Original
Agile Digital Transformation and the Rule of Law: Perks and Perils in a Belgian and a Dutch Public Sector Organization
Abstract
ABSTRACT This paper examines the interplay between agile digital transformation and the rule of law within the public sector, focusing on case studies from a semi‐large municipal government in the Netherlands and a department of the Flemish regional government in Belgium. Drawing on expert interviews, the paper explores how agile methods, championed for flexibility, interact with existing administrative routines and affect rule of law principles that prioritize consistency. Theoretically, the paper builds on public administration scholarship concerning administrative routines and the rule of law. Empirically, the paper shows that agile methods align well with administrative routines that prioritize decentralized leadership and collaboration. Moreover, it shows that agile approaches can foster, rather than threaten, the rule of law: many legal uncertainties arise not from agile practices themselves but from existing complexities in laws and policies, highlighting a need for stronger technical precision in lawmaking and administrative awareness in digital implementation.
中文
敏捷数字化转型与法治：比利时和荷兰公共部门组织中的益处与风险
摘要
本文考察公共部门中敏捷数字化转型与法治之间的相互作用，聚焦荷兰一个中等规模市政府和比利时弗拉芒地区政府某部门的案例研究。基于专家访谈，本文探讨以灵活性为号召的敏捷方法如何与既有行政常规互动，并影响以一致性为优先的法治原则。在理论上，本文依托公共行政学中关于行政常规与法治的学术研究。在经验上，本文表明，敏捷方法与优先强调分散化领导与协作的行政常规高度契合。此外，本文表明，敏捷方法能够促进而非威胁法治：许多法律不确定性并非源于敏捷实践本身，而是源于法律和政策中既有的复杂性，这凸显出在立法中增强技术精确性以及在数字实施中提升行政意识的必要性。
关键词
敏捷数字化转型、法治、公共部门、行政常规、比利时、荷兰、专家访谈、数字实施