With more than 20 years of experience in digitalizing the public sector, René Stampe Lund has not only accumulated substantial expertise but also deep insight into the forces shaping the future of public digitalization.
René sees a sector undergoing massive transformation, driven by megatrends such as AI, regulation, demographics, and rising citizen expectations. It is a transformation that presents both major challenges and unique opportunities. In this blog, René shares his reflections on where we stand today – and how we can build a more digital, coherent, and human public sector.
My path into working with public sector digitalization
When I am asked how I ended up in the public sector, I usually say it wasn’t a conscious choice at the beginning. It was simply a place I stayed because I discovered how meaningful the work was.
I’ve always operated at the intersection of technology, business, and people. My background is in IT consulting, where I initially worked with commercial clients. That work was about optimizing processes, creating new products, and driving growth through technology. Exciting, yes – but something was missing.
What drew me to the public sector was the sense of working on something with a deeper societal impact. When you develop solutions for an authority, an agency, or a ministry, it doesn’t just affect a single company or a limited customer segment. It can impact thousands, even millions, of citizens. That gives the work a different weight. It also comes with special demands: transparency, accountability, and trust become absolutely essential.
My journey into the sector started in Denmark, but I quickly realized that many of the challenges we face are the same across the Nordic countries and, in fact, throughout Europe.
Megatrends shaping the future of the public sector
Looking ahead, there are clear megatrends that will define the public sector – and thereby also the way we, as suppliers and partners, must work.
- AI and automatisering
AI is no longer an experiment. It is a real technology making its way into the everyday work of government. We already see AI in case management, data analysis, and citizen interactions – and this is only the beginning.
The question is no longer whether we should use AI, but how we use it responsibly. How do we ensure that technology supports fairness, transparency, and equality? And how do we balance innovation with regulation?
This will be a major task for both public organizations and us as advisors.
- Regulation, security, and compliance
With NIS2, the AI Act, GDPR, and other frameworks, the public sector is in the middle of a regulatory wave. This means that everything we develop must be “secure & compliant by design” – security and legislation built into solutions from the outset. While this might seem restrictive, it can actually be a competitive advantage for countries that take it seriously. When citizens and businesses know their data is handled safely and responsibly, trust grows – and trust is ultimately the most valuable currency in the public sector. - Demographics and the labor market
We face a major challenge: more elderly citizens, fewer hands in the workforce, and growing demand for welfare. This is not a crisis lying 10 years ahead – it’s something we already feel today.
Public organizations simply won’t have the resources to solve their tasks in traditional ways. Digitalization becomes unavoidable: automation, smarter workflows, and better use of data can help ensure that services meet citizen expectations.
- Citizen expectations and user experiences
We are all citizens, but we are also consumers. We bring our private digital experiences into our interactions with the public sector. When you can order goods with one click and have them delivered the next day, it feels unreasonable to wait three weeks for an answer from a government office.
This means the public sector must deliver integrated services, better user experiences, and faster response times. The “once only” principle – where citizens only provide information once – will be a key driver
All four of these trends point in the same direction: the public sector is on the verge of a transformation where technology is no longer a supplement but a prerequisite.
The biggest challenges and opportunities
When I speak with public sector leaders, I often hear about the same challenges:
- Capacity and resources are among the biggest. This applies both to staff who must deliver core services and to IT specialists. Many public authorities struggle to attract the expertise they need, creating dependency on suppliers – and requiring us, as an industry, to take on great responsibility.
- Complexity and silos are another challenge. Many systems have been built up over decades, often through isolated projects. The result is a patchwork of solutions that don’t always communicate with each other. This frustrates both citizens and employees. Breaking down silos and creating coherence will be one of the most important tasks in the coming years.
- Regulation and trust form the third major theme. Public organizations face constant pressure to meet high demands for transparency, security, and fairness. Unlike private companies, governments must always be able to explain and defend their decisions. This makes progress slower – but also makes results more robust when success is achieved.
On the positive side, technology opens new opportunities:
AI and data analysis can help us make better-informed decisions, anticipate problems before they occur, and target initiatives more precisely. Platform solutions and cloud technology allow for sharing and reusing components across agencies and countries – something we already see in EU collaborations on digital identities and cross-border services. And automation can free up time so employees can focus on areas where human presence is indispensable – whether meeting a jobseeker, a patient, or a student.
twoday’s role in the transformation
So how does twoday contribute to all this?
For me, it’s important to stress that we are not just a supplier. We want to be a partner – someone who stands shoulder to shoulder with our clients in a complex reality.
We do this in several ways:
- Domain understanding: We invest heavily in deeply understanding the public sector. We know the rules, processes, and special requirements. This ensures that we can build solutions that work in practice – not just on paper.
- Technological expertise: We work with the latest technologies, but always with a pragmatic approach. Our goal is not to implement technology for its own sake, but to create real value for citizens and employees.
- Accelerators and platform models: We develop tools and frameworks that allow faster and cheaper solution implementation, without compromising quality and security. This helps our clients reach their goals more quickly.
- AI and automation: We integrate AI and automation into solutions so clients can reduce complexity and free up resources. This can be anything from intelligent chatbots in citizen services to advanced data analytics for decision support.
- People at the center: And perhaps most importantly – we always remember that technology only matters if it creates value for people. For both the citizen using a service and the employee seeking a better workday.
I often say that our task at twoday is to help the public sector become more digital and more coherent – while still preserving its human focus. Because in the end, it’s not about technology, but about people.
Humble and optimistic about the future
Looking five to ten years ahead, I feel both humble and optimistic. Humble, because we face enormous challenges: demographics, climate, economy, and trust. But optimistic, because I see a public sector willing to change – and a technological development that gives us tools we’ve never had before.
I believe that together – authorities, suppliers, citizens, and policymakers – we can create a public sector that is efficient, innovative, and human.
