Ajman Digital Government: the way forward to digest digitalization Mohamad Abu Ghazaleh and Syed Zamberi Ahmad Case synopsis Mohamad Abu Ghazaleh and Syed Zamberi A 2017 decree by the ruler of the Emirate of Ajman re-organized Ajman's e-government into Ahmad are both based at a central directorate of the government, reporting directly to the Crown Prince of the emirate the College of Business under the title "Central Directorate of the Ajman Digital Government" (ADG). This new Administration government authority, headed by its CEO and general director, Ohood Ali Abdullah Al Department of Shuhail, faces many challenges in implementing this vision. The two current United Arab Management, Abu Dhabi Emirates (UAE) federal e-governments that represent the UAE internationally are Abu University, Abu Dhabi, Dhabi and Dubai. The federal government of the UAE ranked number 1 in the Middle East United Arab Emirates. and North Africa in IMD's (2017) World Digital Competitiveness Ranking of 2017. ADG intends to join the UAE federal e-government ranking and to this end must deliver e-government to a high standard. To position its project toward success, the functions of ADG should be implemented with a high level of specification and standards to support the UAE federal ranking, as well as taking over supervision of regulatory affairs for systems and information technology from the current authorities. ADG, headed by Ohood, needs to carefully handle specific ingredients and to take over supervision of regulatory affairs for systems and information technology for current government authorities. ADG must adopt new mechanisms to increase governmental efficiency and productivity while transforming public services to meet citizen expectations of digital experience and satisfy UAE federal e-government standards. This study of the strategic positioning of ADG will help support the success and weighting of the options for which technology should be used and how the project should proceed strategically. This case also provides useful grounds for discussing the challenges faced by digital e-government and how its innovative business model can address such The authors would also like to thank CEO of Ajman Digital challenges and create a sustainable environment for e-government. Government Mrs. Ohood Al Shuhail and other members of the leadership team at ADG Emirates profile for their support and time in telling the story of their The Emirate of Ajman is located on the Arabian Gulf, one of the UAE and the length of its company. They have been coast about 16 kilometers. The emirate covers an area of about 259 square kilometers and very generous with their time and forthcoming in sharing has a population of 504,847 (Table I). His Highness Sheikh Humaid Bin Rashid al Nuaimi materials and information that is the Ruler of Ajman. enhanced the quality of this case study. Company profile Disclaimer. This case is written solely for educational Overview purposes and is not intended to represent successful The ADG is the name of the new governmental authority established in 2017 by the decree unsuccessful managerial decision-making. The authors of His Highness Sheikh Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler may have disguised names; of Ajman (Sharjah 24, 2016). Sheikh Ammar bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, Crown Prince of Ajman, financial and other recognizable information to appointed Ohood Ali Abdullah Al Shuhail as director-general of the ADG (Emirates News protect confidentiality. DOI 10.1108/EEMCS-08-2017-0198 VOL. 8 NO. 2 2018, pp. 1-20, @ Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2045-0621 | EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES |PAGE 1PAGE 2 Table l Ajman population, 2012-2016 Year Population 2012 263,000 2013 264,100 2014 264,900 2015 266,100 2016 267,300 201 7 504,847 Source: UAE Population (2017); Emirates 24 27 News (2017) Agency, 2017a, 2017b), which is a competent centralized authority for the supervision of regulatory affairs for systems and information technology for all government authorities and reports to His Highness the Sheikh (Table II). Strategic objective for transformation ADG has prepared a new digital transformation strategy for the digital transformation of Ajman government services (Sharjah 24, 2016). The transformation strategy, consisting of six strategic objectives, was created by CEO shortly after ADG came into being. These function to drive ADG and satisfy citizens' expectations of the digital experience ADG provides, while it also works to satisfy the e-government standard of the UAE federal government. According to the director general: \"ADG Strategy aims to enable rapid digital transformation of government services. The Strategy enables fast and scalable objectives. It involves a roadmap to reach a fully smart government through a single gateway," ADG strategic objectives: 1. Target delivery of innovative, reliable, efficient, alwayson and peoplecentric government services in partnership with Association of Global Event Suppliers (AGES), federal entities and other stakeholders; 2. increase constituent satisfaction, engagement and participation and enhance public private partnerships to support sustainable development; 3. manage and upgrade government ICT infrastructure, focusing on preferred customer channels; 4. protect constituent privacy and data and ensure standardization; 5. ensure cost savings to the government by leveraging opportunities and synergies across local and regional entities; and 6. enhance program awareness and preeminence locally, regionally and internationally [Source: ADG Transformation Strategy Plan (unpublished internal report)]. The transformation strategy of the ADG covers the digital road map for the next five years, including a transformation plan and priorities; these include the following: (1) digital transformation for 100 per cent of the government services by 2018; (2) digital Table II Vision statement Mission statement Engaged and happy constituents who have Improve the experience of constituents in the access to highquality, integrated, Emirate of Ajman and support the responsive and innovative services anytime, competitiveness of the UAE by providing anywhere smart services delivered through digital channels in partnership with all relevant stakeholders EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES VOL. 8 N0 2 201B transformation for all shared government services by the end of 2018; (3) increasing the efficiency of government spending by 20 per cent by the end of 2021; (4) digital transformation of 30 government services every 100 days; and (5) 80 per cent adoption of digital services by the end of 2018. According to Mrs. Dina Fares, the director of eproject management, \"the transformation plan focuses on four key areas: an exceptional client experience. enabling policies, continuous learning and innovation. coherent government and continuous learning and innovation." The new ADG platform will open the door to having a better understanding of digital government decision-making and make a contribution to understanding management decision-making in Technological Emerging Markets, in contexts of how to implement and structure the mega digital projects, address challenges of risks, mitigation, lack of technical expertise and how management should carefully craft the structuring strategy of digital government. There will be significant benefits to executive management to realize the vision of ADG in reducing the cost and how to fundamentally change the way digital government works and how quickly they can respond to the increasing demands of public services. The central aim of ADG is to improve decision making by providing a concrete tool for implementing the digital government discipline, to present associations between the use of formal decision-making process in digital government project and the outcome of the project. ADG thus refers to the quality of cooperation and decisionmaking in the relationship between the government and stakeholders. ADG discusses the application of a decision-making tool for the choice of appropriate best practices in the context of digital government implementation. Theoretical background of the case study In any dynamic information technology environment, researchers can use the theory of technological frames of reference, which is relevant to the discussion of the ADG project to reduce stakeholder conflict and to improve long-term project planning for project implementation. This theory is a useful tool for understanding and analyzing the variety of meanings and expectations from all stakeholders involved in information technology communications. Such differences in perceptions must impact communication in information system design (Puri, 2006). ADG realizes that stakeholders can make or break the success of its projects; accordingly, ADG prioritized management of its stakeholders (citizens, employees and government authorities) from day one, presaging the effort spent in communication to ensure stakeholders respond positively to new digital projects. The use of the theory of technological frames of reference for stakeholders in such a huge project shapes the implementation of information technology (Khoo, 2013). Using it, these differences are taken into consideration in analyzing meanings, concepts, assumptions and expectations of all stakeholders involved in the ADG Project. The theory can be used to analyze and understand assumptions and expectations from different stakeholders and the knowledge that stakeholders have of the technology. The stakeholders involved in delivering this initiative form a significant range: stakeholders can be business managers, information technology staff, external government authorities or any engaged public organization. To produce a successful integrated system view, ADG identified a list of milestones for each dimension, emphasizing with the first three dimensions of the information system model, namely, information quality, system quality, and service quality. A number of government organizations have examined the adoption of digital government services using technology acceptance theories, such as the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) (DeLone and McLean, 2003) and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). This research provides a useful understanding of an individual's intention of using the technology services; they also have identified a number of contracts that determine the adoption of digital government services, such as ease of use, usefulness, trustworthiness, perceived risk and external influence (Venkatesh et al., 2016). VOL. 8 NO. 2 2018 EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES PAGE 3 Dynamic technology markets and unique e-government scheme According to the World Digital Competitiveness Ranking (2017), the UAE ranked first in the Middle East and North Africa. The score breakdown (Table III) explains the ranking for the UAE in different areas. This is a good opportunity to learn from other emirates in the UAE. As Highlighted by the director general: \"Being a first ranked in government efficiency was a testimony to the commitment and dedication of every member of the UAE government team to develop government work and upgrade government performance\". Learning from success stories has been discussed (Leadership and Organizational Learning, 2006). ADG is surrounded with successful egovernment stories. Unlike other egovernment projects, which are managed only with reference to time and budget, for ADG's initiatives, the management considers many aspects, such as digital competition, budget, deadlines and work with multidisciplinary groups of people and their individual strengths and weaknesses. In addition to these facts, having a very complex variety of interactions between the stakeholders will bring a definite risk to the project. Organizing communication between all stakeholders enhances project development efficiency (Qin et al., 2017). The possibility of failure is taken into account. To balance risk and project efficiency, ADG considers the failure rates of information technology projects, which have been consistently increasing in recent years. According to the Standish Group report, 31 per cent of new software projects are cancelled before going live, while more than 50 per cent of the projects exceed their budgets and project schedules (Standish Group, 2014). CEO clearly indicated that: \"The key to successful digital government is to learn from past failures and to put those lessons learned into action. We learn wisdom from failure and it is very important for our team to view lessons learned as serving a useful purpose". According to Innovation Tech (2016), the UAE ranks eighth globally and first regionally in electronic services (eServices and mServices). The UAE is building on world-class infrastructure, its rich environment and government services. ADG will not slow the pace of its drive to be part of this ranking. The director of e-project management remarked, \"This great achievement will support Ajman big time to benchmark their egovernment product.\" Challenges and opportunities The successful implementation of any new e-government must focus on key customer-facing business processes, and the deployment of egovernment implies various objectives. The common objective of digitizing and integrating information in government is to leverage the benefits of technology (Weerakkody and Choudrie, 2005). \"The new digital government was designed to improve the processes of the Ajman government. It is reengineering with new technology," stated the director of eproject management. The Table III IMD world digital competitiveness ranking, Area Index Factor Overall ranking factors 7 Future readiness 14 Technology 38 Knowledge Future readiness sub factors ranking 1 Using big data and analytics 1 Publicprivate partnerships 1 Cyber security Technology sub factors ranking 1 Immigration laws 3 Technological regulation 6 Venture capital Knowledge sub factors ranking 2 Foreign highly skilled personnel 3 International experience 3 Management of cities Source: www.imd.org/gIobalassets/wcc/docs/release2017/world_digital_competitiveness_ yearbook_2017.pdf PAGE 4 EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES VOL. 8 N0 2 201B automation required involves the intensive effort of all governmental authorities of Ajman (Avny, 2007). \"A significant gap is created between the rates of technological and of social and cultural development that might impact use of egovernment,\" noted the director of e-project management. According to the general manager and director of e-project management, executive management sees a bright future for ADG, and they have supported this with due consideration for implementation barriers and stakeholder management. From their point of view, the barriers are not only technical but include collaboration and cooperation between partners and the government authorities. ADG has established a new innovative laboratory to encourage all sectors to participate in government development, identify challenges and understand end-to-end customer experience. A major challenge for ADG is the lack of qualified employees and the retention of expertise. ADG approaches the retention of expert employees by looking after its star performers and working closely with human resources to identify employees whose retention is critical. Rapid technological change always results in technical issues, so there is great uncertainty regarding the fast movement of technological change, and it is very difficult to anticipate the future market. \"It is so hard to predict the future of technology,\" the director of e-project management confirmed. Accordingly, to mitigate this challenge ADG introduced an innovative new model for delivering e-government services by introducing a new innovative phasing approach, digitizing 30 highpriority services every 100 days. \"It's easier to make decisions based on priority, the entire team agrees on the high priority 30 services to simplify the prioritization and delivery approach," noted the director of e-project management. Management considers major external egovernment barriers when government agencies focus only on their own services without considering the broader e-government context. ADG was established embedded in existing systems and infrastructure of governmental authority. This situation complicates the task for ADG, creating avendor lock, where it is not easy for ADG to transition to new products or services from other competitors. However, this can cause inefficient processes and constraints on vendor contracts. This will make ADG dependent on vender products and services. Looking to the future, the new ADG is the only source providing technology for government authorities that would bring more control to its management of vendor lock. Management has decided to utilize multi-cloud computing not only to minimize vendor lock and reduce costs but also to eliminate the financial risk of hosting all IT eggs in one basket. Having some ADG infrastructure and hardware as part of the cloud will significantly aid in minimizing vendor lock. Using the cloud computing model, ADG will pay for what they use and only when the service is used. The service provider will own the hardware and carry the risk. There are major impediments that may impact e-government sustainability. The first is the requirement to quantify the e-government services: there are services that must be evaluated qualitatively. Second, it is not easy to evaluate and asses the quality of e-government services. It is also very important to evaluate the demand for these services and this may adversely affect the usage of e-government services. Third, ADG realized that society has three categories of people, namely: 1. young people, who fully participate in the use of the technology; 2. the middleaged, who partially participate; and 3. the elderly, who do not use technology. ADG can be endangered by social and cultural deficiencies. Most problems develop from the fast pace of technological advancement and the human ability to digest and use it. As an example, the deployment of payable services has the impediment that there is a group of people who still do not trust using their credit cards for online payment. ADG must build VOL. 8 NO. 2 2018 EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES PAGE 5 trust. For the e-government initiatives to have success, it is required to develop trust among the public as well as confidence to promote participation by e-government users (UAE Vision, 2017). ADG believes that implementing a vision without execution is just hallucination. Vision, alignment and execution are key components of successful management and leadership (Volcker, 2014). Deliverables and services offered ADG focuses closely on key areas that aim to improve overall customer experience quality, efficient service delivery, movement to smarter services and improve customer engagement (Figure 1). As mentioned by a director of e-project management: "Our digital services aim to strongly align ADG strategic objectives with UAE's vision that constantly evolves and pushes the boundaries of innovation to improve public services," The list of services offered is also given (Table IV). Strategies to compete in a challenging digital environment Change management fundamentals The new e-government is not only an information technology platform but an organizational transformation project (Nograsek, 2011). According to the director of e-project management: ADG follows a change management model for the process of planning and implementing the new digital government, with particular attention to the change management process that moves government organizations from existing environments to the more sophisticated environment." If ADG is to be successful, then change management issues must be addressed effectively both within government organizations and within the community of users as they adjust to new realities. ADG, with leadership oversight and guidance, quickly navigates by taking leading strategic decisions. ADG follows a structured approach that aims to empower employees to accept changes in the current business environment; this allows stakeholders, team members and organization to transition from the current to the future stage. The new strategic decisions include changes in processes, system platform and what governs cultural and behavioral changes. ADG has completed an extensive review of business processes, and it requires the evolution of both frontend platforms accessed by e-government users and IT infrastructure in the back office. Figure 1 Key Areas of Ajman Digital Government Service Transformation Toolkit Develop a service modernization toolkit Ajman Unified App to streamline process to modernize Establish a unified application for Government services . Ajman Governmentas a channel for all Ajman Government mobile services Service Fact Book Tool Develop a service fact book tool that maintains the full list of services and One Stop Shop Portal provides a single source of truth for all Deploy a one-stop shop web portal as stakeholders (Government leadership, an efficient and smart channel for eGA, AGEs and public) service delivery to ease access to and improve constituents' satisfaction Data Center Consolidation with Governmentservices Upgrade data center to tier Ill and Participate in regional and consolidate AGEs data centers and . international events migrate them, which will reduce costs, improve security and ensure continuity Organize the participation in regional and internationalforums, exhibitions EDRMS and conferencesto create learning Develop and implement an EDRMS opportunities, enhance relationships solution to improve the AGEs' ability in and promote the image of Ajman filing, storing, tracking and viewing records and important documentation Digital Transformation Source: Ajman Digital Government transformation strategy plan (unpublished report) PAGE 6 EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES |VOL. 8 NO. 2 2018Table IV Ajman Digital Government service catalogue Serial no. Service group Service Description Application services Hosting and developing online Consultation on development, maintenance, and government consultation services hosting of online government services N Application services Application hosting services Hosting and supporting application (sharepoint.net) w Application services Mobile-first platform Service provided to government entities where they can develop their mobile applications on top of this cross platform and utilize the security features embedded in it 4 Application services SSO as a service Provision of SSO platform to government organizations, to be used as a central unified registration portal for customers Application services Enterprise service bus Consultation on integration solutions for internal consultation and external systems of government entities Application services Middleware as a service Making all shared government services available on the enterprise service bus (ESB) to expedite integration (avoid point-to-point integration), enhance security and governance 7 Application services Enterprise service bus platform as Provision of IBM ESB platform for the entities service internal systems 00 Infrastructure services Email communication as a s Provision of email services to all authorized users of Ajman Digital Government Infrastructure services VPN access as a service Provision the ability to access IT workstations and servers remotely in a secure way 10 Infrastructure services Data center access Provision authorization for access to a managed data center for special requirements 11 Infrastructure services G2G connectivity as service Connectivity services between different departments to the ADG department network for hosted systems an 12 Infrastructure services Backup as a service Provision of backup and restoring of files, virtual servers and other data elements 13 Infrastructure services Document management systems Provision of digitalization of paper documents as a service with an integrated workflow and record management system 14 Infrastructure services Shared folder as a service Provision services to share, store and edit their business data anytime and anywhere in a secure way 15 Infrastructure services Physical server hosting as a Hosting physical server (power, network, cooling) service n the ADG data center 16 Infrastructure services Virtual server hosting as a service Hosting virtual server within a DC virtual environment 17 Infrastructure services Storage as a service Provisioning of storage capacity for the service 18 Infrastructure services Database as a service Hosts databases of other government organizations 19 Infrastructure services DR-physical server hosting as a Provisioning of disaster recovery solutions for service physical servers in DR 20 Infrastructure services DR-virtual server hosting as a Provisioning of disaster recovery solutions for service virtual servers in DR 21 Infrastructure services Emirates ID as s service Provisioning of Emirates ID services 22 Infrastructure services Information security consultation Provisioning of security solutions and recommendations 23 Infrastructure services Security awareness and training Provisioning of security awareness training to its as a service own employees or departments on security awareness Source: Ajman Digital Government services (unpublished internal report) Organizational commitments The task is not easy, as e-government services are Ajman integrated and distributed among different authorities and information technology systems, there are external factors that might impact e-government, and the probability of resistance is very large. It is not only a vision of VOL. 8 NO. 2 2018 EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES |PAGE 7PAGE 8 information technology but is a more intensive organizational transformation (Nograsek, 2011). One of the most important preconditions for successful government transformation is good leadership (Nograsek, 2011). Sheikh Ammar has appointed Ohood Ali Abdullah Al Shuhail as Director-General of ABS. Ohood's new leadership style will carry the ADG initiative toward the success (Emirates News Agency, 2017a, 2017b). Ohood has solid and extensive experience in the government sector, she holds an MBA degree and has a lot of experience of dealing with e-government processes and information management skills. She said, \"The skills to drive changes in egovernment are very complex; there is a need of a new visionary to navigate the unknown issues ahead". The egovernment project requires strong leadership to provide a clear vision and innovative implementation, where the transformation cannot be achieved alone without strong leadership with very strong political skills (Nograsek, 2011). The director of e-project management reported that: \"Achieving the Ajman Government Digital Transformation Plan requires collective action by all government agencies, such that the government apparatus becomes a single, interconnected entity that transcends all regulatory and traditional constraints and the new team will be formed by a higher committee for ADG". To enrich the happiness concept among the employees, citizens and stakeholders, it has been decided to create a new organizational structure with fundamental changes, adding a new entity called customer relationship and happiness, which can look after citizens and stakeholders, and its role is to create an environment where people can flourish, choose to be happy and reach their potential. Stakeholder involvement The new management of the ADG understands the need of stakeholder involvement and how important it is for the success of implementation. The success of the new e-government is contingent on meeting the expectations of the stakeholder (Mishra and Mishra, 2013). The new management of the ADG understands that the gap between a new digital government and its successful adoption can be enormous and effectively managing and overcoming resistance to change as a critical factor for the successful outcome of any stakeholder engagement. Therefore, ADG adopted the six change approaches theory (Kotter, 2017) to decrease, prevent or minimize resistance to change in organization. In addition to the six change approaches model, ADG. formed a network database of the stakeholders representing all segments of the society, including all government sectors and citizens. The Ajman e-government stakeholder network will help to understand their quantitative and qualitative needs and expectations to learn about current and future services. \"We create digital government experiences that engage citizens and stakeholders and make public services more efficient and effective," said CEO. ADG stakeholders network will be used extensively in strategic management, business planning process, resolving the ethical concerns and as a communication tool. The new database will be used to identify the most active users among the citizens and government authorities to involve them later in testing the e-government system. There are still great challenges. e-government also faces some risks, which basically emerge from, the inclination of people to stick to old and traditional customs because of their fear of changes. Digital best practices forums Successful e-government implementation requires the adoption of key best practices and learning from previous experiences (Sharma, 2007). Part of the research and development indicators of ADG clearly focused on continuous learning, best practices and creativity in their transformation plan. ADG participated in best-practice e-government fora in Amsterdam and Estonia. At such fora valuable practices successfully implemented in egovernment are presented. Here, leaders can share their own specific experiences and demonstrate successful technology and processes. \"The next phase will witness systematic and periodic efforts to share and disseminate digital transformation best EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES VOL 8 NO 2 201B practices in ADG by forming and attending and establishing the best practice forums", the director of e-project management said. ADG has arranged for a new forum to take place in Ajman. The main objectives of this forum are reviewing and disseminating the best solution for the digital transformation, learning from success stories will enable egovernmental bodies to identify the required budget and technology expertise to develop and archive the objectives of e-government (Auffret, 2010). Information technology structure Cloud-computing technology is flexible, subject to change and promulgated under a payper use model for delivered services. It significantly improves governmental functions and is expected to become a top strategic technology in the next few years (Mohammed et al., 2017). ADG has decided to adopt cloud technology, considering the growing number of employees working remotely via different devices, 24/7 access, which is very crucial, security and data backups, the method of soft savings to store data, the cost savings of having new hardware infrastructure, data recovery in case of any hardware failure, scalability to the need of having extra data storage in the future and integration with government applications. This new direction of ABS management will allow greater use to be made of its resources, managing its technical resources more efficiently and reducing cost. The director of eproject management supported this conclusion, saying:\"The cloud will also facilitate efforts to comply with technical standards. It will ensure users' access to all applications and technical services more easily and from anywhere and at any time, which will contribute to increasing staff productivity and reducing the cost of building and maintaining centers\". Performance management The executive management of ADG decided to develop a comprehensive system to document the performance of the digital transformation of government services and will prepare appropriate guidance to support government agencies to measure the performance of their services in a scientific and thoughtful manner, including a tool to calculate the costs of service. The system will also strategically analyze the performance of these sen/ices and will support the decision-making process on the priorities for digital transformation. The new system will also benefit government agencies in coordinating information flows among them, to avoid conflicts between different entities over relational data and to facilitate the digital transformation of independent or shared services based on integrated databases. Innovative integrated services laboratories In support of stakeholder management, ADG established new, innovative integrated services labs to identify challenges to integrated services, understanding endtoend customer experience and coordinating creative work among all stakeholders to come up with innovative and new enhanced solutions to overcome challenges and provide exceptional customer experience using the best technology. The collective work of various government agencies on the development of egovernment services will enhance the customer experience, regardless of the government service agency, as these service laboratories are the most important axes of the Ajman government's digital transformation plan. It requires new thought processes for staff working on improving services beyond traditional regulatory boundaries and placing the client's interest above all considerations. Stakeholder management requires a system and coordination among the government agencies concerned to eliminate double work performed by government agencies or the client. The new lab will be used also to conduct egovernment testing, with the attendance of all stakeholders and citizens. Acceleration plan: A phased approach in 100-day plans Time is progressing rapidly, and it has been a huge challenge for CEO to create for a new position and to energize ABS. to achieve critical milestones and hold stakeholders accountable. The 100-day plan was designed to generate quick wins, unravelling politics VOL. 8 NO. 2 2018 EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES PAGE 9 Keywords: Project management, Technology transfer, IT strategy, Customer relationship management, Business process improvement with all stakeholders, prioritizing services and creating the right environmental climate. A phased approach is a crucial element of a successful project implementation (Norton et al., 2013). The executive team of the ADG had established a 100day plan, as part of a series of seven plans consisting of 100 days each. Each 100day plan is dedicated to digitizing and delivering 30 services. \"The prime objective of the phasing approach plan is to go 100 per cent digital, consistent with Ajman Vision 2021", said CEO. The phasing approach allows for lessons learned in the early phases and ensures that solid information on the ADG project is addressed and available. Future strategies The world is witnessing an unprecedented growth of technology. What are the competitive insights that can fuel the development of ADC, considering this period of perpetual change? \"Ajman Digital Government needs a wider strategy which is not the only technology focus", said CEO. In the current growing technology environment, strategies must focus more widely on the techno-human condition (Allenby and Sarewitz, 2011). ADG must dive deeply and understand what it means to be human in our very complex digital environment. The game were is that we have moved beyond external technological intervention. There is a need to understand the human in the era of very complex technological change (Allenby and Sarewitz, 2011). How to improve government-tocitizen communication \"The strategy should focus on how to improve governmenttocitizen communication, developing strategic communication as a key role in providing information to the citizen about this large initiative\" said CEO. Communication will help to transmit ideas and information. Engaging effectively with stakeholders will help achieve overall organizational objectives. The UAE has some of the most technologically advanced infrastructure in the region and the highest rate of online usage. Each person in the UAE owns on average three devices connected to the internet (Gulf News, 2017). The new e-government should cater to the explosion of technology in the UAE: 91 per cent of the population in the UAE own a smartphone, and 89 per cent of residents have access to the internet on a daily basis. The use of mobile and digital services used online are expected to exceed 80 and 84 per cent (Dubai Studio City, 2016). The population has doubled between 2016 and 2017: this will require an expansion of egovernment. The CEO and general director mentioned that: \"The new digital version of government reflects the ADG's strategy towards transforming into a smart city, noting that digital production is an effective method to communicate with a larger segment of populations in Ajman and beyond". The new e-government platform will open the door to having a better understanding of the processes and workflows of other government entities to enhance and adopt a more holistic, humanoriented, conceptual management perspective. The administrative work to reform the attitude of public servants should move from a rational way of thinking toward a balanced way. If equal, impersonal and unemotional service is provided to all citizens, then this change of the behavior of public servants in government appears to be a real challenge. Nevertheless, greater challenges open more opportunities. Utilizing social media to communicate and training citizens is necessary. This would be benefit all citizens and educate them, increasing the number of citizens able to use e-government. Ajman's growth and population density are great enough to be considered in the service strategy of ADG. How effectively can ADG support the development of the country with a doubling of the population? The key role of ADG infrastructure is to build the confidence level of citizens to interact with government entities in a trust network. ADG CEO and general director said:\"CEOs and leaders face many challenges, and it is their job to provide solutions, we can only be learned and earned through hard work and diligence. ADG sees challenges to embrace and obstacles to overcome". There are still great challenges, but many opportunities are also appearing. PAGE 10 EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES VOL. 8 NO. 2 2018 References Auffret, J.P. (2010), "Rural and municipal e-government initiatives in developing countries: best practices and a framework for success", Journal of E-Governance, Vol. 33 No. 3, pp. 139-143, doi: 10.3233/GOV-2010-0222. Allenby, B.R. and Sarewitz, D.R. (2011), The Techno-Human Condition, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA. Avny, A. (2007), "SWOT analysis of e-government", Universitatii Bucuresti Analele. Seria Stinte Economice Si Administrative, Vol. 1, pp. 43-54, available at: http://adezproxy.adu.ac.ae/docview/167 2865416?accountid=26149 DeLone, W.H. and Mclean, E.R. 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(2013), "Applications of stakeholder theory in information systems and technology", Engineering Economics, Vol. 24 No. 3, pp. 254-266, doi: 10.5755/j01.ee.24.3.4618. Mohammed, F.F., Ibrahim, O., Nilashi, M. and Alzurqa, E. (2017), "Cloud computing adoption model or e-government implementation", Information Development, Vol. 33 No. 3, pp. 303-323. Nograsek, J. (2011), "Change management as a critical success factor in e-government mplementation", Business Systems Research, Vol. 2 No. 2, pp. 13-24. Norton, A.L., Coulson-Thomas, Y.M., Coulson-Thomas, C.J. and Ashurst, C. (2013), "Ensuring benefits realisation from ERP II: the CSF phasing model", Journal of Enterprise Information Management, Vol. 26 No. 3, pp. 218-234, doi: 10. 1108/17410391311325207. Puri, S.K. (2006), "Technological frames of stakeholders shaping the SDI implementation: a case study from India", Information Technology for Development, Vol. 12 No. 4, pp. 311-331, doi: 10. 1002/itdj.20050. Qin, W., Guangping, Z. and Xuyan, T. (2017), "Information technology project portfolio implementation process optimization based on complex network theory and entropy", Entropy, Vol. 19 No. 6, pp. 1-23, doi: 10.3390/e 19060287. Sharjah 24 (2016), "Rashid Al Nuaimi signs Ajman digital transforming plan", available at: www.sharjah 24.ae/en/uae/162500-rashid-al-nuaimi-signs-ajman-digital-transforming-plan (accessed 25 July 2017) . Sharma, S. (2007), "Exploring best practices in public-private partnership (PPP) in e-Government through select Asian case studies", International Information and Library Review, Vol. 39 Nos 3/4, op. 203-210, doi: 10.1016/j.iilr.2007.07.003. VOL. 8 NO. 2 2018 EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES PAGE 11Standish Group (2014), "The Standish group report", Projectsmart, available at: www.projectsmart.co. uk/white-papers/chaos-report.pdf (accessed 13 July 2017). UAE Population (2017), "Population of Ajman 2017", available at: http://uaepopulation2017.com/ population-of-ajman-2017.html (accessed 26 July 2017). UAE VISION (2017), "UAE Vision", 2021 Vision, available at: www.vision2021.ae/en/our-vision (accessed 17 July 2017). Venkatesh, V., Thong, J.Y.L. and Xu, X. (2016), "Unified theory of acceptance and use of technology: a synthesis and the road ahead", Journal of the Association for Information Systems, Vol. 17 No. 5, op. 328-376, available at: http://adezproxy.adu.ac.ae/docview/1794948207?accountid=26149 Volcker, P.A. (2014), "Vision without execution is hallucination", Public Administration Review, Vol. 74 No. 4, pp. 439-441, doi: 10.1111/puar. 12239. Weerakkody, V. and Choudrie, J. (2005), "Exploring e-government in the UK: challenges, issues and complexities", Journal of Information Science and Technology, Vol. 2 No. 2, pp. 25-45 Further reading Dutta, N. and Bhat, A.K. (2014), "Flipkart: Journey of an Indian e-commerce start-up", Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies, Vol. 4 No. 7, pp. 1-14, available at: https://doi.org/10.1 108/EEMCS- 03-2014-0064 Emirates Business (2017), "The Gulf Time", available at: http://emirates-business.ae/ajman-e-govt- discusses-digital-transformation-plan/ (accessed 25 July 2017). Jeffrey, C. (1999), "The rise of the network society", International Journal of Urban & Regional Research, Vol. 23 No. 2, pp. 397-399. Kenenissa, D. and Cho, Y.C. (2017), "Evaluating e-government implementation in public service delivery", Journal of Marketing Thought, Vol. 4 No. 1, pp. 1-10, doi: 10. 15577/jmt.2017.04.01.1 Kotamraju, N.P. and van der Geest, T.M. (2012), "The tension between user-centred design and e-government services", Behaviour and Information Technology, Vol. 31 No. 3, pp. 261-273, doi: 10. 1080/0144929X.2011.563797 Paroski, M., Konjovic, Z., Surla, D. and Popovic, V. (2015), "Development of egovernment services in the autonomous Province of Vojvodina", Information Technology for Development, Vol. 21 No. 3, pp. 492-510, doi: 10. 1080/02681102.2014. 1003522 Sanford, C. and Bhattacherjee, A. (2008), "IT implementation in a developing country municipality: a sociocognitive analysis", International Journal of Technology and Human Interaction, Vol. 4 No. 3, pp. 68-93, available at: http://adezproxy.adu.ac.ae/docview/223235277?accountid=26149 World Economic Forum (2016), "The global information technology report 2016", World Economic Forum, 6 July, available at: www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Global_IT_Report_2015.pdf (accessed 16 July 2017). About the authors Mohamad Abu Ghazaleh is a Doctoral of Business Administration (DBA) candidate at College of Business, Abu Dhabi University, United Arab Emirates. He holds an MBA Degree from the same university. In addition, he has held a Project Management Professional (PMP) certificate, Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) and Oracle Certified Professional (OCP). He is currently working in Abu Dhabi Ports as Information Technology Manager. Over 18 years progressive solid experience in IT Industry, responsible for a full range of activities which ensure the operational effectiveness and excellence of the organization, creating and successfully delivering IT Programs. He has a professional work experience with multi-billion dollar companies in public and government sectors in multiple industries such as free zone, ports, industrial zone, real estate development, Automotive, management consultancy, Manufacturing and retail sector. His research interests also lie in the areas of research information and decision systems, big data mining, business Intelligence, IS/IT Management, Digital Business. He can be contacted at: Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). PAGE 12 EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES VOL. 8 NO. 2 2018Syed Zamberi Ahmad holds a PhD from the Hull University Business School (HUBS), the UK. His research interests include firm evolution and growth strategies including alliance, market entry and internationalization strategies of SMEs and multinational firms. His research interests also lie in the areas of entrepreneurial management, entrepreneurship education and small- and medium-sized business strategies. He is currently a Professor of International Business and Entrepreneurship Management at College of Business, Abu Dhabi University, United Arab Emirates. Before entering academia, he had several years' industrial experience in the international banking department of several reputable banks in Malaysia. Dr. Ahmad has served in several universities in Malaysia, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia. He can be contacted at: Management Department, College of Business, Abu Dhabi University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Syed Zamberi Ahmad is the corresponding author and can be contacted at: drszamberi@yahoo.com VOL. 8 NO. 2 2018 EMERALD EMERGING MARKETS CASE STUDIES PAGE 13