Transformation of internal communication in public administration under the influence of digitalization: An investigation into how the transition to digital platforms alters vertical and horizontal communication among employees in municipal administration

Abstract

The transformation of public administration through digitalization has been predominantly examined from the perspective of government-to-citizen (G2C) service delivery. This paper redirects attention to the internal dimension of this transformation, investigating how the adoption of digital communication platforms alters the structure, dynamics, and culture of communication within municipal administrations in Serbia. Drawing upon Media Richness Theory, organizational communication theory, and the literature on digital institutional change, we analyse how digital tools — including document management systems, email, institutional portals, and informal messaging applications — reshape both vertical (top-down and bottom-up) and horizontal communication flows among municipal employees. We employ a qualitative research design consisting of 38 semi-structured interviews with department heads and frontline officials across three municipalities of varying size and digital maturity in the Pčinja and Nišava Administrative Districts. Our findings reveal that digitalization produces a paradoxical duality: it formally accelerates and documents communication flows while simultaneously generating new forms of communicative fragmentation, informal workarounds, and resistance. The emergence of unofficial Viber and WhatsApp groups as primary coordination channels represents a particularly significant finding, indicating a structural gap between officially sanctioned digital infrastructure and actual organizational practice. We conclude by discussing the implications of these dynamics for organizational learning, accountability, and democratic oversight within local public administration.