Tensions in time-saving technologies: Adjusting work rhythms in the digitalized public sector frontline

Abstract

Digital technologies are increasingly being implemented in public sector organizations with the ambition to enhance efficiency by saving employees' time. Frontline workers, who are often described as lacking resources and working under constant time constraints, are continuously confronted with the introduction of new, supposedly time-saving technologies. However, the concept of time and how digital technologies impact frontline workers' use of time in practice are rarely examined explicitly in public administration research. This article foregrounds the concept of time, drawing on qualitative fieldwork in Denmark's public employment services to examine how frontline workers navigate time tensions introduced by supposedly time-saving technologies. The findings reveal that these technologies reinforce tight linear schedules, requiring frontline workers to balance both time delays and time gains. This dynamic necessitates flexible adjustments of work rhythms as employees speed up or slow down their tasks to adjust to the digitalized environment. To understand these temporal tensions—how they are created and handled—this article draws on insights from science and technology studies, applying the distinction between monochronic time—in which events are approached as unfolding sequentially with a focus on one event at a time—and polychronic time, in which events are unpredictable and may unfold simultaneously or in other non-linear ways. Based on our study, we argue for an explicit focus on temporality in public administration literature, offer a conceptual vocabulary to explore it further, and advocate for understanding how time-saving technologies unfold in everyday practice, while acknowledging the coexistence of monochronic and polychronic time orientations in organizations.