These days, I’m Head of Product & Delivery at ZenDiS (Federal Center for Digital Sovereignty), where we build openDesk, an open-source workspace for public administration. It sounds dry, but it isn’t. Software that the state actually owns and controls is what digital sovereignty looks like in practice, and watching it find its way into real offices is what keeps me going.
At some point, I realized that every step in my career had brought me a little closer to public service. I started out at K12 Agentur für Kommunikation und Innovation, co-founded Parapluie, a digital solutions studio in Berlin, and later became Chief Digital Officer for the City of Düsseldorf, where I set out to — Germany’s oldest product, still in desperate need of an update.
I’m often out exploring the urban jungle on my vintage bike. But my idea of happiness is simple: being outdoors, enjoying fresh mint tea with family and friends.
Some of my recent writing includes:
Recent addition to my bookshelf:
Wiki GovernmentBeth Simone Noveck
Wanna get in touch? LinkedIn or write to hello@alexsmo.li.