Tehnologiile de informare i comunicare noi

oportuniti pentru activitile de marketing

i procesele de comunicare din administraia
public
Dorian Constantin POCOVNICU
Instituia Prefectului, Bacu

Abstract: n contextul noilor tehnologii de informare i comunicare, administraiile publice din

Uniunea European trebuie s ia n considerare o sinergie mai profund ntre proiectarea proceselor de
management al afacerilor i configurarea structurii organizaiilor atunci cnd se presteaz un serviciu
public. Investiii coerente n noile modaliti de administrare i de comunicare a informaiilor ar permite
guvernelor s evite dilema ntre reducerea costurilor i creterea calitii, crend astfel structuri de
administrare care ar funciona mai bine i as costa mai puin. Creterea flexibilitii prestrii serviciului
i schimbarea ritmului comunicrii cu ceteanul prin intermediul noilor TIC ar conduce la o cretere a
gradului de ncredere n sistemul instituional, respectiv la dezvoltarea unor canale de interaciune mai
eficiente oameniinstituiiaplicaii TIC.

Cuvinte cheie: politici publice, interoperabilitate, TIC, politici publice de informare

I. Introducere la configurarea structurii orga II. Beneficii poteniale ale

n ultimii ani, din ce n ce
mai multe guverne ale rilor
aflate n curs de dezvoltare, dar
nu numai, au publicat propu
neri ambiioase de reformare a
propriilor sisteme administrati
ve cu ajutorul tehnologiilor de
informare i comunicare (TIC).
Planuri de acest gen sau reg
sit i pe agenda unor organizaii
transnaionale cum este UE sau
grupul de cooperare G7. Dei
aceste iniiative difer consi
derabil n privina domeniului
de aplicare i al contextelor de
implementare, ele reflect, fr
ndoial, existena unui con
sens larg cu privire la posibili
tile oferite de TIC. Sinergia
n cretere dintre tehnologia
informaiei i cea a telecomuni
caiilor va permite guvernelor
s fie mult mai flexibile n pri
vina modului n care colectea
z i folosesc informaiile. Mai
mult, aceast nou flexibilitate
va aduce noi oportuniti refe
ritoare la proiectarea proceselor
de management al afacerilor i
RRM 1/2013
nizaiilor, bazate n principal pe
posibilitile mult mai extinse
de conectivitate uman. Factori
cum ar fi timpul, configuraia
geografic, limitele de organiza
re sau jurisdicia naional vor
deveni mai puini importani
pentru procesele de interaciune
uman.
Noile modaliti de admi
nistrare i de comunicare a in
formaiilor permit guvernelor
s evite dilema ntre reducerea
costurilor i creterea calit
ii, crend astfel structuri de
administrare care funcionea
z mai bine i cost mai puin.
Mai important, noile canale de
interaciune deschid calea de
comunicare ntre guverne i ce
teni, conducnd, n cele din
urm, la creterea transparen
ei, la creterea responsabilit
ii, i deschiderea guvernelor la
formele accesibile de participare
ceteneasc (Wescott, Pizarro
& SchiavoCampo, 2000).
noilor TIC
n ultimul deceniu, agenii
locale i naionale, n special din
zona rilor dezvoltate, au nce
put s aplice TIC pentru o gam
tot mai mare de servicii publice.
Aceste aplicaii se concentre
z pe dou obiective: a realiza
mbuntiri majore n viteza
de reacie, n eficiena i n ac
cesibilitatea serviciilor publice
i pentru a aduce guvernele mai
aproape de ceteni.
Beneficiile poteniale ale no
ilor tehnologii pentru serviciile
realizate i prestate de ctre ad
ministraiile publice sunt urm
toarele (Dutton,1996):
reducerea costurilor admi
nistrative. TIC permite o
reducere semnificativ a
costurilor de manipulare,
de informare i a costuri
lor de conformare. Tehno
logia TIC permite ca mai
multe date s fie partajate
ntre diferite sisteme de
informare, reducnd ast
81
 fel numrul de aciuni de
colectare a acestora;
rspunsul mai rapid i
mai precis la cererile i
interogrile bazelor de
date, inclusiv n afara ore
lor normale de lucru. TIC
permite accesul direct la
tranzacie sau la conturile
clienilor din diferite zone
ale administraiei, n spe
cial pentru nivelul de baz
al serviciilor publice;
accesul la datele prezente
la toate nivelurile i struc
turile administraiei, din
orice locaie. TIC sprijin
dezvoltarea de modaliti
mai flexibile i mai conve
nabile pentru ca cetenii
s aib acces la serviciile
publice. De exemplu, une
le structuri administrati
ve au dezvoltat faciliti
online cu caracter per
manent care au rolul, de
exemplu, de a prelua cere
rile de omaj, de a colecta
impozitele, de a colecta ce
rerile de vize etc. Utiliza
rea cardurilor inteligente
este, de asemenea, n curs
de dezvoltare, pentru a
permite accesul la o gam
tot mai larg de servicii
guvernamentale (Zouri
dis & Thaens, 2003). Este
vorba de un ghieu unic
online. Acest tip de apli
caii ar putea preveni fra
uda sau abuzul n presta
rea serviciilor publice, iar
beneficiile sunt asociate
creterii ncrederii publice
sistemul de administraie
public;
creterea capacitii de
guvernare. TIC permite
guvernelor s recolteze
mai multe date din siste
mele operaionale existen
te, sporind astfel calitatea
feedbackului la diferite
niveluri manageriale i
folosindul n dezvoltarea
de politici coerente. Gu
82
vernele au, de asemenea, arhivarea documentelor,
posibilitatea de a pune publicarea rezultatelor re
mai multe informaii la censmintelor publice etc.
dispoziia cetenilor, n acest context, o serie de ob
sprijinind noile tipuri in servaii ceea ce privete utiliza
teraciune ntre factorii de rea TIC n sectorul public sunt
decizie, ceteni i struc nc valabile (Batalli, 2011):
turi organizaionale (Par numai o mic parte a pu
do, GilGarcia & LunaRe blicului dispune propriile
yes, 2008). n acest fel,TIC computere sau are acces la
ar putea spori capacitatea Internet. Cu toate acestea,
managerial a guvernrii cifrele sunt n cretere;
moderne. Aceste posibili cetenii i angajaii tind
ti exist chiar i n s nu dispun de compe
rile n curs de dezvoltare tene informatice necesare
foarte mici, dei, desigur, pentru a aprecia pe deplin
acestea au nevoie de o utilizarea TIC;
abordare realist, adapta unele ri ar putea avea
t la dimensiuni proprii i nevoie s dezvolte n pri
la capacitatea administra mul rnd infrastructura
tiv extrem de limitat; de baz, pentru a sprijini
asisten acordat eco ulterior utilizarea TIC.
nomiilor locale i nai Exist i alte motive pentru
onale prin facilitarea adoptarea mai lent a TIC de
dezvoltrii interfeei gu ctre sectorul public, n special
vernmediu de afaceri. n rile n curs de dezvoltare.
Acest lucru ar putea duce Acestea includ unele sau cele
la mbuntirea servici mai multe dintre urmtoarele:
ilor n zonele rurale i la costuri mai mari de la in
dezvoltarea serviciilor de troducerea TIC datorit
sprijin n caz de urgen; numrului mare de insti
un mijloc suplimentar de tuii publice;
feedback public. ineria generat de opi
unile deja existente i de
obiceiuri;
III. Provocri privind
grija privind securitatea i
utilizarea TIC n sectorul
confidenialitatea;
public regulamente i legile ca
TIC nu sunt nc utilizate pe duce;
scar larg de ctre guverne lipsa de nelegere i de
le rilor n curs de dezvoltare competene informatice.
pentru a rezolva probleme cum n ciuda constrngerilor, uti
sunt: lizarea internetului n activita
schimbul de informaii n tea guvernelor este n cretere
tre structurile administra i n rile dezvoltate, i este de
iei, ateptat s se tripleze n urm
traseul documentelor pn torii ani.
n fazele de aprobare, n mod evident, utilizarea
completarea informatic a internetului, pentru tranzac
diferitelor tipuri de cereri, iile publice, tocmai a nceput.
accesul la informaiile de n rile dezvoltate, mai muli
interes public, factori au propulsat Internetul
culegerea feedbackului n primplanul cererii populare.
de ctre funcionarii pu Aceti factori sunt urmtorii:
blici i furnizarea de rs cretere competenelor n
punsuri n timp util, utilizarea calculatoarelor;
Dorian Constantin Pocovnicu
 scderea costurilor de co
municare;
apariia i dezvoltarea
browserelor web multime
dia uor de folosit;
cererea o pentru persona
lizarea de mas i feed
back instantaneu;
telecomunicarea;
economia globalizat.
Internetul nu a generat sin
gur aceste tendine, dar este un
catalizator care le aduce mpre
un, accelernd progresul lor,
genernd un rezultatul agregat
mai mare dect suma prilor
sale.
IV. Politicile publice de
informare i noile TIC
n contextul serviciilor elec
tronice guvernamentale, exist
factori care condiioneaz dez
voltarea i implementarea aces
tora. Dintre acetia, cei mai im
portani sunt: identificarea ce
rerii i a prioritilor, stabilirea
politicii publice de informare,
infrastructura tehnic, accesul
cetenilor, problemele de imple
mentare, problemele privind se
curitatea, remodelarea procese
lor privind prestarea serviciilor
publice (Aichholzer, Schmutzer
& Hochgerner, 1998).
Printre numeroasele proble
me asociate proiectrii politici
lor publice de informare se afl
cea referitoare la tipul de infor
maii de interes public care ar
trebui s fie accesibile, respectiv
la msura n care acestea ar tre
bui s fie disponibile. Exist trei
mari pri interesate n disponi
bilitatea informaiilor publice:
Sectorul public este
productor i propri
etar a unei mari va
rieti i cantiti de pe de alt parte. Pentru ca o pia
informaii relevante, cum
ar fi datele financiare i
economice, registrele pu
blice (de exemplu, regis
trul terenurilor, registrul
operatorilor economici
RRM 1/2013
etc.), bazele de date geo i organizaii pentru a crea pro
grafice (hri, informaii duse i servicii comerciale. Un
de mediu), precum i in alt aspect este faptul c agen
formaiile tiinifice, teh iile publice pot fi interesate n
nice i culturale produse a participa n calitate de actori
n instituii publice de cer activi pe piaa de informaii n
cetare, arhive i biblioteci curs de dezvoltare i ar putea
(Vickery, 2011). manifesta dorina de ai asigu
Cetenii manifest nevo ra venituri din furnizarea elec
ia pentru diferite tipuri tronic a informaiilor publice.
de informaii, de exemplu, Din moment ce sectorul public
norme juridice sau pro este cel mai mare proprietar de
cedurile administrative, date, precum i cel mai mare
cu scopul de ai exercita productor de coninut (de
drepturile individuale. exemplu, legile, regulamentele
Sectorul privat are nevo administrative etc.), un astfel de
ie de acces la sursele de interes n comercializare este o
informare ale sectorului opiune realist. Pe de alt par
public, cu scopul de a oferi te, avnd n vedere cerinele ne
noi servicii, produse prin cesare n promovarea principii
adugarea de valoare spe lor unei societi democratice,
cific la informaiile de accesul universal la informaiile
baz deja existente, cum de interes public pentru toi ce
ar fi, de exemplu, crearea tenii, la costuri accesibile, este
de pachete adaptate la considerat ca fiind esenial. n
nevoile anumitor grupuri afar de garantarea accesului
de utilizatori (de exem la informaii pentru toi cete
plu, produse de informare nii, pe o baz echitabil, politica
personalizate, adaptate de informare trebuie s se con
nevoilor organizaiilor sau frunte cu cel puin o alt proble
a diverselor industrii, ba m, acea a evitrii denaturrii
zate pe registrele privind condiiilor comerciale normale,
brevetele de invenie). cnd sectorul public devine un
Rutele pe care informaiile de actor comercial pe piaa de in
natur public ar trebui s cir formaii. Aceste cerine i inte
cule reprezint o chestiune foar rese sunt n mare msur diver
te delicat. Principalele dou gente, reprezentnd o provocare
obiectivele care ar trebui s fie special pentru dezvoltarea de
luate n considerare, i care, de politici i proiectarea de cadre
altfel, trebuie s fie reconcilia adecvate privind accesul la in
te, atunci cnd se discut des formaiile de interes public. n
pre reglementrile referitoare acelai timp, crearea unei piee
la acces sunt: scopul economic, a informaiilor necesit un set
ndreptat n direcia dezvoltrii de linii directoare privind utili
unei piee a informaiilor, pe de zarea (de exemplu, adaptarea i
o parte, i principiul democratic prelucrarea) i exploatarea co
al transparenei, care ar im mercial a datelor brute produ
plica accesul deschis n timp util se de guvern, precum i a altor
i echitabil la toate informaiile, tipuri de informaii.
ntro perspectiv global,
de informaii s se dezvolte, politicile actuale sunt caracte
este necesar o cantitate enor rizate de o tensiune ntre dou
m de date i informaii produ orientri principale: principiul
se i colectate de ctre organi accesului liber i fr restric
zaiile publice, care ulterior s ii al publicului la informaii
poat fi utilizate de ctre firme i ceea ce poart denumirea de
83
comercializare guvernamental
(Weiss & Backlund, 1997). n
timp ce acest principiu din urm
este caracteristic pentru cel pu
in o parte din rile europene,
primul principiu este specific
poziiei adoptate de guvernul
SUA. Politica de informare n
SUA este construit pe urm
toarele elementecheie deja
legiferate[1]:
Principiul diversitii,
care nseamn c infor
maiile ar trebui create,
mprtite i utilizate
de ctre diverse entiti,
inclusiv ageniile publice,
sectorul nonprofit, pre
cum i sectorul privat;
O libertate puternic n
privina legislaiei referi
toare la informaiile pu
blice;
Lipsa drepturilor de autor
a guvernului;
Costuri de acces reduse,
generate de eforturile de
cutare, duplicare i dise
minare;
Restricii privind reutili
zarea sau rediseminarea
informaiilor guverna
mentale.
Pe aceast baz, au aprut
n Statele Unite o serie de do
menii de afaceri care utilizeaz
informaiile din sectorul public.
Exemple sunt firme care folo
sesc datele legate de vreme, in
formaiile legate de brevete sau
bazele de date geografice, ad
ugnd valoare prin dezvoltarea
de produse personalizate menite
distribuiei comerciale.
n contrast cu poziia SUA,
rile europene abordeaz diferit
politicile cu privire la informai
ile de interes public. Problema
drepturilor de autor ale statului
reprezint o problem impor
tant n acest context, deoarece
astfel de drepturi de proprietate
intelectual permit excluderea
[1]
Paperwork Reduction Act, http://
www.archives.gov/federalregister/
laws/paperworkreduction/
84
sectorului privat de la utilizarea i restriciile privind difuzarea
informaiilor publice n scopuri informaiilor, se opteaz pentru
comerciale. Convenia de la eliminarea drepturilor de au
Berna garanteaz un nivel ridi tor asupra informaii publice.
cat de uniformitate n privina Aceast poziie este motivat de
celor mai multe drepturi de au obiectivul de a dezvolta piaa de
tor importante la nivel mondial, informaii i de a asigura fondul
ns, pe de alt parte, semnata ca societile europene s poat
rii acestei convenii i rezerv concura de pe acelai nivel cu
dreptul de ai pstra drepturile furnizorii privai de informaii
de autor cu privire la informai din ntreaga lume.
ile guvernamentale. Un stimul major pentru po
Acest lucru duce la un mai litica de informare a Uniunii
larg spectru de abordri na Europene o reprezint mbu
ionale n Europa. Comisia ntirea accesului cetenilor
European a elaborat n urma europeni la informaiile privind
unei consultri publice o Carte Uniunea European, instituii
verde privind informaiile din le, politicile i programele aces
sectorul public n societatea in teia. Potenialul tot mai mare al
formaional. Acest document a TIC faciliteaz n mod clar o ori
identificat elementele care sunt entate ctre cetean i dezvol
n joc, delimitnd provocrile tarea de strategii de informare
cheie i abordnd toate aspec mult mai active.
tele majore, inclusiv: definirea
domeniului sectorului public, IV.1. Accesul cetenilor
condiiile de acces, obligaia de Accesibilitatea este o chestiu
a produce informaii, timpul, ne absolut crucial privind ser
cantitatea i formatul alocate viciile de guvernare electronic.
de sectorul public ca rspuns la Dac privim accesul la infor
cererile de informaii; preul in maiile guvernamentale ca un
formaiilor din sectorul public, serviciu de baz, accesibilitatea
normele de concuren, dreptu depinde, n primul rnd, de: dis
rile asupra informaiilor din sec ponibilitatea, diseminarea i de
torul public i armonizarea regi accesul efectiv la informaii gu
murilor naionale, problemele vernamentale relevante n sens
de confidenialitate, necesitatea mai larg (date i documentele
existenei directoarelor de infor deinute de instituiile politice i
maii din sectorul public, rs decele publice, n special guver
punderea i, n sfrit, aciuni nul sau ageniile guvernamen
le posibile. Aceast iniiativ a tale, de administraia public,
Comisiei Europene este un pas de organisme ale Parlamentului
important n deja lunga serie de etc.).
eforturi de promovare a deschi Din perspectiva utilizatoru
derii dreptului de acces la in lui, accesibilitatea nseamn a fi
formaiile guvernamentale. De capabil de a obine o informaie
asemenea, acelai document su public n condiiile existenei
gereaz principii foarte asem unui numr ct mai redus de
ntoare cu cele folosite n SUA: bariere. Altfel spus, accesibili
se ncurajeaz disponibilitatea tatea nseamn lipsa barierelor,
informaiilor publice necesare printre care se numr:
pentru utilizare de ctre secto Bariere socioculturale
rul privat i pentru exploatarea (atenia i atitudineafa
acestora de ctre massmedia, se mijloacele electronice);
precizeaz procedurile de acces Barierele de calificare (ca
la informaiile de interes public, paciti cognitive i fizice,
se descurajeaz exclusivitatea
alfabetizarea IT);
Dorian Constantin Pocovnicu
 Barierele tehnologice (re
ea de infrastructur i
echipamente deinute de
ctre utilizatorul final);
Barierele financiare (cos
turile echipamentelor i a
serviciilor).
IV.2. Infrastructura tehnic
n funcie de tipul de servi
cii publice electronice oferite pe
internet, infrastructura tehnic
oferit de furnizorii unor astfel
de servicii poate fi urmtoarea:
Servicii de informare: ser
vere de Internet pentru
putea oferi pagini web
HTML (structur simpl)
sau baze de date conecta
te la Internet (structur
avansat);
Servicii de comunicare:
servere de email, servere
de Internet dedicate pen
tru crearea de forumuri i
grupuri de discuii;
Servicii de tranzacionare:
servere de Internet dedi
cate, configurate pentru a
procesa datele de intrare
(structur simpl), fluxuri
de lucru sistematizate in
terne n care datele furni
zate de ctre utilizatorii
externi prin intermediul
internetului pot fi achizi
ionate (structur avansa
t).
n scopul de a asigura flexi
bilitatea i integrarea serviciilor
publice electronice este de dorit
ca acestea s evite soluiile uni
ce de aplicare. O strategie pre
ferat este aceea de a defini di
ferite niveluri din sistem i de a
nfiina aplicaii specifice bazate
pe aceste niveluri.
Infrastructura tehnic ne
cesar, pentru ca utilizatorii
s acceseze serviciile publi
ce electronice, nu este att de
mult dependent de tipul de
servicii oferite, cel puin n ca
zul Internetului ca platforma.
Accesul la Internet i browsere
le ofer aproape toate condiiile
RRM 1/2013
tehnice necesare pentru utili
zarea serviciilor de informare,
comunicare i tranzacionare
(Kernaghaii & Gunraj, 2004).
Principala barier n privin
a utilizrii de ctre ceteni a
serviciilor electronice guverna
mentale este reprezentat de
accesul la Internet. Astzi, doar
un mic procent din populaia,
plasat de exemplu n anumite
medii cum este cel rural, este
n msur s utilizeze un PC
cu conexiune la internet, fie la
locul de munc, fie acas, fie
ntrun loc public (de exemplu,
bibliotecile).
IV.3. Competenele
angajailor din interiorul
instituiilor publice
Un alt aspect de care trebu
ie inut cont, n special din per
spectiva proceselor de comuni
care interne i externe din insti
tuiile publice, este cel referitor
la competenele de comunicare
i informatice ale angajailor.
n contextul unui management
al schimbrii coerent i necesar,
expunerea instituiilor publice
n diferite contexte de comunica
re trebuie gestionat de comuni
catori profesioniti, capabili s
i asume o strategie de comuni
care instituional.
O astfel de strategie trebuie
s rspund urmtoarelor nevoi
ale instituiei (Vasile, 2007):
nevoia transparenei sis
temului decizional,
nevoia de a comunica n
timp real i util,
credibilitatea intern i
extern a managementu
lui,
nevoia de a schimba per
cepia oamenilor asupra
instituiei,
existena unui facilitator
i instrument n procesul
de management al schim
brii.
Contextualiznd aceste ne
voi n paletarul proceselor de
comunicare din mediul online,
flexibilitatea i rapiditatea reac
iilor sunt condiii eseniale pen
tru comunicatorul instituional.
Din perspectiva procesului
de comunicare intern, se re
marc un grad ridicat de inter
dependen ntre competene
le comunicatorului, platforma
tehnologic de care dispune (i.e.
Intraneturile) i strategia de
coninut a departamentului i/
sau a instituiei (condiionat
de linia politic agreat inter
sau intrainstituional), dac
considerm un sistem institu
ional complex, i.e. Uniunea
European.
n cazul procesului de comu
nicare extern privind o politic
sau o iniiativ instituional,
unul dintre canalele de comuni
care agreate de instituiile pu
blice, cel puine cele europene,
sunt campaniile de comunicare,
online i offline. De obicei imple
mentarea efectiv a campaniilor
este externalizat, ns concep
tul, care se regsete n dosarul
specific procedurii de achiziie
public, aparine comunicatori
lor instituionali. Structurarea
conceptului prezint o compo
nent de negociere intrain
stituional i de diseminare
interinstituional. Astfel, dez
voltarea i perfectarea platfor
melor tehnologice de comunica
re sunt considerate componente
eseniale pentru procesele de
comunicare i marketing la ni
velul administraiilor publice.
V. Interoperabilitatea
Serviciilor Publice
europene
Comisia European a propus
n documentul Agenda Digital
pentru Europa din cadrul stra
tegiei Europa 2020 dou iniia
tive privind realizarea intero
perabilitii platformelor teh
nologice din serviciile publice,
respectiv: Strategia European
pentru Interoperabilitate (EIS)
85
i Cadrul European pentru
Interoperabilitate (EIF).
Provocrile principale identi
ficate se refer la:
ebariere create de admi
nistraiile publice nai
onale prin utilizarea de
esoluii care nu sunt inte
roperabile;
Piaa Unic Europea
n poate funciona pe
baza unor servicii publi
ce transnaionale[2], care
susin i implementarea
politicilor europene. Aces
te servicii sunt livrate n
trun procent din ce n ce
mai mare prin platforme
tehnologice;
exercitarea drepturilor
cetenilor, cum ar fi cel
la libera micare, implic
documente i informaii
ce sunt puse la dispoziia
acestora de ctre instituii
publice. Pentru a minima
liza sarcina administrati
v a ceteanului, servici
ile ICT trebuie s devin
mai performante;
peisajul legal diferit din
statelemembre mpiedic
realizarea unui schimb de
informaii corect i coe
rent ntre administraiile
publice naionale. Atunci
cnd astfel de schimburi
au loc, validitatea legal a
informaiilor trebuie ps
trat, iar legislaia pri
vind protecia datelor per
sonale trebuie respectat
pentru ambele statemem
bre implicate n schimb;
interoperabilitatea se
mantic este un alt aspect
afectat de lipsa unui acord
i unui ghid privind sen
sul i formatul informa
iei, rezultate din diferite
interpretri ale informa
iilor tranzacionate ntre
[2]
COM(2010) 135 Commission
Work Programme 2010 Time to act
(see: http://ec.europa.eu/atwork/pro
grammes/index_en.htm).
86
oameni, aplicaii ICT i
instituii.
Acest trinom este esenial n
procesele de comunicare i de
funcionare curent inter i in
trainstituionale i nu se pot re
aliza dect dac se au n vedere
urmtoarele aspecte: infrastruc
tur comun, arhitectur tehno
logic i reguli/ghiduri tehnice
(how to manuals).
Ambele iniiative menio
nate anterior prezint patru
dimensiuni ale interoperabili
tii: legal, organizaional,
semantic i tehnic. Toate sunt
importante, cu att mai mult cu
ct Internetul i activitatea or
ganismelor de standardizare a
permis atingerea unui progres
relativ n ceea ce privete inte
roperabilitatea tehnic, asigu
rnduse astfel un acces deschis,
open access, i o promovare a re
utilizrii informaiei.
Bibliografie
Aichholzer, G., Schmutzer, R., and
Hochgerner J. (1998), Bringing
Public Administration Closer to
the Citizens, Information Socie
ty Forum of the European Com
mission, WG 5: Public adminis
tration, Vienna.
Batalli, Mirlinda (2011), Impact of
Public Administration Innovati
ons on Enhancing the Citizens
Expectations, International Jo
urnal of eEducation, eBusine
ss, eManagement and eLear
ning, Vol. 1, No. 2.
Dutton, W. H. ed. (1996), Informa
tion and Communication Tech
nologies: Visions and Realities.
Oxford University Press, 1996.
Kernaghaii, K., and Gunraj, J.
(2004), Integrating information
technology into public adminis
tration: conceptual and practical
considerations, n Canadian Pu
blic Administration, Volume 47,
No. 4.
Pardo, Theresa A., GilGarcia,
J. R.and LunaReyes, Luis F.
(2008), Collaborative Governan
ce and CrossBoundary Informa
tion Sharing: Envisioning a Ne
tworked and ITEnabled Public
Administration, Minnowbrook
III Conference, Lake Placid,
New York.
Vasile, Ioana (2007), The role of
communication in the transfor
mation process of public institu
tions in Romania, n The Mana
ger Journal, Volume 6
Vickery, G., (2011), Review of recent
studies on PSI reuse and related
market developments, Informa
tion Economics, Paris.
Weiss, P. N. and Backlund P.
(1997), International Informati
on Policy in Conflict: Open and
Unrestricted Access versus Go
vernment Commercialization.
MIT Press: Cambridge MA Lon
don, 1997.
Wescott,C., Pizarro, Marilyn and
SchiavoCampo, Salvatore
(2000), To Serve And To Preser
ve: Improving Public Adminis
tration In A Competitive World.
in Guidelines, Handbooks, and
Manuals, Chapter XIX, Asian
Development Bank, 2000.
Zouridis, S., Thaens, Marcel (2003),
EGovernment: Towards a Pu
blic Administration Approach,
Asian Journal of Public Admi
nistration Vol 25, No 2.
*** COMMUNICATION FROM
THE COMMISSION TO THE
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,
THE COUNCIL, THE EU
ROPEAN ECONOMIC AND
SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND
THE COMMITTEE OF THE
REGIONS Towards inte
roperability for European
public services, Brussels,
16.12.2010 , COM(2010) 744 fi
nal. Available online at http://
ec.europa.eu/isa/documents/
isa_iop_communication_en.pdf
Dorian Constantin Pocovnicu
 The information and communication
technologies - new opportunities for the
marketing activities and communication
processes in the public administration
Dorian Constantin POCOVNICU
Instituia Prefectului, Bacu

Abstract: In the context of the new information and communication technologies, the public
administrations within the European Union should take into consideration o deeper synergy between
the management processes of business and the organisations structural configuration when a public
service is being performed. Coherent investments in the new means of information administration and
communication would allow the governments to avoid the dilemma of less cost and higher quality,
thus creating administrative structures which would function better and cost less. Raising flexibility in
delivering a public service and changing the rhythm of communicating with the citizen would imply a
higher level of trust in the institutional system, namely new interaction channels between citizens, ICT
applications and institutions.

Keywords: public policy, interoperability, TIC, information public policy

I. Introduction structure, mainly based on the especially from developing coun

Lately, an increasing number
of governments in developing
countries, but not exclusively,
have published ambitious pro
posals for reforming their own
administrative systems by us
ing information and communi
cation technologies (ICT). These
types of plans were also identi
fied on the agenda of transna
tional organizations, such as
the EU or G7 cooperation group.
Although these initiatives differ
considerably regarding their ap
plication domain and implemen
tation contexts, they do reflect,
undoubtedly, the existence of a
large consensus on the opportu
nities provided by ICT. The in
creasing synergy between infor
mation technology and telecom
munications will allow govern
ments to be more flexible in the
way they collect and use infor
mation. Furthermore, this new
flexibility will bring about new
opportunities for designing busi
ness management processes
and configuring organizations
RRM 1/2013
extended possibilities of human
connectivity. Aspects such as
time, geography, logistics limits
and national jurisdiction shall
become less important for hu
man interaction processes.
The new patterns of informa
tion administration and commu
nication offer the governments a
way out when dealing with the
dilemma of low cost-high qual
ity, thus creating administration
structures that function better
and cost less. More importantly,
these new interaction channels
open up communication between
governments and citizenry, thus
eventually ensuring a rise in
transparency, responsbility and
in opening up governments to
wards accesible forms of citizens
participation (Wescott, Pizarro &
Schiavo-Campo, 2000).
II. Potential assets of the
new ICT
Within the last decade, lo
cal and national agencies,
tries, have started to use ICT for
an increasing variety of public
services. These apps focus on
two objectives: achieving major
improvements in reaction rate,
in public services efficiency and
accesibility and in bringing the
governments closer to citizens.
The potential benefits of the
new technologies for created and
delivered services by the public
administrations are (Dutton,
1996):
diminishing administra
tive costs. ICT allows for
a significant decrease in
operation, informing and
conforming costs. ICT
technology supports the
partition of multiple data
between different infor
mation systems, thus mi
nimising the actions of col
lecting information;
quicker and precise re
sponse to request and
data-base interogations,
including those outside
working hours. ICT allows
87
 for direct access to clients
transactions and/or ac
counts from different ar
eas of administration, es
pecially for the lower level
of public services;
data access at all levels
and structures of adminis
tration, from any location.
ICT favours the develop
ing of flexible and more
convenient ways for citi
zens access to public ser
vices. For instance, some
administrative structures
have developed perma
nent online facilities with
the purpose of handling
unemployment forms, tax
collecting, visa application
forms etc. Using smart
cards is also emergent so
that increased access to
a variety of government
services may be provided
(Zouridis & Thaens, 2003).
One of these types of apps
is the online one-stop-in
fopoint. These apps could
prevent fraud or abuse in
delivering public services,
and the benefits are as
sociated to the increase of
public trust in public ad
ministration systems;
increasing the governance
capacity. ICT allows gov
ernments to collect more
data from existing opera
tional systems, thus en
hancing the feedback qual
ity at various managerial
levels and using it in de
veloping coherent policies.
Governments also have
the possibility to offer citi
zens an increasing amount
of information, ensuring
the support of new types
of interaction between
decision factors, citizens
and organisational struc
tures (Pardo, Gil-Garcia
& Luna-Reyes, 2008). In
this way, ICT could also
enhance the managerial
88
capacity of modern gov
ernance. These posibili
ties exist even in small
developing countries, but
these require a realistic
approach, adapted to spe
cific dimmensions and to
a limited administrative
capacity;
guidance and assistence
offered to local and na
tional economies by facili
tating the development of
government-business in
terface. This aspect could
lead to improving services
in rural areas and to the
advancement of support
services, in case of emer
gencies;
an additional means of
public feeback.
III. Challenges for using
ICT in public sector
ICT is still not used at a large
scale by the government of de
veloping countries to solve prob
lems such as: petences.
exchange of information
between administration
structures,
the flow of documents un developing countries, and it is
til approval stages,
digital filling-un of vari ing years.
ous types of forms,
access to public informa
tion,
retrieving of feedback
by public employees and
providing answers in due
time,
archiving of documents,
publishing the results of
natinoal census.
Within this context, several
observations regarding ICT use
in public sector are still avail
able (Batalli, 2011):
only a small part of the
public owns personal com
puters (PCs) or has access
to Internet. Even so, the
number are rising;
citizens and employees
have a tendency of not
owning ICT competences,
necessary for a full encom
passing of ICT use;
some countries might
need to first develop the
basic infrastructure, in or
der to afterwards support
the use of ICT.
There are also other reasons
for the slow adoption of ICT
in public sector, especially in
developing countries. These in
clude the following or severeal
of the items mentioned below:
higher costs since ICT in
troduction due to a higher
number of public institu
tions;
a generated inertia by the
already existing options
and routines;
concern for security and
confidentiality;
regulations and unstable
laws;
a lack of understanding
and of technological com
Despite all constraints, us
ing the internet in government
activity is rising especially in
expected to triple in the follow
Obviously, using the
Internet, for public transaction,
is still at an initial stage. In de
veloped countries, several fac
tors have driven the Internet at
center stage regarding popular
demand. These factors are:
a boost in competences re
lated to computer use,
a decrease in communica
tion costs,
emergence and develop
ment of multimedia web
browsers, which are also
easy to use;
demand for a mass cus
tomization and instant
feebdack;
telecommunication;
globalised economy.
Dorian Constantin Pocovnicu
 The Internet has not generat
ed thse trends on its own, but it
is a catalyst which brings them
together, accelerating their
progress and generating an ag
gregated result higher than the
sum of its parts.
IV. Information public
policies and the ICT
technologies
In matters of government
electronic services, there are
factors which condition their de
velopment and implementation.
Among these, the most impor
tant are: demand and priority
markers, establishing the infor
mation public policy, citizens
access, implementation issues,
problems regarding security,
reshaping the processes of pub
lic service delivery (Aichholzer,
Schmutzer & Hochgerner, 1998).
Amid numerous problems
associated to the design of in
formation public policies, there
is the one regarding the type of
public information which should
be accessible, or better yet, the
degree of its availability.
There are three main inter
ested parties when dealing with
public information availability:
the public sector, which is
producer and owner of a
high variety and quantity
of relevant information,
such as financial and eco
nomic data, public record
ings (i.e. land registry,
companies registry), geo
graphic databses (maps,
environment informa
tion), as well as scientific,
technological and cultural
information produced in
side public institutions of
research, archive and li
braries (Vickery, 2011).
citizens assert their need
for different types of infor
mations, such as, judicial
standards or administra
tive procedures, with the
RRM 1/2013
purpose of exerting their
individual rigths,
the private sector needs
access to information
sources belonging to the
public sector, with the
purpose of providing new
services, produced by
adding specific value to
already elementary infor
mation, such as creating
packages adapted to the
needs of certain groups
of users (for example,
customized information
products, adapted to spe
cific company needs or a
specific industry, based on
the registries of patent li
censes)
The trajectories of public in
formation circulation represents
a highly delicate issue. The two
main objectives which should
be taken into consideration,
and also reconciled, when deal
ing with access regulations are:
firstly the economic purpose,
directed towards developing a
market for information, and sec
ondly the democratic principle
of transparency, which implies
open access in due and reason
able time to all information.
For an information market to
develop, a huge amount of data
and information, produced and
collected by public organisa
tions, is required so that they
may be used by companies and
organisations in order to cre
ate commercial products and
services.
Another aspect taken into
consideration is the fact that
public agencies may be inter
ested in becoming involved as
active actors in the information
market, even if this is a devel
oping one, and might also mani
fest their intention of ensuring
the necessary incomes from
electronic supply of public in
formation. Since the public sec
tor is the biggest owner of data,
as well as the biggest content
producer (i.e. laws, regulations
etc.), such an interest in mer
chandising is a practical option.
On the other hand, consider
ing the necessary requirements
in promoting the principles of a
democratic society, universal ac
cess to information of public in
terest for all citizens, at accessi
ble costs, is considered essential.
Aside from granting access to
information for all citizens, eq
uitably, information policy must
face at least one other problem,
namely the aspect of avoiding
distortion of normal business
conditions when the public sec
tor becomes a commercial play
er on information market.
These requests and interests
are equally divergent, repre
senting a particular challenge
for developing policies and de
signing adequate frames for ac
cess to public information.
At the same time, creating
an information market requires
a set of guidelines on how to
use and commercialy exploit
raw data produced by govern
ments, as well as other types of
information.
From a global perspective,
actual policies distinguish
themselves through a tension
between two major trends: the
principle of free and no re
strictions access of public to
information and what is named
government commercialization
(Weiss & Backlund, 1997).
While the latter is character
istic to at least some of the eu
ropean countries, the first prin
ciple is characteristic of the po
sition taken by the USA govern
ment. The USA information pol
icy is built upon the following al
ready legalised key-elements[1]:
The Diversity principle,
which means that infor
mation should be cre
ated, shared and used by
[1]
Paperwork Reduction Act, http://
www.archives.gov/federal-register/
laws/paperwork-reduction/
89
 various entities, including
advertising agencies, non-
profit sector, as well as
private sector;
a strong freedom when
dealing with legislation
regarding public access to
information;
a lack of royalties rights
on behalf of the govern
ment;
downsized access costs,
generated by search, du
plicate and dissemination
efforts;
restrictions regarding re-
use or re-dissemination of
government information.
On these grounds, there have
been a series of emergent busi
ness domains in USA which
use information from the public
sector(s). Exemples are firms
which use weather data, patent
data or geographic databases,
thus adding value through de
veloping customized products
ment for private distribution.
In opposition to the USA
stand, european countries ap
proach differently public infor
mation policies. The royalties
issue of the government repre
sents a major topic, as intelec
tual property rights allow the
exclusion of the private sector
from using public information
for commercial purposes. The
Berna Convention grants a high
level of uniformity regarding
royalties, however they with
hold the copyrights for govern
ment information.
This aspect leads to a broader
spectrum of national approach
es in Europe. The European
Commission has drafted a Green
Paper regarding public informa
tion in information society, fol
lowing a public consultation.
This document pinpoints the el
ements which are at stake, cir
cumscribing the key challenges
and approaching the major as
pects, including: outlining the
public sector domain, the access
90
conditions, the obligation to pro
duce information, time, quantity
and the format assigned by the
public sector as a reaction to in
formation requests; the price of
public sector information; com
petition regulations; informa
tion rights and harmonization
of national regimes; confiden by government or government
tiality issues; the necessity of
information directories within
public sector; responsability and
possible actions.
This initiative of the
European Commission is a ma
jor step in the already long list
of promotion efforts dedicated to
opening up access rights to gov
ernment information. Also, the
same document suggests very
similar principles to the ones
used in the USA: encouraging
the availability of public infor
mation necessary for use by the
private sector and the media; ac
cess procedures to public infor
mation are outlined; exclusive
ness and restrictions regarding
information broadcasting ae dis
couraged; elimination of copy
rights over public information is
opted for.
This attitude is motivated by
the objective of developing the
information market and ensur
ing the basis upon which euro
pean companies can compete on
equal grounds with private in
formation suppliers fom around
the world.
A major stimulus for the
EU information policy is the
advances of citizens access to
information regarding the EU,
the institutions, policies and
programmes. The growing po
tential of ICT clearly enables a
proactive approach towards the
citizen and the design of dynam
ic information strategies
IV.1. Citizens access
Accessability is crucial
when dealing with electronic
government services. If we ap
proach access to government
information as a basic service,
than accessability depends on:
availability, dissemination and
actual access to government
information, relevant from a
broader perspective (data and
documents owned by public and
political institutions, especially
agencies, public administration,
Parliament bodies etc.).
From the users perspective,
accessability means to be ca
pable of obtaining a public in
formation while there are little
obstacles. In other words, ac
cessability means lack of barri
ers, such as:
socio-cultural elements
(atention and attitude to
wards electronic media);
qualifications (cognitive
and physical aptitudes,
IT literacy);
technological aspects (in
frastructure network and
owned equipements by the
final user);
financial aspects (equip
ment and service costs).
IV.2. Technological
infrastructure
Depending on the type of
public service provided online,
the technological infrastructure
provided by specific suppliers
may be the following:
Information services: In
ternet servers in order to
provide HTML web pages
(simple structure) or In
ternet connected databas
es (advanced structure);
Communication services:
e-mail servers, Internet
dedicated servers in order
to create online groups
and forums;
Transaction services: ded
icated Internet servers,
configured in order to pro
cess etntry data (simple
structure), workflows in
ternally structured within
Dorian Constantin Pocovnicu
 which Internet supplied
data towards the end-us
er may be acquired (ad
vanced structure).
In order to ensure the flex
ibility and integration of pub
lic e-services, it is desirable for
them to avoud unique protection
solutions. A preffered strategy is
defining different system levels
and setting up specific applica
tions based on these levels.
The necessary technical in
frastructure, in order for the us
ers to access public e-services,
is not entirely dependent on
the typs of services provided, at
least in the case of Internet as
platforms. Internet access and
browsers offer almost all the
technical conditions necessary
to use information, communi
cation and transaction services
(Kernaghaii & Gunraj, 2004).
The main obstacle for citi
zens use of public e-services is
Internet access. Today, only a
small percentage of the popu
lation, such as the rural popu
lation for instance, is able to
use a PC with internet connec
tion, either at the workplace, at
home or in a public place (i.e.
libraries).
IV.3. Employee competences
within public institutions
Another aspect which one
should bear in mind, especially
from the point of view of inter
nal and external communication
processes inside public institu
tions, refers to communicative
and informatic competencies.
Within the context of a coher
ent and necessary change man
agement, exposing public insti
tutions to different communica
tive contexts must be handled
by proffesional communicators,
capable of assuming an institu
tional communication strategy.
Such a strategy must re
spond to the following needs of
the institution (Vasile, 2007):
RRM 1/2013
the need for transparency
of the decision system;
the need to communica communication and marketing
tion in real and in due
time;
internal and external
credibility of manage
ment;
the need to change the
general perception of the
institution;
the existence of a facilita
tor and of an instrument
within the management
process of change.
Placing those needs within
the online framing of commu
nication processes, flexibility
and quickness in response are
essential for the institutional
communicator.
From the point of view of the
internal communication pro
cess, there is a high degree of
inter-dependence between the
communicators competences,
the technological platform (s)he
uses (i.e. Intranet-urile) and the
content strategy of the depart
ment and/or of the institution
(conditioned by the policy course
outlined and agreed upon inter-
or intra-institutionaly), were we
to conside a complex institutionl
system, such as the European
Union.
From an external communi
cation process perspective, re
garding either a policy or an in
stitutional initiative, one of the
most used communication chan
nels by the public institutions is
the communication campaign,
online and offline.
Usually the implementa
tion is outsourced, but the con
cept, which can be depicted
from within the tender dos
sier, belongs to the institution
al communicators. Outlining
the concept is a process which
presents an intra-institutional
negotiation component and an
inter-institutional dissemina
tion component. So, developing
and perfecting the technological
communication platforms are
considered key components for
processes, when public adminis
trations are concerned.
V. Interoperability of
european public services
The European Commission
has proposed the document A
Digital Agenda for Europe with
in the Europe 2020 strategy,
outlining two initiatives on the
accomplishment of technological
inter-operability between pub
lic services, namely: European
Interoperability Strategy (EIS)
and European Interoperability
Framework (EIF).
The main challenges identi
fied are related to the following:
e-barriers created by pub
lic national administra
tions by using e-solutions
which are not interoper
able;
the European Single Mar
ket can function based
on trans-national public
services[2], which uphold
european policy imple
mentation. The delivery of
such services is achieved
in a higher degree through
the use of technological
platforms;
exercising citizens rights,
such as free movement,
implies documents and in
formation which are made
available by public insti
tutions. In order to mini
mize the administrative
burden of the citizen, ICT
services should become
more efficient;
the different legal land
scape in member-states
prevents a coherent and
accurate exchange of in
[2]
COM(2010) 135 Commission
Work Programme 2010 Time to act
(see:
http://ec.europa.eu/atwork/pro
grammes/index_en.htm).
91
 formation between na
tional public administra
tion. When these types of
exchanges take place, the
legal validity of such infor
mation must be kept, and
the legislation regarding
the protection of personal
data must be upholded for
both member-states in
volved in the exchange;
semantic interoperability
is another aspect affected
by the lack of agreement
and of guidelines regard
ing the meaning and for
mat of information, the
latter resulting from in
formation transactions
between people, ICT apps
and institutions.
This triadic construct is es
sential in communication pro
cesses and in common activity,
and it can be achieved only if
the following aspects are taken
into consideration: shared infra
structure, technological archi
tecture and how-to manuals.
Both initiatives of the
European Commission present
a four-fold approach on interop
erability: legal, organisational,
semantical and technical. All
are important, especially when
the Internet and the activities of
the standardisation institutions
have allowed a relative prog
ress to be reached in terms of
92
technical interoperability, thus
ensuring for an open access and
the promoting of information
re-use.
Bibliography
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Hochgerner J. (1998), Bringing
Public Administration Closer to
the Citizens, Information So
ciety Forum of the European
Commission, WG 5: Public ad
ministration, Vienna.
Batalli, Mirlinda (2011), Impact
of Public Administration In
novations on Enhancing the
Citizens Expectations, Interna
tional Journal of e-Education,
e-Business, e-Management and
e-Learning, Vol. 1, No. 2.
Dutton, W. H. ed. (1996), Informa
tion and Communication Tech
nologies: Visions and Realities.
Oxford University Press, 1996.
Kernaghaii, K., and Gunraj, J.
(2004), Integrating information
technology into public adminis
tration: conceptual and practi
cal considerations, n Canadian
Public Administration, Volume
47, No. 4.
Pardo, Theresa A., Gil-Garcia,
J. R.and Luna-Reyes, Luis F.
(2008), Collaborative Gover
nance and Cross-Boundary In
formation Sharing: Envisioning
a Networked and IT-Enabled
Public Administration, Min
nowbrook III Conference, Lake
Placid, New York.
Vasile, Ioana (2007), The role of
communication in the transfor
mation process of public institu
tions in Romania, n The Man
ager Journal, Volume 6
Vickery, G., (2011), Review of recent
studies on PSI re-use and related
market developments, Informa
tion Economics, Paris.
Weiss, P. N. and Backlund P.
(1997), International Informa
tion Policy in Conflict: Open
and Unrestricted Access versus
Government Commercialization.
MIT Press: Cambridge MA Lon
don, 1997.
Wescott,C., Pizarro, Marilyn and
Schiavo-Campo, Salvatore
(2000), To Serve And To Pre
serve: Improving Public Ad
ministration In A Competitive
World. in Guidelines, Hand
books, and Manuals, Chapter
XIX, Asian Development Bank,
2000.
Zouridis, S., Thaens, Marcel (2003),
E-Government: Towards a Pub
lic Administration Approach,
Asian Journal of Public Admin
istration Vol 25, No 2.
*** COMMUNICATION FROM
THE COMMISSION TO THE
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT,
THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPE
AN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL
COMMITTEE AND THE COM
MITTEE OF THE REGIONS
Towards interoperability for Eu
ropean public services, Brussels,
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Dorian Constantin Pocovnicu
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