Digitizing and streamlining operations is an ongoing work in Karlskrona municipality. The goal is a mobile way of working, where you can work regardless of location. As part of the work, the HR department in the municipality has initiated the implementation of electronic signatures. “We experienced a big problem getting signatures of the minutes after our collaboration meetings. It is very time-consuming to get 20 people to sign a protocol, as they are located in different units and different locations, “says Ewa Strömsten, HR Manager at Karlskrona Municipality.
Ewa Strömsten has been driving the introduction of digital signatures in Karlskrona municipality. She wants to streamline, structure, and achieve smooth flows in the municipality’s work processes. With help from the IT department, one of the municipality’s partners, Pulsen, was contacted.
Several stakeholders in the municipality wish to use digital signatures. “In one of our administrations we cooperate over municipal boundaries and have several different locations, meaning we had to spend 20 minutes in a car to get a signature. This does not align with our environmental goals, so this needed to change,” says Emma Hessbo, IT Project Manager at Karlskrona Municipality.
They chose Nexus GO PDF Signing as their solution, a cloud service that allows users to make secure electronic signatures PDF documents. Karlskrona already uses a login portal from Nexus, a Hybrid Access Gateway (HAG), for the schools’ learning portal and other e-services. The signing service uses Personal Mobile, a two-factor authentication mobile app, similar to Swedish Mobile BankID, to log in and sign documents. The documents are uploaded and signed in the Nexus online portal Nexus GO. The initiator of the signature creates the actual PDF document. They then invite other users who have already downloaded Personal Mobile. With the app, users both log in to the service and sign the documents. “It is incredibly smooth and the advantage is that we know when and by whom a document was signed that the signature is valid, and that the document has not been changed since then as everything is logged digitally,” says Emma Hessbo.
The signature service is set as a pilot project in Karlskrona municipality. This way, Karlskrona is involved in the development of a new cloud service from Nexus. “It has been great fun to be involved in developing the service. If we were to have any requests for a change or improvement regarding the service, we could have a direct impact. When we submitted a change to Nexus, we basically got it done the same day. There is also a great understanding within the organization if something goes wrong because it is a pilot project, “said Emma Hessbo.
At present, Karlskrona municipality work in Windows 10 and Office 2016. Office 365, including Sharepoint, is on the wish list for the future. Another goal is to get BankID as an authentication and signing solution for the municipality’s interaction with its citizens, the goal is that it will work as smoothly as the internal signing service in the municipality. “The vision is for our citizens to be able to for example submit building permits or to apply for childcare or elderly care with a simple and safe method. With the corresponding sign-in and sign-up solution via mobile BankID, we would know that we are dealing with the right person – safely,” says Emma.
Pulsen is Karlskrona Municipality’s partner since many years and runs several parallel IT projects. They chose Nexus as their technology supplier. “We cooperate well with, and we have great confidence in Pulsen. The biggest challenge for us has not been getting the technical solution in place with Pulsen, rather the challenge has been changing work habits. The fun part of the signing project is that other parts of the business are now demanding the same solution, all in order to enhance the digital experience and make it easy for users”, says Emma Hessbo.
One success factor of the signing project is that we started on a small scale with a pilot. “Having a client in the municipality’s management team is another key factor for success, Ewa also emphasizes the importance of having good support from the IT department”, Emma says.
“Normally, one would imagine that the IT department would initiate this type of project; but in this case. The project has been driven by the HR department, with the head in the lead. The IT department at Karlskrona Municipality has been responsive and willing to prioritize the project, which has led to a successful implementation, “says Max Rosencrantz, Key account manager at Pulsen.
Published
22/09 2018
"It is incredibly smooth and the advantage is that we know when and by whom a document was signed that the signature is valid, and that the document has not been changed since then as everything is logged digitally."
EMMA HESSBO, IT PROJECT MANAGER AT KARLSKRONA MUNICIPALITY