Data-based public administration as a developing actor of digital age governance

Abstract

Especially with the 2000s, the technological revolution accompanied by globalization has opened the doors to the digital information society. Many innovations brought by the digital age have significantly changed the lives of individuals and societies. In the new order, individuals have risen to the position of not only consuming online information, but also producing it by contributing to it. The bring of information technologies into the use of dense populations in a very wide geography around the world has deeply influenced not only individuals and societies, but also institutions. In such an environment, the important concept that provides inter-network communication has emerged as "digital age governance". Focusing on the electronic dimension of governance, this concept supports a transformation of the existence of public institutions, first of all, the transfer of information and public administration structure and functioning to the digital environment. Today, when the digital age governance is effective, public institutions have to shape all their administrative processes and relations with the citizens with the effects of digital transformation. With the transfer of public institutions' activities to the digital world, the importance of data in service delivery has come to the forefront even more. At this point, it has become an absolute necessity for public institutions to tend to data-oriented analyzes and to reflect the obtained findings to managerial business processes with the development of technology and thus the emergence of new tools/methods. In the light of the aforementioned requirement, new business setups and strategies are developed by public institutions with the intention of adapting to digital transformation; Thus, it is aimed to satisfy the target audience by providing more transparent, participatory, accountable, quality, effective and efficient service. In this context, the aim of the study is to discuss the process and power of digitalization in transforming public administration. In the study, it is argued that a data-based transformation in the structure of public administration provides advantages in many aspects such as service delivery, efficient use of public resources, and functionalization of governance principles. And possible risks bear by the digital world are revealed and suggestions are made that are thought to facilitate the implementation