Innovating business processes in public administrations: towards a systemic approach

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to study the credit collection process in public administrations in order to develop a conceptual model which goes beyond the traditional logic of linearity, adopting system thinking approaches. Design/methodology/approach: This study analyses the case of an Italian local government-owned enterprise. Data collection through semi-structured interviews and document analysis has enabled the development of propositions, the identification of systemic variables, and the development of an explanatory modeling process based on the system dynamics approach. Findings: This paper shows that public administrations can effectively involve external actors, especially citizens, as knowledge and public value co-creators only when considering systemic, unintended, and delayed implications of decision-making activities related to the provision of sensitive public services such as credit collection. Originality/value: Business process modelling should address some key fragilities of traditional modeling processes, especially in the public sector. This paper develops a novel systemic conceptual model which lays the groundwork for empirically testing business process innovation in public administrations.