Reassessing Stakeholder Engagement in the Knesset Website

About the Knesset | Written on September, 2023

Introduction

As governmental bodies grapple with the digital age, the role of their online platforms has come under increasing scrutiny. The Knesset, Israel's Parliament, is no exception. While it's clear that the website technically belongs to the Parliament, who it is designed to serve is a more complex question. With new projects in the pipeline aimed at digital transformation, the Knesset is confronted with the challenging task of balancing diverse stakeholder needs.

The Dichotomy of Users

In-House Stakeholders

Beginning with the internal users—Members of Parliament, the administrative body, and other parliamentary employees—each group has its own specific needs. Members seek real-time access to information and a platform to connect with the public. The administration holds the purse strings and decision-making power, making them a key stakeholder. Meanwhile, the website acts as a pivotal work tool for all other employees, including those in the research, secretarial, and legal departments.

Public Stakeholders

The external users, primarily the public, are a heterogeneous group. They range from heavy users, such as journalists and activists, who rely on the website for their work, to occasional users who might chance upon the site to look up a particular law or policy.

The Case of the 'Smart Agenda'

The Challenge

One of the new projects focuses on revamping the plenum's agenda, transitioning from a manually prepared 'dumb agenda' to a more sophisticated 'Smart Agenda'. While this move promises a host of benefits like real-time updates and increased accessibility, it also raises questions about whose needs the website should primarily serve.

Balancing Act

For instance, the Secretariat wanted a 'track changes' feature on the Smart Agenda to keep a meticulous record of modifications. While understandable from an internal operational perspective, this could create a confusing or cluttered experience for the general public. Hence, the challenge lies in accommodating this internal need without compromising the user experience for the public.

Striking a Compromise

Ultimately, the decision was made to only display the final version of the agenda to the public, with cancelled items being an exception. This compromise underscores the importance of an iterative design process where stakeholder needs are continually reassessed and balanced against each other.

Conclusion

The dilemma faced by the Knesset’s digital team encapsulates the broader challenges that governmental institutions face in the digital era. It's not just about implementing new technologies but also about deciding who gets a seat at the table when those technologies are being designed and deployed. As the case of the Knesset illustrates, achieving this balance is not simply a technical challenge but a governance issue, requiring nuanced negotiation between different stakeholder groups.

The views expressed in this article are derived from the analysis of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the represented institutions, nor should they be considered and should not be construed as an endorsement or recommendation of any kind. The information presented in this article is derived from multiple sources. We encourage readers to access official sources from the institution in question.