Rfid in the Public and Private Sector: Key Implementation Considerations

Radio frequency identification (RFID) enabled devices are becoming increasingly common, facilitating many things from supply chain efficiencies to equipment tracking. Although there is a growing body of research on RFID systems, few studies address implementations that involve both public and private sectors. This paper outlines the results of a qualitative study that identified ten key cross-sector issues arising from four RFID implementations involving both public and private sectors being: cost, standards, infrastructure, trust, data management, privacy, security, information sharing/collaboration, legislation and organizational knowledge. The need for organizational knowledge in the capability of RFID systems has not been previously identified. Although all issues were common across both sectors, the public sector was more sensitive to privacy issues. It is anticipated that this research will assist academics and practitioners identify areas that need to be considered when implementing RFID systems across the public and private sectors.