Designing Entrepreneurial Adoption for MOZa Services

Abstract

This thesis explores how entrepreneurial adoption of MijnOverheid Zakelijk (MOZa) can be designed in a meaningful and sustainable way within the Dutch digital-government ecosystem. Rather than approaching adoption as a purely technical or communication challenge, the research frames adoption as a systemic issue shaped by interdependencies between entrepreneurs and Participanting Government Organisations (PGOs). While MOZa is envisioned as a single, central platform for between business and government interaction, its success depends on both organisational commitment and entrepreneurial use, creating a chicken-and-egg dynamic that has hindered previous initiatives. The research follows a design-led approach structured around the Double Diamond framework. In the DISCOVER phase, stakeholder interviews, internal documents, literature on digital adoption, analysis of failed precedents, and benchmarking with international peers were used to understand the broader context. This phase revealed fragmentation, uncertainty, and misaligned incentives on both the organisational and entrepreneurial side.

In the DEFINE phase, these insights were synthesised into a core adoption mechanism, reframing MOZa’s challenge as a mutual dependency rather than a linear adoption process. Based on this, the thesis deliberately focus to design for entrepreneurial adoption as a primary leverage point, translating barriers into success factors and clustering them into three design directions.

The DEVELOP phase focused on exploring solutions aligned with these directions through co-creation sessions with PGOs and entrepreneurs. Instead of converging on a single “killer function,” the research demonstrated that adoption depends on the combined effect of multiple interventions. This resulted in several solution sets addressing creating proactive notifying, community and momentum.

In the DELIVER phase, these solutions were validated through sessions with PGOs and with newly registered entrepreneurs at the Chamber of Commerce. Organisational validation focused on feasibility, responsibility, and coordination, while entrepreneur sessions tested clarity, perceived value, and early-stage expectations. These sessions confirmed that individual solutions have limited impact in isolation, but gain value when implemented together and in a repeatable manner.

Based on these findings, the final outcome of the thesis consists of three structured toolboxes delivered to the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations. Each solution was transformed into a reusable tool by explicitly defining its goal, expected result, moment of use and a repeatable execution plan. This is accompanied by ten designed example-functionalities. Rather than delivering fixed features, the toolboxes provide a design approach that can be reapplied as policies, regulations, and organisational contexts evolve.

This thesis contributes to research on digital government by demonstrating that entrepreneurial adoption requires system-level design rather than incremental optimisation. It shows that public digital platforms should not aim to maximise engagement, but instead minimise time spent while maximising trust and clarity. By framing MOZa as a platform entrepreneurs should briefly use but continuously rely on, this work offers a practical and transferable approach to designing adoption in complex public-sector environments.