A PERMANENT STUDY GROUP OF ENPA
Public Administration.
Technology.
Innovation.
Exploring how public institutions shape technological and societal change.
01 / ABOUT
Understanding change.
Shaping public governance.
The Permanent Study Group on Public Administration, Technology and Innovation (PATI) at the European Network of Public Administration (ENPA) examines how governments and public institutions navigate, shape, and are transformed by technological and societal change.
We bring together scholars to discuss how public governance can foster and regulate innovation responsibly while ensuring that technological change serves broad societal goals within and beyond the public sector.
- How can administrations steer complex socio-technical transitions amid uncertainty and contestation?
- What kinds of institutional arrangements and decision-making processes enable experimentation without losing democratic oversight?
- How can public organizations reconcile competing demands – efficiency and inclusion, openness and security, innovation and stability – that emerge with socio-technical transitions?
- What policy and organizational strategies should public institutions adopt to advance strategic technological autonomy?
- What organizational and managerial capacities and capabilities do public administrations need to strike a balance between agility and stability?
The study group provides a forum for exploring these dilemmas through diverse theoretical and empirical lenses: politics of technology; public sector capacities and capabilities; innovation capabilities; policy design; public sector reform; co-creation and experimentation; foresight and learning systems; maintenance of old technological systems; ethics of emerging technologies.
02 / CHAIRS
Meet the chairs.
01
Rainer Kattel
University College London
Rainer Kattel is Professor of Innovation and Public Governance and Co-Deputy Director of the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose. His research focuses on public sector innovation and the capabilities governments need to lead digital and sustainable transformations. He studies how public organisations develop the expertise, institutions and ways of working needed to create public value and respond to societal challenges.
02
Alessia Caputo
Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies
Alessia Caputo is a researcher at the Management and Health Laboratory (MeS Lab) at the Institute of Management of the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna in Pisa. Her research focuses on public sector innovation, organizational capabilities, and performance management. She studies the governance mechanisms and capabilities that enable public administrations, particularly healthcare systems, to drive organizational change and build resilience while sustaining high levels of performance.
03
Peeter Vihma
Tallinn University of Technology
Peeter Vihma is a researcher at the Ragnar Nurkse Department of Innovation and Governance at Tallinn University of Technology. His research focuses on the governance of major societal transformations, particularly the green and digital transitions. Combining public administration, innovation and transition studies, he examines organisational learning, collaboration, legitimacy and the use of data in governance. He holds a PhD in sociology from the University of Helsinki.
03 / SEMINAR SERIES
Ideas in conversation.
The PATI seminar series is a cosy, informal online space for scholars interested in public administration, technology and innovation. Every other month, we invite a notable scholar to give a 15–20 minute talk, followed by an emerging scholar presenting related work and a short discussion. Each session lasts about one hour.
The series brings together past PATI and ENPA conference participants and new colleagues to exchange ideas and stay connected with the study group. Discussions also help shape themes for future PATI conference sessions.
Upcoming seminars
| When | Speaker | Seminar details | Registration |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15:00 CET | Zora Kovacic | explore more | register |
| Winter 2027Date and time to be announced | Petter Gullmark | tba | tba |
04 / PATI@ENPA
PATI@ENPA
PATI sessions at the European Network for Public Administration (ENPA) inaugural conference in Bucharest, Romania, from 22–25 April 2026.
PATI Session 1: Healthcare & social issues
| Title | Authors |
|---|---|
| Digital but Low-Competition: Bureaucratic Discretion in Italian Healthcare E-Procurement | |
| Sustainable innovation in the health care sector: exploring the socio-technical transition through the case of a public-private partnership | |
| Digital Transformation of Social Services for Older Adults in Poland: Public Administration Challenges, Innovation, and Inclusive Governance | |
| Active labour market policy, unemployment, and digitalization of the public sector |
PATI Session 2: Technology & Innovation Governance
| Title | Authors |
|---|---|
| Governing Defence Innovation at Speed: Designing Trust, Procurement, and Learning Infrastructures in Estonia’s DefenceTech Ecosystem | |
| Mapping Chatbot Adoption in the European Public Sector: Evidence from the Public Sector Tech Watch | |
| Data governance and data infrastructures in European official statistics: new regulatory needs and challenges ahead |
PATI Session 3: AI & Data
| Title | Authors |
|---|---|
| Citizens’ Acceptance of AI Judges: An Experimental Analysis of a Series of Interactions | |
| AI adoption in public institutions: Ethical Issues, innovation, Organizational Readiness, Work Outcomes from Ecuador |
PATI Session 6: Public value & democracy
| Title | Authors |
|---|---|
| Data Science and Artificial Intelligence for Policy Process Innovation: A Study of Local Government in England | |
| Do knowledge spillovers extend beyond economic returns? Evidence from university-based entrepreneurial ecosystems | |
| Linking Public Sector Innovation and Democratic Anchorage: insights from a novel large-n European dataset | |
| Governance challenges in the European renovation wave: A study of collective decision-making in Estonian multi-apartment buildings |
05 / CONTACT
Stay in the conversation.
Interested in PATI, the seminar series or contributing to the study group? Get in touch with the chairs.
peeter.vihma@taltech.ee