AADE’s Electronic Task Assignment and Monitoring System

Innovation results

By using the system, the efficiency of the structure that uses it has been improved, as:

• Teleworking is facilitated since the tasks related data are gathered in the system and are equally accessible to the employees working either physically or remotely.

• The distribution of tasks is improved and the supervisor knows at all times the employee responsible for each request, since it is possible to record and assign tasks by identifying the user or users who will be involved, the completion time, the priority, as well as some comment required.

• Improves the organization and monitoring of work of each service, as time is saved by the immediate export of reports on the pending issues and the overall history of the work completed by each employee.

Design stage

The innovation was designed by Department C - Coordination and Monitoring of Projects and Actions Portfolio of the Directorate of Strategic Planning of AADE, which decided on the supply of an information system for the management of tasks. After a short market research of open source systems a free to use online task support tool for up to 50 users was selected.

The choice was based on an evaluation of advantages such as: simple and easy-to-understand interface, project planning, division of projects into tasks and sub-tasks, task execution monitoring, creation of teams, access from a mobile device, cloud services and a significant number of additional tools such as the possibility of video conferences, chat, mind maps etc. in the free version.

Experimentation stage

The system was piloted during the period of the first quarantine due to COVID-19 for a period of 3 months, namely from 12/3/2020 to 29/5/2020. The implementation of the innovation with the pilot adoption of a task management system helped to address a number of challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the most important of which were:

• Ensuring the continuation of the operation of the Administration in an efficient manner,

• The assignment and rational distribution of tasks by supervisors to telecommuters,

• Monitoring the implementation of assigned tasks.

The system was offered to the heads of the Directorate as an alternative mechanism for assigning and monitoring work progress for themselves and the staff of each department, replacing or supplementing telephone or email communication. The environment was used on a daily basis, regardless of whether the employee or the supervisor was in remote work, so that there was a uniform daily routine. For security reasons, the ability to save to the available cloud environment was not used (no file was uploaded). The innovation was disseminated within the institution with the issuance of information/service notes.

After the piloting stage, due to lack of funding, the innovation was discontinued. The evaluation of the positive elements from the pilot application of the innovation led to the decision to procure a new integrated system, in order to continue the operation of the program, with the benefits, as mentioned above, in the operation of the agency. The procurement process for the new system is ongoing and is expected to be completed in 2024, while the system will be made available to all AADE services to support their work.

Collaborations

For the development and implementation of the innovation, an internal collaboration was carried out between the executives of the Directorate.

Financing and costs

The cost for the operation of the free version of the system concerned only human resources, as the daily employment of the employees of the structure in which it is applied is necessary.

Challenges and solutions during design, testing and implementation

The particular version of the system chosen to implement the innovation was free of cost. However, for the innovation to continue to function, market research is required to select and acquire a suitable system for permanent use.

With the use of the system, the issue of monitoring the work of staff working remotely, as well as staff physically present, was resolved, particularly during the first phase of the Covid-19 pandemic in Greece, where the Greek public administration was essentially called for the first time to implement remote working.

The use of a task management system requires the availability of appropriate equipment (laptops) and remote VPN (Virtual Private Network) access. A total of 25 users who joined the system were provided with laptops and remote VPN (Virtual Private Network) access. The result of the use of the system was the uninterrupted operation of the service, at a time when its work was particularly increased, due to the extraordinary operational planning that had to be prepared by the service for the management of the pandemic crisis.

Assessment - description of the necessary conditions for the success and sustainability of innovation

The sustainability of the innovation depends on the will of the leadership to implement a task management system throughout the organization, since it facilitates the management of assigned tasks, especially in the current period with the implementation of teleworking measures due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Experiences, thoughts, findings

Implementing a Task Management System is simple but can greatly assist in day-to-day monitoring and task assignment, especially in the case of organizations with complexity and high volume of work. Already the A.A.D.E. has initiated the acquisition of a task management system for all employees within the context of the Recovery and Resiliency Fund.