This thesis explores the role of GovTech incubators in driving digital transformation in the public sector by analyzing success factors in the co-creation process between startups and government partners.

Student Theses and Projects: Co-Creating Innovation: Success Factors and Challenges in GovTech Accelerators

18.10.2024, Diplomarbeiten, Bachelor- und Masterarbeiten

This thesis explores the role of GovTech incubators in driving digital transformation in the public sector by analyzing success factors in the co-creation process between startups and government partners. Through qualitative interviews with experts, it aims to contextualize the dynamics of GovTech ecosystems and the challenges they face in aligning innovation with public value.

The rapid development and increasing dissemination of digital technologies has exposed modern companies to a highly dynamic, networked business environment. This digital transformation is transforming markets, value chains, and relationships, with the collection and use of data playing an increasingly important role. Digital platforms and ecosystems in particular have radically changed our everyday lives (Porter & Heppelmann, 2014). While digitalization initially changed primarily the business world and consumer behavior of people, it has now also fundamentally changed the public sector. At the latest with the Online Access Act, the portal network and the demand for more user- and citizen-centricity (e.g. through the once-only principle and data sovereignty), digitization has been heralded in the broad public sector in Germany (BMWi, 2018; 2019).
Governments struggle to harness emerging technologies to improve public services, address social needs, and produce public value. In response, we see a rise in GovTech startups and other non-government actors trying to bring innovative solutions to governments. While some public agencies welcome such help, many are reluctant to rely on external organizations to provide digital identities, data wallets and AI-based services to citizens, businesses, and the government itself. Many also fear engaging a dynamic ecosystem of small non-government actors working together and gaining more experience in the process. Consequently, the GovTech supply and demand are misaligned with each other and the public value imperative. Public tendering may help but does not protect against vendor lock-in and innovation-blocking. Co-creation of public and private solutions may be technically possible but may face institutional void, calling for trust frameworks, steward-ownership, ecosystem building or other alternative instruments (Bharosa & Janowski, 2024).
This research project aims to contextualize and extend established scientific knowledge about the GovTech accelerator and their ecosystems. One approach to solving this problem is to conduct qualitative interviews with experts on the success factors of accelerators in the value co-creation with GovTech startups and partners from the public sector. These interviews can contextualize and expand existing knowledge about GovTech accelerators and provide insights into the digital transformation process of public administration.

TASKS
- Synthesis and contrasting of literature on the design and governance of GovTech accelerator
- Qualitative interviews to contextualize and expand the established knowledge about the success factors GovTech accelerator
- Discussion of the results regarding current research
- Active refinement and development of the research idea

REQUIREMENTS
- A high degree of autonomy and individual responsibility
- Interest in current topics of GovTech, digital transformation in the public sector, and the startup scene
- Interest and experience in qualitative research
- Very good grades and a good command of the English language are beneficial

FURTHER INFORMATION
The topic can be adapted according to your interests. The thesis can be written in English or German. If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to contact me directly. Please send your application, including our application form, "Notenauszug" from TUMonline, and CV to lukas.dassler@tum.de Please note that we can only consider applications with complete documents.

REFERENCES
Nitesh Bharosa, and Tomasz Janowski. 2024. The GovTech Challenge – GovTech and Public Value Creation. In 25th Annual International Conference
Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Technologie [BMWi]. (2018). Der Staat als Digitalisierungsplattform: Once Only 2.0. Digital Gipfel 2018, Nürnberg.
Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Technologie [BMWi]. (2019). Verwaltungsplattform als Ökosystem für Interaktion und Datensouveränität. Digital Gipfel 2019, Dortmund.
Porter, M. E., & Heppelmann, J. E. (2014). How smart, connected products are transforming competition. Harvard Business Review, 92(11), 11–64.

Kontakt: lukas.dassler@tum.de