A survey from Hertie School Professor Gerhard Hammerschmid reveals it’s not only the public who are unhappy with Germany’s public administration.
As leaders of Germany’s two big-tent parties attempt to hammer out a coalition deal, many Germans wonder if the new government will address their frustrations. The collapse of Olaf Scholz’s “traffic light” coalition represented a breakdown in trust in German politics, with high levels of dissatisfaction with Germany’s public administration.
But to what extent are these concerns mirrored in the people who work within the system itself? A new study by Gerhard Hammerschmid, Professor of Public and Financial Management at the Centre of Digital Governance, suggests that they are. In collaboration with the organisation Wegweiser, Hammerschmid conducted a survey that gathered insights from 463 public officials and 137 representatives from civil society and the private sector and across all levels of government between 5 and 23 February. The findings point to general dissatisfaction with Germany’s sluggish progress on digitalisation, among other areas.
Hammerschmid presented the results of his study at the latest Zukunftspanel Spezial, a panel discussion organised by Wegweiser, which took place at the Hertie School.
Only a modern state can meet modern demands
Hammerschmid’s study reveals a mixed but urgent picture of Germany’s public administration: while awareness of the need for digital transformation has never been higher, satisfaction with actual progress remains low. Only eight per cent of public officials are satisfied with progress in key areas like digital infrastructure, inter-agency collaboration, and talent acquisition.
Notably, the study compared responses from public sector insiders with external experts, uncovering aligned concerns but diverging confidence in implementation. Across both groups, expectations for the next federal government are high: respondents saw modernising administration as a foundational step toward regaining public trust and strengthening institutional performance.
One of the more startling results of the survey was that sixty per cent of public officials believe that the German state is overwhelmed. Many German voters voiced their concerns over the stuttering nature of public administration during the election period, and the study shows that these concerns are also shared by those working in government. Public officials also listed the need to make Germany more economically competitive, promote digitalisation and reduce bureaucracy as three crucial demands for the incoming government.
Among the technologies listed by participants as crucial to modernising the state were artificial intelligence, cloud computing and chatbots. A functioning digital infrastructure, sufficient cyber security, and cross-compatibility of software were all identified as essential to create a suitable infrastructure for the changes.
From findings to action
These findings formed the foundation for a lively panel discussion at the Hertie School, where Professor Hammerschmid was joined by Member of the Bundestag Ralph Brinkhaus and President of the Federal Commission Katja Wilken. The speakers emphasised that while momentum for reform is building, it must now be matched by political will and operational capability. They were then joined by Martin Schallbruch (CEO, govdigital eG), Jan-Lars Bey (Senior Partner, Cassini Consulting AG) and Matthias Oberndörfer (Bereichsvorstand Öffentlicher Sektor, KPMG) to analyse the results.
