Urgente Zaken: episode 'Human Design at the Tax Administration
In this episode, Channa Dijkhuis, Director of the Public Sector at Deloitte, engages in a conversation with design strategist Petra Ransijn from the Tax Administration. With over fifteen years at the Tax Authority, Petra has observed how the organisation has become more agile. How does she ensure that people feel seen and heard? And how does the Tax Authority maintain a focus on both the perspectives of citizens and businesses, as well as its employees?
Deloitte's video series and podcast 'Urgent Matters' delves deeper into the key societal issues of today and tomorrow. Together with governments, we not only explore the challenges they face but also focus on the essential question: how can we truly make progress?
Subscribe to our newsletter
In this episode, Channa Dijkhuis, Director of the Public Sector at Deloitte, engages in a conversation with design strategist Petra Ransijn from the Tax Administration. She has worked at the Tax Administration for over fifteen years and has witnessed how the organisation has become more agile. How does she ensure that people feel seen and heard? And how does the Tax Administration maintain insight into both the perspectives of citizens and businesses, as well as that of its employees?
Click here for more information
We asked Ransijn how she and her team of one hundred designers consistently incorporate the human element into the enormous flow of communication. How do you manage the 140 million letters sent out each year? And how do you ensure that the Tax Authority provides an accessible and user-friendly experience with 100 million annual website visits? We discussed clear communication, the Understandable Letters project, and the use of algorithms to assess language level and jargon in texts.
During the meeting between Ransijn and Dijkhuis, the political ambitions for a new fiscal system were also addressed, presenting new challenges for the Tax Authority. Legislation will always come with exceptions and complexities, and the key is to avoid passing that complexity onto citizens or businesses.
And let’s not forget AI. The Tax Authority is experimenting with it extensively, but the question remains: how do you manage the risks? AI is currently used as a supportive tool for employees, such as summarising texts or assisting with code writing, but it is not a decisive instrument in decision-making.
Finally, when asked about her personal ambition, Ransijn confessed, "I hope we continue to learn how to be as efficient as possible. The Tax Authority should be as simple and user-friendly as a power socket. You don’t think about it; it just works."
Want to know more? Read about the background in our white paper 'In demand: Human dimension'. Or explore practical applications and inspiring examples in this follow-up article, where implementing organisations share their experiences and practical tips from a roundtable session we organised with them.
