The federal government's digital transformation agenda could become just another way of cutting costs and reducing services, now the public service's takeover of the project is complete, according to Internet Australia.
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The peak web users group sounded the warning after the Prime Minister's technology guru, Paul Shetler, resigned after just six weeks in his new job.
Labor has also been critical of the Digital Transformation project, saying it is concerned the Digital Transformation Agency, formerly the Digital Transformation Office, was struggling to keep its top managers from leaving.
Mr Shetler was hired in July 2015, to great fanfare, as the head of the Digital Transformation Office, the Prime Minister's pet public service project that was supposed to help use technology to transform federal government service delivery.
But the work of the DTO soon became bogged down in the complexities of the Canberra bureaucracy and the project was relaunched in October with a new name, the Digital Transformation Agency, boosted status and with Mr Shelter replaced at the helm with career public servant Nerida O'Loughlin.
The reboot was a tacit admission of the deep trouble the Digital Transformation project was in, with the fledgling office unable to make much headway against the entrenched power structure of public service bosses determined to resist interference in their operations, and beset by a high churn rate among its senior executives.
Mr Shetler, a former chief digital officer for the UK Ministry of Justice who raised eyebrows in the Australian Public Service by wearing sneakers to work, was given a new role, chief digital officer, but walked away after less than six weeks.
"We'll need to keep an eye on the DTA," Internet Australia's chief executive Laurie Patton said.
"While it is primarily intended to smooth out the online delivery of government services, there is a danger it becomes a tool for cost cutting and the reduction of services.
"UK experience also suggests that it could create a 'digital divide' where people without broadband access and/or digital skills are marginalised."
Labor's spokesman on the digital economy, Ed Husic, said the government had "structured" Mr Shetler out of his job.
"Malcolm Turnbull must now assure Australia there is strong leadership and the ability to get results at the top of the re-badged Digital Transformation Agency," Mr Husic said.
"Mr Shelter was clearly restructured out of his chief executive role when the government revealed last month its supposedly ground-breaking move to rename the Digital Transformation Office the Digital Transformation Agency.
"Mr Shelter was a key appointment - he was personally recruited by then Communications Minister Mr Turnbull.
"While questions have been asked about the speed at which the DTO [now DTA] has delivered results, we have certainly seen its agile revolving door work its way through senior managers.
"It's been remarkable to see the turnover in the number of senior managers over the course of the year.
"It's been reported that five different senior managers come and go in a very short time.
"This is a concern."
