends for the Future of Government proposed by Gartner, is a list of strategic technology trends for government such as adaptive security, citizen digital identity, multichannel citizen engagement, agile by design, digital product management, anything as a service (XaaS), shared services 2.0, digitally empowered workforce, analytics everywhere and augmented intelligence. All these future digital government technologies led me to one question: are bureaucrats ready to overcome these complex challenges?

A digital mindset as a representative of a growth mindset is significant for bureaucrats to cope with a rapid digital disruption.

Eddie Copeland from the London Office of Technology & Innovation (LOTI) shared his rational assertation about risk and technology. He said that people often talk about the risk of embracing new approaches, but fail to talk about the risk of not changing. This argument is pertinent for someone working in the government. Before the Covid-19 pandemic struck, government focused on advancing a “nice-to-have” digital transformation at an erratic pace. However, the pandemic forced the industry, including the government, to reform its business process. The government was transformed and became more agile, fast and flexible to overcome new approaches, making Eddie’s argument less relevant. Although the pace may be slower than in the private sector, the major transformation in government needs to be appreciated. This is largely because of the willingness of bureaucrats to adapt to new challenges and embrace technological transformation. Reform has generated a digital mindset for bureaucrats.

A digital mindset

Mindset refers to people’s beliefs about the nature of personal attributes such as intelligence, and whether attributes are malleable (growth) or unchangeable (fixed). Social cognitive psychology approaches motivation and personality through the ideas of goal-oriented behaviour and correlates these to individual diversities in beliefs and values. It consists of a fixed and growth mindset. A fixed mindset is a premise that suggests individual capabilities are constant and steady. Individuals with an entity theory of intelligence or fixed mindset tend to believe that an individual has a set amount of potential for a certain task. However, a growth mindset is a belief that intelligence is malleable, and can be nurtured and grown with work and experience, despite diversities in aptitude, interest, or personality. A growth mindset or incremental theory of intelligence has been correlated to loftier academic attainment, willingness to take more challenging courses and student retention.

In this context, a digital mindset as a representative of a growth mindset is significant for bureaucrats to cope with a rapid digital disruption. A digital mindset is a set of attitudes and behaviours that motivate individuals and institutions to look at data, algorithms and AI, embracing new opportunities and charting a way for success in a business landscape increasingly dominated by data-intensive and intelligent technologies. Research from the Harvard Business Review showcased that employees with a digital mindset are more likely to succeed in their occupations and achieve better satisfaction at work. Therefore, they are more likely to get a promotion and develop useful skills that are beneficial for their future jobs.

Key takeaways

This article proposes two approaches for government institutions and their bureaucrats: A) Digital mindset empowerment for bureaucrats, and B) Digital transformation planning and design.

The digital mindset empowerment approaches for bureaucrats, consist of:

1. Developing a sustainable and inclusive learning culture: Most government bodies use a top-down approach for their daily work and coordination. However, when it comes to digital transformation and adoption, most of the technological innovation is made by lower-level bureaucrats. Therefore, we need to ensure that digital tools are available to use by superiors or seniors, and digitally vulnerable groups. The developer needs to learn and evaluate the data on how they use the platform, match the data with their performances, and assess whether the tools can help to improve performance. If it is mobile-friendly to seniors or vulnerable groups, it is more likely for lower-level bureaucrats to use it with ease as well.
2. Expediting digital adoption with communication and education: First, the superior bureaucrats need to emphasise digital transformation as a significant frontier in a government institution. They need to persuade peer superiors and subordinates that digital transformation can elevate work performance so that they can serve the people better. Since superior bureaucrats have more authority to be heard in such rigid systems bureaucracy, therefore, open and flexible communication between superiors and subordinates is important so that superior bureaucrats can express the urgency of the digital mindset and represent the voice of bureaucrats in the institution. Second, boosting digital capabilities confidence with training and education for bureaucrats.
3. Keep yourself up to date!: Don’t hesitate to adjust to new technologies, and stay curious to find the way to operate something like gadgets, applications, formulas, coding, or data processing through social media like Youtube or ResearchGate. Don’t be shy to ask your peers and subordinates to know how to operate gadgets and digital platforms or if you have some technical difficulties. Learning knows no age!

In digital transformation planning and design, it is important to focus on:

1. Understanding how peer and subordinate bureaucrats will utilise the digital platform so that they can establish digital ecosystems that foster a digital mindset and digital transformation in the government.
2. The future-back approach is to know the future public service challenges and what citizens want from the services and outcomes in five years, analyse the way to achieve the plan, and assess the risk and benefits of the plan. Then, take it back to the present to understand the contemporary strategy, tactical implications and priorities.
3. Evaluate the short, medium, and long-term workforce needs to consider new roles and capabilities. It is also a good idea for governments to hire information technology experts or academics to be involved in digital transformation projects, and build digital mindset ecosystems.
4. Avoid redundancy: Bureaucrats with authority need to avoid making a pseudo-legacy. It is a classic tale for bureaucrat leaders or superiors to have the ambition to make something new in the digital context as a legacy and a tool to boost their careers. However, they must know the urgency and how to map the existing digital ecosystems in their institution. It might become a burden to the subordinates if it is only a digital redundancy.

Digital disruption and ageing is inevitable, but not the mindset. Therefore, implementing a digital mindset is one of the ways for bureaucrats to compromise. Bureaucrats need to stay relevant to the latest technology despite their ages. This article proposes a practical approach with digital mindset empowerment and creating digital planning as a reminder for bureaucrats to always remember that they need to stay techno-relevant.

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