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Designing City Service Ecosystems: The Case of the City of Espoo in the Capital Region of Finland

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Distributed, Ambient and Pervasive Interactions. Smart Environments, Ecosystems, and Cities (HCII 2022)

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Abstract

This article discusses the evolution, scope, and impact of ecosystem thinking in public service management in the city of Espoo, Finland. Discussion starts with a brief introduction to the emergence of ecosystem thinking and the ideas on which the conceptualization of ecosystems in the given local context have been anchored. The second task is to describe, on the basis of the document analysis and two key informant interviews, how the city of Espoo started to build the conceptual tools, models, and strategies associated with ecosystem thinking. We will assess the added value of such an approach in four areas of public management, which deal with service innovation, competence issues, customer relationships, and citizen engagement. Lastly, this article will elaborate briefly three contextual ecosystem-related issues. First, to what extent the ecosystem thinking depends on the critical mass of producers, developers, and other stakeholders in terms of scalability, urbanization economies, and opportunity enhancement? Second, what is the role of digitalization in the development of ecosystem thinking? Third, how is the application of ecosystem thinking in public service management conditioned by its inherent institutional context, such as the democratic and bureaucratic aspects of local self-government? This article highlights the preconditions and forms of the real-life ecosystem thinking in the context of a progressive local government in the Nordic welfare society, and further assesses the promise of ecosystem thinking as a paradigmatic approach to public service management adjusted to the conditions of the global digital age.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tampere University, 33100, Tampere, Finland

    Ari-Veikko Anttiroiko & Kaisu Sahamies

Authors
  1. Ari-Veikko Anttiroiko
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  2. Kaisu Sahamies
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ari-Veikko Anttiroiko .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Smart Future Initiative, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

    Norbert A. Streitz

  2. Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan

    Shin'ichi Konomi

Appendices

Appendix 1. List of Analyzed Documents of the City of Espoo

D1. Ekosysteemien innovaatiojohtamisen viitekehys. [The Framework of the Innovation Management of Ecosystems]. The city of Espoo. Retrieved September 29, 2021, from https://issuu.com/espoonkaupunki/docs/tuotos_editointi_oskivi_ekosysteemi_4cb399f6775265

D2. Kyvykkyyksien johtamisen käsikirja. [The Handbook of Talent Management]. The city of Espoo. Retrieved September 29, 2021, from https://static.espoo.fi/cdn/ff/nrB37l--KNoSWgjoM4wZXOJCcDrJ7wS2ivHwSD2jXGE/1629461058/public/2021-08/k%C3%A4sikirja_Kyvykkyyksien_johtamisen%20_k%C3%A4sikirja_ei%20saavutettava.pdf

D3. Asiakkuusperustaisen tietojohtamisen viitekehys. [The Framework for Customer-based Knowledge Management]. The city of Espoo. Retrieved September 29, 2021, from https://static.espoo.fi/cdn/ff/LXvbTblesC6kU3S0HebLkbMgrPam6kU8vfe8H5wsFqE/1629273361/public/2021-08/viitekehys_Asiakkuusperustaisen_tietojohtamisen_viitekehys_ei%20saavutettava.pdf

D4. Asiakkuustiedon tuottamisen ja hyödyntämisen käsikirja. [The Handbook of the Production and Utilization of Customer Knowledge]. The city of Espoo. Retrieved September 29, 2021, from https://static.espoo.fi/cdn/ff/Xj2nMquFKTANMZfRKBHFWXuoUBw9Mun5upUPS7LJtvY/1629460848/public/2021-08/k%C3%A4sikirja_Asiakkuustiedon_tuottamisen_ja_hy%C3%B6dynt%C3%A4misen_k%C3%A4sikirja_ei%20saavutettava.pdf

D5. Monikanavaisen asiointipalvelun johtaminen. [The Management of Multi-channel Customer Service]. The city of Espoo. Retrieved September 29, 2021, from https://static.espoo.fi/cdn/ff/ON62lK56AyXV63W3EtOY6Pfcm4EGVSVCPwhhV2PwvmI/1629273094/public/2021-08/esite_Monikanavaisen_asiointipalvelun_johtaminen_ei%20saavutettava.pdf

D6. Monikanavaisen asiointipalvelun käsikirja. [The Handbook of Multi-channel Customer Service]. The city of Espoo. Retrieved September 29, 2021, from https://static.espoo.fi/cdn/ff/sjf5UPXVJoS5YBDe6vUXlfaS1TglkDkXeCVYfcpA5iQ/1629461116/public/2021-08/k%C3%A4sikirja_Monikanavaisen_asiointipalvelun_k%C3%A4sikirja_ei%20saavutettava.pdf

D7. Yhteiskehittämisen käsikirja. [The Handbook of Co-creation]. The city of Espoo. Retrieved September 29, 2021, from https://issuu.com/espoonkaupunki/docs/yhteiskehittaminen-a4-web-issuu

D8. Avoimen osallisuuden käsikirja. [The Handbook of Open Participation]. The city of Espoo. Retrieved September 29, 2021, from https://static.espoo.fi/cdn/ff/ZPo-kcoOy5DxUJI7tlV6u4a-d1ox1wsjH8IgJ-_OYjQ/1629460958/public/2021-08/k%C3%A4sikirja_Avoimen_osallisuuden_k%C3%A4sikirja_ei%20saavutettava.pdf

Appendix 2. List of Expert Interviews

Sutinen, Päivi, Director for City as a Service Development, City of Espoo, interviewed by Ari-Veikko Anttiroiko and Kaisu Sahamies on December 10, 2021.

Sjöholm, Katja, Senior Innovation Ecosystem Manager and Head of Co-creation and Innovation, City of Espoo, interviewed by Ari-Veikko Anttiroiko on February 7, 2022.

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Anttiroiko, AV., Sahamies, K. (2022). Designing City Service Ecosystems: The Case of the City of Espoo in the Capital Region of Finland. In: Streitz, N.A., Konomi, S. (eds) Distributed, Ambient and Pervasive Interactions. Smart Environments, Ecosystems, and Cities. HCII 2022. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 13325. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-05463-1_10

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