Paper Title
Co-creation of Public Service Innovation Using Open Data and Social Media – Rhetoric, Reality or Something in Between?

Abstract
Public service organizations are expected to provide impactful services with effective means. It requires continuous innovation with citizens in service design, development and delivery. Advances in digital technology might enable to bridge the gap between service providers and service users. However, as many scholars have suggested, co-creation initiatives – with or without digital technology – may have negative side-effects. High expectations are associated with open data and social media. Both have taken on different forms and priorities in different countries and contexts, with promises that they will increase transparency, participation and collaboration. This paper presents the analysis of the usage of open data and social media in the co-creation of public service innovation. The empirical data consists of 61 examples form ten European countries. Based on a SWOT analysis, the paper concludes that using open data and social media in co-creation of public service innovation is a promising approach but not yet fully implemented. It seems clear that the advances in digital technology may provide a bridge for bringing service providers and service users together. The benefits are clear. First, the more accurate and real-time data available, the more effective the service provision will be. Second, the more citizen participation, the more tailored services can be co-created. Third, the more transparent governance becomes, the more legitimate and accountable it becomes. Fourth, governmental legitimacy increases societal trust which supports knowledge sharing and spurs innovation. However, co-creation of public service innovations – with or without digital technology – can be more complex, more unpredictable, and more political than what the rhetoric indicates. To tackle negative side-effects, the paper suggests that it is important to strengthen public agencies’ strategic, operational, and technological capabilities. Keywords - Co-Creation, Public Service, Service Innovation, Digital Governance