Climate for Innovation and ICT Implementation Effectiveness: A Missing Link in Italian E-government Projects

Abstract

Italy is very oriented to the introduction of new reforms but is often weak in their implementation. In particular, the implementation of ICT tools in e-government projects has shown implementation effectiveness, with a major gap between the availability and effective use of these tools. This study measures the climate for innovation in order to better understand the effectiveness of ICT implementation in public administration reform. Findings, based on a survey of three different departments of a local public administration, highlight a correlation between these two variables showing the relevance of a climate for innovation in the implementation process of reform.

Keywords:

• climate for innovation
• implementation effectiveness
• e-government
• information and communication technologies

Notes

¹Although WES usually used a two-point mode (true/false), in literature a four-point response mode is also used (Moos, 2008)

²We also tested the factor structure of climate for innovation with CFA using AMOS, with the maximum likelihood estimation method. CFA was used to assess the fit of the data to the hypothesized measurement model. CFA showed that the factor structure had a satisfactory fit, with a CFI of 0.9 (compared with a satisfactory minimum of 0.9) and a reasonable error of approximation, with an RMSEA of 0.066 (compared with a satisfactory value of 0.06, and an acceptable maximum of 0.08), SRMR = 0.08 (close to 0.08 or less), and chi-square = 113.01 with degree of freedom = 84.

³Also if we stratify the data by gender (female R² = 0.22; p <0.001 and male R² = 0.28 p <0.05) and age (26–45 R² = 0.20; p <0.01 and 46–65 R² = 0.22; p <0.05) the regression is still confirmed.