How organizational factors shape e-participation: Lessons from the German one-stop participation portal meinBerlin

Abstract

This chapter examines the implementation of a one-stop e-participation portal in the German capital Berlin - meinBerlin. The case study is based on information from interviews, official documents, academic literature and the media. The author argues that the well-designed organizational setup of e-participation instruments is crucial for achieving the objectives of e-participation. Inadequate organizational context, including insufficient and unclear competences, lack of personnel and poor advertisement, shapes the adoption and performance of the e-participation instrument. Moreover, emphasis on cost-efficiency criteria and the individual attitudes of administrators towards citizen participation prevent use of the full potential of meinBerlin.