Case study GaaP – Government as a platform
Germany’s public administration needed a practical approach to implementing the “Government as a Platform” (GaaP) vision. fortiss developed a technical framework and implementation strategy that bridge political vision and engineering practice. The result is a blueprint for scalable, reusable, and interoperable platform-based digital government.
Challenge
Despite widespread political commitment to platform-based digital administration, German public IT lacked a concrete engineering framework for implementation. Initiatives were often siloed, with little strategic reuse or cross-agency integration. fortiss was approached to define how GaaP could be realized through technically grounded, modular system design within the constraints of federal administrative structures.
Solution
fortiss developed a multi-level architectural concept that includes modular platform layers, technical building blocks, and integration interfaces aligned with GaaP principles. Drawing from both public and private sector practices, the team created a reference framework that distinguishes between core platform services, shared applications, and specialized components. In collaboration with NEGZ, fortiss produced a detailed implementation roadmap, along with success factors, governance models, and key capability requirements. The findings were published as a NEGZ short study to support strategy formation across federal, state, and municipal levels.
Result
- A practical engineering framework for implementing Government as a Platform (GaaP) in the German public sector.
- A clear, multi-layered platform architecture supporting modularity, reuse, and cross-jurisdictional interoperability.
- A reference model distinguishing core services, shared applications, and domain-specific components.
- Published implementation roadmap and short study as guidance for public sector IT strategy.
- Strategic input to the ongoing federal GaaP discourse, influencing digital sovereignty and platform governance models.
Outcome
The GaaP Engineering project confirmed that realizing platform government requires more than political will—it needs technically robust, modular frameworks that public institutions can actually implement. fortiss successfully bridged the gap between abstract GaaP principles and applied IT architecture, showing how core services and shared infrastructure can coexist with local flexibility. By aligning platform thinking with governance and operational realities, the study offers a replicable model for administrations aiming to build scalable and sovereign digital services.
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