CVIEW
01 2015
How Danish State Administration is digitising work ...………………..…Page 6 The new key role for IT in the Danish State Administration .………………..Page 8
The art of digitising an agency in 6 months
The digital revolution in the Danish State Administration IT and Administration Manager Rasmus Kruse on implementation......…….…..……..Page 4 Employees: Optimism is spreading…………...………………………………………...……………...Page 5 Illustration: © massimo - Fotolia.com
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The art of digitising an agency in 6 months
F2 in the central administration
"Implementation of the Danish State Administration's new digital production system has taken six months. That speed is a crucial factor in going digital," says CEO Per Tejs Knudsen.
By Jan Horsager
The Danish Ministry of Employment The Danish Ministry of Climate, Energy and Building The Danish Ministry of the Environment The Danish Ministry of Housing, Urban and Rural Affairs The Danish Ministry of Children, Gender Equality, Integration and Social Affairs The Danish Prime Minister's Office The Danish Ministry of Transport The Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs The Danish Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Interior The Danish Agency for Digitisation DMI The Danish Energy Agency The Danish Business Authority The Danish State Administration
Interview: Over the past six months, the Danish State Administration has undergone a digital revolution. Implementation of cBrain's F2 software platform has given the Danish State Administration a digital production system that integrates all case management. "Speed has been a crucial factor for success," says cBrain's CEO Per Tejs Knudsen. He points out two places where speed is crucial: Implementation and delivery. Implementation is all about the project and delivery is all about leadership. And according to Per Tejs Knudsen, speed is so crucial because technology develops exponentially but people tend to think only about linear progress. "Our problem is not the technology, but our ability to use it. If IT projects last longer than it takes the technology to change, we're missing out on the opportunity to get further benefits." "Technology doesn't just affect the processes that are supported. It also moves the goalposts for what's possible in through increased efficiency or innovation. So it is extremely important that the leadership in an organisation understands what it wants to achieve with digitisation and what is possible to achieve organisationally with technology."
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Leadership focus "It is clearly a leadership focus area to remove barriers to speeding up implementation and execution." Per Tejs Knudsen points out the Danish State Administration as an example of the art of digitising an agency in six months.
The Danish State Administration has now completed implementation of F2 as a platform for going digital. This was part of an overall change management project: the political agreement to merge the five regional state administrations into one agency assumed that there would be efficiency built in to offset the decline in funding in the coming years. "The Danish State Administration project is quite interesting: The entire platform will be replaced in six months. With a project that lasts six months, we avoid technology changing. But that could happen if the project lasts two or three years." "The classic approach to doing projects with technology is to spend a year for requirements and analysis, a year for tendering, one or two years for implementation: This is not being ready for the future," says Per Tejs Knudsen. Preparing for tomorrow He points out that designing for the future in a digital society is different to the industrialised society we are normally use as a yardstick. "We are talking about a moving target. Technology development makes it possible to solve tasks in new ways and to lead in new ways: leadership teams in customer organisations have to take this into consideration. Equally the supplier needs to understand the potential of technology and make sure the customer is aware of it." "We need to recognise that technology itself changes the rules of the game. And it is a partnership between customers and suppliers to exploit opportunities in the best way," says Per Tejs Knudsen. "This speed discussion is not just a discussion about speed for speed's sake. But because technology evolves we have to work together with customers to deliver what is needed today instead of what was needed yesterday," says Per Tejs Knudsen.
xxx Illustration: © massimo_g - Fotolia.com
Digitisation in the Danish State Administration F2 replaces the Danish State Administration's 14 year-old EDRMS solution and a number of line of business systems. As a digital production platform, F2 integrates case handling, line of business systems and production control.
Goals for digitisation with F2
The Danish State Administration has about 550 employees who work on 30,000 concurrent cases, including in: Family law EU Guardianship Contributions Inspection
Streamlining: The Danish State Administration's budget is decreasing about DKK 90 million from 2013 to 2016. To create a common platform with a single data model. To make new thinking and innovation possible using IT. To support employees' daily work. To ensure high citizen satisfaction.
Key elements Large volume in production 200,000 decisions per year
500,000 letters in
600,000 letters out
350,000 phone calls
100,000 visitors
Automated case flow Integration with public records Production overview of case processes Digital mail and remote printing Public access to documents Merging and a standard template archive
Appointment booking In February, cBrain won the contract to deliver digital appointment booking to the Danish State Administration. A solution which integrates with F2 and supports a number of line of business processes. cBrain's solution for appointment booking is in use in about 20 unemployment funds in a private cloud at AK Samvirke. Unemployed members of unemployment funds can book interviews using self-service. Behind the solution for appointment booking in the unemployment funds is a complex process which matches requests with available times and caseworkers at the appropriate unemployment funds' office, along with details of the unemployed person's case.
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The digital revolution in the Danish State Administration Speed, clarity and engagement are key ingredients in Administration and IT Manager Rasmus Kruse's work in leading the digitisation. By Jan Horsager
"We don't just want to have an EDRMS system, but an innovative EDRMS software: a digital production platform that gives credit to employees and citizens." Rasmus Kruse, IT and Administration Manager
Cooperation with cBrain Key development elements in the Danish State Administration's F2 project: Automated case flow Integration with public records Management of case processes Digital mail and remote printing Public access to documents Merging and standard template archive
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Leadership: Rasmus Kruse had no doubt when he put out the first concrete words about the plan to digitise the new Danish State Administration about a year ago. The project should replace the jungle of various IT solutions in the Danish State Administration with a digital production platform that integrates case handling and line of business processes. It was a digital revolution in six months. "If we wanted to do this, we had to do it quickly," is how Rasmus Kruse describes the agreement in the Danish State Administration's top management.
tion - called as close to a perfect implementation as possible. "Obviously there are challenges, but nothing we had not anticipated or prepared the organisation for in advance. And there was also a brief drop in productivity as people got up to speed, but now here in mid-February 2015 most departments are not so far from the normal levels and some at around 80-90%, so there is no reason to believe that we won't have eliminated all challenges after the first quarter - as planned." But Rasmus Kruse also has no doubt that the top leadership focus on speed and clarity has been crucial for process support and automated case flow. "It's important to take some decisions and if we don’t move fast in digitisation projects, then we risk the technology changing."
"That's why we were clear as a "The six months leadership team objective was a about what we major goal of wanted and had both the Danish answers ready. State AdministraWhen that part of tion and cBrain, the process was because we got over, we could Artwork is part of the F2-communication at The smarter by involve everyone Danish State Administration. putting software in the organisatito work and then tuning it. But it was on and get as much input as possible for critical to think about communication and the digitisation project," says Rasmus Kruuser training right from the start of the se. Along with the Technical Project Maproject." nager of the Danish State Administration's F2 implementation, Rasmus Kruse went on "We completely agreed that to begin with a roadshow to the nine departments. The we would keep our cards close to our idea was to provide information about the chest: survey the existing solution and implementation of F2 and also to say that clarify the Danish State Administration's the Danish State Administration's digitisatineeds and choice of solution. When we on project doesn’t stop there. It also gave had solid ground under our feet, the plan the employees an opportunity to have was then to involve the organisation in the doubts and concerns addressed. implementation as broadly as possible," says Rasmus Kruse. The experiences were so good that in the And so it went. On 5 January 2015, the Danish State Administration put F2 to use as the new digital production platform after what Rasmus Kruse - without hesita-
spring of 2015, they will go on the road again to listen to the experiences and thoughts on the further digitisation of the State Administration.
Artwork is part of the F2 communication and training at The Danish State Administration
The State Administraion The State Administration's main office is in Aabenraa and the administration also has eight departments in Rønne, Copenhagen, Nykøbing F, Ringsted, Odense, Aalborg, Ringkøbing and Aarhus.
Optimism is spreading Implementation: We have not yet conducted a workplace survey after the 550 employees in the Danish State Administration put F2 into use as the new digital production system at the end of the previous year. But at the time of writing – mid-February 2015 – the work with evaluation has just started. "In my role as coordinator of change management projects, I participate in management meetings. And it's clear that our grapevine is telling us that users are positive about the new system." So says Marie Martens Lawsen, who is a special consultant in the Administration unit of the State Administration. After the first month and a half, employees are still getting used to F2 and digital case handling that integrates all functions in one Knowledge Worker Desktop. A marriage case previously required that the caseworker work in up to seven different applications, from opening the case in a backlog, to checking payment, civil registration lookup, document production, archiving, printing or sending mail, after which the case was closed and archived. "The first experience has been that we are no long challenged by delays in response times that happen in the switch between
different applications. We are starting to get used to the new way of working in F2, such as new ways to locate cases and search for files." So says Kirsten Rosenkilde Olsen, who is the Deputy Head of the Family Justice Office. Her tasks are coordination of the offices and, to a lesser extent, actual casework. But she has also been involved in helping train colleagues in F2. One example she gives, is that Knowledge Worker Desktop has a search window, a document window and a case window from which all case handling is done. "Once you get that way of working ingrained, it becomes easier to understand. F2 is more like working on the internet whereas we were previously used to having to close windows on the screen in order to proceed in the case," says Kirsten Rosenkilde Olsen. The training of colleagues in December was based on the Herskin method. The method requires IT solutions which are intuitive to use and based on a modern user interface. Users need to understand why the IT solution needs to be implemented, how the solution is designed and in particular how they can learn new functions themselves. "It was a good approach to training and floor-walking in the organisation. Despite scepticism, especially from users whose work isn’t intuitive, most people quickly get the hang of it," says Kirsten Rosenkilde Olsen.
There are about 550 employees, who work with: Family justice EU Guardianship Contributions Inspection
The Workplace survey is a key measurement tool The workplace survey (APV) is a key measurement tool for digitisation in the State Administration. In 2014, the Danish State Administration's workplace survey showed that 29 percent of employees in the State Administration felt that information technology supported their work to a very small extent. One of the aims of the digitisation project is to make this percentage much lower.
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F2: Everything in one place F2 integrates all case handling in Knowledge Worker Desktop. Previously, a caseworker in the State Administration had to work in up to seven different applications to solve the tasks in a marriage case. The State Administration describes it this way:
"F2 is our new tool for managing the State Administration's cases and documents.
In the future, we only have to work in one system
F2 will support your work
With remote printing, letters are printed centrally and sent to the citizen by email or mail
How workflows are digitised with F2 The checklist-based process support in F2 gives caseworkers greater freedom to manage tasks and provides increased efficiency in case handling. The case documents are created in the background and the production dashboard ensures an overview. By Jan Horsager
Information about a case or citizen only needs to be entered in one place
Lots of search options
Freedom of Information is easier
Chat: so we can use each other and share our knowledge
All standard letter templates stored and maintained in one place
Product focus: Digital support for tasks in case handling are key in the State Administration's digital revolution. After implementation of F2, the processing of divorce cases is now based on a checklist paradigm which guides the caseworker through required tasks. A checklist consists of a series of tasks which can vary depending on the case. If, for example, children are in a relationship, a number of tasks have to be solved related to custody. If there is no agreement between parents on custody, then different tasks are triggered than if there is agreement, and so on. Variant management It is these variations which determine which tasks the caseworker should manage during the case. There are about 80 variant definitions in connection with
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Marriage Records with the State Administration which, when combined, guide the caseworker through the work. During the case progress, tasks are defined on the fly depending on the data the caseworker enters, for example, under terms negotiated in a divorce case. At the same time, the documents for the case are created automatically: letters, agreements, grants, rebates, etc. depending on the case and the organisation. Automatic document production Document production is closely connected to the variant definitions that create the checklists used in case processing. Depending on which variant is followed, the specific documents required are created from data and phrase templates and merged so that the documents are literally formed in the background of the F2 software while the case processing happens.. This is what Claus Mølgaard Laustsen, consultant with cBrain, says about the use of the F2 software with the State Administration. As part of cBrain's delivery organisation, he helped configure the F2 software for the State Administration. Processes are configured F2 is standard software, so the process
support is configured - i.e. no code needs to be written, only settings changed in the standard software. And according to Claus Mølgaard Laustsen, this configuration makes it easier for the organisation to change and further develop the processes after F2 is implemented. The organisation can itself change and develop digital processes when, for example, there are changes in law. Claus Mølgaard Laustsen stresses that the checklist paradigm does not restrict caseworkers to performing tasks in a certain order. It is the caseworker, with their professional understanding, who makes the decisions in the case. Digital leverage "You could say that the checklists provide digital leverage. The not-so-experienced caseworker can get a lot of help and the experience caseworker can solve tasks quicker," says Claus Mølgaard Laustsen and emphasises: "Digitising processes gives the caseworkers freedom, while ensuring quality and efficiency in the agency's case handling. At the core is the business logic which the variant management and checklists help create."
nistration has gained the ability to work digitally with case management processes. The leadership has also gained a new built-in ability to create overviews and manage production with F2 Production Dashboard. The production dashboard is a digital board where you can find cases organised by type. The boards are configured as needed and can be set for many types of metadata. In F2, search lists – based on searches in metadata – are the core of document management and case handling. F2 Production Dashboard is at heart a very advanced set of search results which are graphically represented. The State Administration uses the production dashboard to organise and manage production of the 30,000 cases which are being handled concurrently. The caseworkers can open the dashboard from their Knowledge Worker Desktop and search for cases with a certain prio-rity. With one click, the case is opened with all associated files and documents and the case processing can get started. Similarly, middle managers and top executives can use the production dashboard to get overviews, plan and manage case workloads in the State Administration.
F2 at The State Administration F2 consists of a base product and more than 30 extension modules which integrate various case management functions. In particular, the State Administration has focused on five modules: F2 Freedom of Information: Access for generating FOI responses. F2 Digital Post: Integration with Strålfors for delivery of e-mail to the Danish eBoks system or for remote printing. F2 Merging and template archive for automating document production. F2 Process support for support of case worklow, which varies depending on the type of case. F2 Production Dashboard for overviews and management of case production.
F2 Production Dashboard With F2 Process Support, the State Admi-
The checklist-based process support in F2 gives the organisation greater freedom to manage tasks and provides increased efficiency in case handling.
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IT moves into business development The change project in the Danish State Administration has brought IT into a key strategic position. By Jan Horsager Strategy: The State Administration has been undergoing enormous change since the National Parliament of Denmark's decision to merge the five regional state administrations came into force as part of the Danish Finance Act for 2013. From a CIO perspective, the change management project has paid off.
relationships with management colleagues and the rest of the organisation. "This way, we in the leadership knew what we wanted. We had an answer ready. And we were able to get moving and involve everyone in the organisation." But Rasmus Kruse also says that it was necessary to get help from PA Consulting. They required some development resources to create new methods and were therefore able to increase the competences in the new IT organisation.
"People listen to what we say about change management and what we say about the organisation in IT. Now we're not involved too late." So says the State Administration's IT and Administration Manager Rasmus Kruse about the new key strategic position IT now occupies in the State Administration. IT is in everything.
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"Now we can refresh with Prince2 and structured methods as a whole. And we are "We seized the opportunity, not the IT opworking with a standard business case temportunity, but the business opportunity, and plate which we can use going forward." ran with it" This is how he describes the development which led to digitisation becoming an entire-ly key part of the transformation project in the State Administration. Despite the fact that he had a brand new team, he managed to get the team to work together and create the right
For Rasmus Kruse, there is no doubt that the State Administration has now laid a strong digital foundation. His ambition is to see the State Administration as a first mover in citizen service with technology as a crucial driving force.
cBrain - The Process Company cBrain is an engineering company with a solid theoretical software background. We help create measurable efficiency improvements through digitisation of business and knowledge processes. cBrain has customers in state, municipal and private companies and organisations. This means that we can often inspire with unconventional solution by using ideas across traditional applications. We ensure innovation and new thinking by using a well-proven set of methods, called "the innovative space," where we design solutions based on user experience and application. This provides greater user satisfaction and reduces costs for implementation. cBrain is listed on Nasdaq-OMX in Copenhagen.