Digital Transformation and Its Effects on Citizen Engagement: A Case Study of DGASPC 5 and Sector 5 Residents

The General Directorate of Social Assistance and Child Protection Sector 5 (DGASPC 5) in Romania, like many public institutions around the world, is going through a digitization process to increase its operational efficiency and improve its relationship with its employees. The digitalization process in DGASPC Sector 5 started with the introduction of basic digital tools such as e-mail communication and electronic document management. The aim of these tools was to reduce dependency on paper-based systems and improve record keeping. In this context, digitization refers to the adoption of digital technologies to streamline processes, improve communication and provide better access to information. The main aim of the research is to determine the impact that digitization has on the relationship between the public institution and the citizens. Thus, the authors will focus in particular on their relationship with DGASPC Sector 5. Therefore, the authors’ aim is to investigate how digitization and communication technology are used in the interaction between public institutions and citizens, in order to finally determine the degree of citizen satisfaction with digitization and which aspects should be improved. Furthermore, due to the fact that nowadays information is at everyone’s fingertips via mobile phone or computer, citizens of sector 5 have access to online information provided by DGASPC Sector 5.