The Covid-19 pandemic has put public administration under enormous pressure and has offered opportunities to experiment with new practices toward a more agile and resilient public administration. When most Member States went into lock-in, countries with highly digitised public administrations showed more resilience to ensure the continued provision of public services. This Panel sheds light on the digital solutions proposed by the EU Member States to guarantee access to public services, ensure continuity of education and support businesses facing difficult economic circumstances. These digital solutions encompass solutions such as mobile applications, online portals, online platforms, information chatbots and information repositories. The implementation and maintenance of these digital solutions have highlighted the crucial role of agile, flexible and resilient public sector IT infrastructures. It also highlighted the need for interoperability between systems and administrations. This panel will examine the main opportunities for and challenges confronting Public administration in the post-Covid era. The panel seeks to answer the following question: what reform trends are relevant in the public administration concerning their resilience and ability to adapt in times of crisis? How do public sector organizations ensure the effective pursuit of digitalization and digital transformation? References Bouckaert, G., Galli, D., Kuhlmann, S., Reiter, R., and Van Hecke, S. (2020), ‘European Coronationalism? A Hot Spot Governing a Pandemic Crisis’, Public Administration Review, https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.13242. Bria, F. (2020), ‘Towards a Digital Green New Deal: A European Alliance on Digital Sovereignty to Reconquer Democratic Control of Data and to Put Tech and Innovation at the Service of People and the Green Transition’, UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose Medium blog, available at https://medium.com/@francescabria/towards-a-digital-green-new-deal-a-european-alliance-on- digital-sovereignty-to-reconquer-ae783ff2cbd5 Crahay, A., Di Giacomo, D., Dussutour, C., Ennadif, G., Talpo, S. (2021). Report on Public Administrations’ Digital Response to COVID-19 in the EU. Luxembourg: European Commission Dunleavy, P., Margetts, H., Bastow, S., and Tinkler, J. (2006), ‘New Public Management is Dead—Long Live Digital-era Governance’, Journal of Public Administration Research Theory, 16(3), 467–94.

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Digitalization - Resilience - Sustainable New Normal