AUTOMATION AS MIGRATION? – IDENTIFYING FACTORS INFLUENCING ADOPTION OF RPA IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Abstract

This paper is part of a research project that investigates and provides guidance regarding the adoption and implications of automation in the Swedish local government. Automation technologies, such as Robotic Process Automation (RPA), are well established in the private and the public sector. In this paper, we discuss whether the adoption of RPA can be seen as migration towards automation. The aim is to evaluate the Push-Pull-Mooring (PPM) framework to understand better what factors influence local government adoption. By analysing RPA suppliers, RPA developers, and local government representatives' perspectives, we have identified push, pull, and mooring factors potentially influencing the decision to adopt, i.e., accepting or rejecting RPA. We, therefore, argue that the PPM framework seems to be a fruitful way of researching factors influencing the adoption of automation and the concept of automation as migration further.