ABSTRACT
Surveys performed among the residents of Zabrze indicate that in 2021 the majority of respondents (67%), wishing to use public services provided by the local government, still preferred to visit the office in person. Residents noticed negative aspects of direct service, such as queues of people waiting for the case to be completed (26%), excessive bureaucracy (24%) or lack of parking spaces (18%). However, they counted on help in completing the necessary formalities by officials who should be: professional (20%), communicative (18%) and kind (17%). The use of the digital platform (ePUAP) dedicated to customer service was reported by 32% of respondents. At the same time, as much as 40% of the respondents, in order to save time and to simplify procedures, declared their will to use innovative methods of remote contact with public administration (e.g. via social media). The COVID-19 pandemic showed that it was possible to increase (even by 250%) the number of cases handled remotely, which with over 90% of households in Poland with access to a computer network creates opportunities for integrated development as part of the Smart City idea. The aim of the paper was to identify the residents' expectations related to the provision of public services by local administration. Precise determination of the ways of perception of both direct and remote customer service has not only an application value. It also allows for further research study on the management of local government, including the organization of management control, as well as social communication of local governments.
ABSTRACT
The Covid-19 pandemic has radically affected social and organizational behavior. The aim of the article is to indicate the number and scope of public services provided electronically during the Covid-19 pandemic. Research in this area has not been conducted so far. The authors give answer to the research question on how the limitations of social mobility during the pandemic contributed to the use of public services provided electronically. The research was carried out using the methods of a classic telephone interview and a questionnaire directed to a deliberately selected research sample. As a result of the study it was found that these limitations generated a radical increase in the number of e-services delivered by local government administration and the need to verify the methods of information management and communication with the society used so far. The trend may turn out to be much more persistent than the sanitary restrictions that triggered it. Local government units that were the subject to the study recorded an increase in the number of public services provided with use of the Electronic Platform of Public Administration Services (ePUAP) by 170.8% in 2020 compared to the number before the pandemic in 2019. © 2021, Czestochowa University of Technology. All rights reserved.