Enrolling local strategic actors in public portal development

Abstract

This paper focuses on the seemingly routine but essential aspects of network formation by actors in an E-government context. A qualitative case study is used to explore portal development in public healthcare. The theoretical framework applied is Actor-Network Theory (ANT). The research question is: What factors contribute to the enrolment of strategic local actors in technology development in E-government? The results of the study show that the basic functionalities are of strategic importance for the enrolment of local actors in the portal development and its use. These functionalities act as enrolment devices. In complex environments, critical success factors for network formation require local support based on present usefulness of the functionalities and on long-term project organization that safeguards their future development. © 2011 IFIP International Federation for Information Processing.