Unifying a Public Software Ecosystem: How Omaolo Responded to the COVID-19 Challenge

TL;DR

This paper examines how the Omaolo public-private ecosystem in Finland rapidly adapted during COVID-19 by shifting to an alliance model, enhancing collaboration, scalability, and responsiveness amidst regulatory challenges.

Contribution

It demonstrates how a crisis can accelerate the transition to a flexible alliance model in public software ecosystems, improving agility and service delivery.

Findings

Accelerated development of Omaolo's symptom assessment tool

Enhanced collaboration and service scalability during COVID-19

Overcoming regulatory and stakeholder challenges through alliance approach

Abstract

Public actors are often seen as slow, especially in renewing information systems, due to complex tendering and competition regulations, which delay decisions. This challenge is even greater in multi-company ecosystems. However, when faced with a common threat, the ecosystem needs to unite to face the challenge. This study explores how the Omaolo ecosystem in Finland evolved from traditional public-private cooperation to an alliance model during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2022. It highlights how the crisis accelerated changes in operations and collaboration between public and private participants, identifying key shifts, benefits, and challenges. Key findings include the removal of traditional barriers and the creation of an alliance approach that sped up the development of Omaolo's symptom assessment tool. This improved collaboration, service scalability, and responsiveness to healthcare needs despite the initial regulatory and stakeholder alignment challenges. The study concludes that crises can drive agile responses in public ecosystems. The new collaboration model helped Omaolo to adapt quickly to changing service demands, managing healthcare patient loads more effectively. These findings highlight the value of flexible, collaborative strategies for responding to emergencies in public software ecosystems.