A study of how public service has changed in this new era of interconnectedness

"NS is a conceptual framework that resonates with practitioners, but it is also a tool that can be used to expand the range of options open to government and bring coherence to problem solving and decision making. In the hands of practitioners, NS was becoming a process of discovery to create solutions to problems of concern to society and produce results of increasing public value. Chapter 1 explores what is different about serving in the 21st century compared to the previous century. Periodically, changes come about that transform the world we live in, and in the process, transform the role of government. This chapter argues that we live in such a time. Chapter 2 posits that conventional thinking about public administration and current practices are insufficient to guide the actions and decisions of government in a world characterized by deep uncertainty. Chapter 3 introduces the NS Framework and its concepts. The framework brings together the role played by government, multiple agents in society and citizens in a way that opens up a vast range of choices to government in its search for solutions to real life challenges. The framework offers a dynamic perspective of public administration where governments are able to learn, adapt to changing needs and circumstances, and co-evolve with society. Part II is an introduction to NS as an applied process of discovery. It describes the steps that public sector leaders have found most useful for discovering pathways to a better future. Chapter 4, 5, 6 and 7 present what has been learned from the practitioners who have used the NS Framework to lead public sector transformation initiatives. The NS Framework does not provide answers; it opens up new lines of inquiry and integrates findings in ways that generate coherent narratives of change. A number of consequences flow from a dynamic view of the role of government in society. This includes an adaptive view of the interaction between the public, private and civic spheres of life in society, a deeper appreciation of the importance of civic results and the role of citizens in building governable societies. The way we think about government or democratic governance influences the actions that will be taken for their improvement, and what results will be achieved. Part III poses difficult yet fundamental questions concerning how to re-conceptualise the responsibilities of the State in the 21st century. Chapter 8 broadens the conversation about public innovation. Chapter 9 reframes the discussion on public sector leadership, and Chapter 10 opens a conversation on the need to re-think, re-frame and re-invent the functioning of modern democratic societies. The book includes four case studies from four different countries that exemplify NS concepts in practice. Each of the cases highlights a dynamic process of discovery focussing on public purpose, building on the strength of others and empowering citizens as problem solvers. Appendix A examines the transformation of Singapore's prisons from correctional facilities to centres contributing to the successful reintegration of ex-offenders. Appendix B provides an example of leveraging to improve care to children with complex diseases in Canada. Appendix C explores how co-creation and co-production were used to respond to challenges facing elder care in Fredericia, Denmark. Appendix D provides an account of the Helsinki Cleaning Day initiative and how self-organisation with support from other actors, including the public sector, can spark new ways of doing things."--

This book highlights the main factors determining the quality of public administration in conflict affected countries; and assesses to what extent the conflict determines and impacts on the performance of public administration in affected countries. The main value added by this book is confirming the general expectation that there is no direct and universal link between the conflict and public administration performance (and vice-versa). One may need to argue that each country situation differs and specific factors of internal and external environments determine the trends of public administration performance in conflict affected countries. To achieve the overarching goal of the book, sixteen country studies were developed from all relevant continents - America, Africa, Asia and Europe: Bangladesh, Colombia, Croatia, Egypt, Georgia, Iraq, Kosovo, Nigeria, Palestine, Paraguay, Philippines, Serbia, South Africa, Uganda, Ukraine, and Venezuela.

Despite predictions that 'new public management' would establish itself as the new paradigm of Public Administration and Management, recent academic research has highlighted concerns about the intra-organizational focus and limitations of this approach. This book represents a comprehensive analysis of the state of the art of public management, examining and framing the debate in this important area. The New Public Governance? sets out to explore this emergent field of research and to present a framework with which to understand it. Divided into five parts, the book examines: Theoretical underpinnings of the concept of governance, especially competing perspectives from Europe and the US Governance of inter-organizational partnerships and contractual relationships Governance of policy networks Lessons learned and future directions Under the steely editorship of Stephen Osborne and with contributions from leading academics including Owen Hughes, John M. Bryson, Don Kettl, Guy Peters and Carsten Greve, this book will be of particular interest to researchers and students of public administration, public management, public policy and public services management.

'Joined- up government' is a key theme of modern government. The Labour government, first elected in 1997, decided that intractable problems such as social exclusion, drug addiction and crime could not be resolved by any single department of government. Instead, such problems had to be made the object of a concerted attack using all the arms of government - central and local government and public agencies, as well as the private and voluntary sectors. This book seeks to analyse 'joined-up government', to consider its history, and to evaluate its consequences for British institutions such as the Cabinet, the civil service and local authorities. Is joined-up government a new idea, or merely a new label for a very old idea? What lessons can be learnt from previous attempts at joined-up government? How does it affect our traditional constitutional conceptions relating to Cabinet government, a politically neutral and non-partisan civil service, and an independent system of local government? Will it lead to the concentration of power in 10 Downing Street or is it compatible with a political system based on checks and balances? Drawing together papers given at a conference held at the British Academy, Joined-Up Government provides a broad overview of one of the most significant aspects in modern government. Its contributors include not only distinguished academics, but also those who have themselves been engaged as practitioners in developing joined-up programmes. This book will be indispensable to all those who seek to understand how new developments in government are affecting our lives.

Since the third edition of this authoritative volume, most of Western Europe and North America have entered an era of austerity which has pervasive effects on programmes of public management reform. Even in Australasia extensive measures of fiscal restraint have been implemented. In this fourth edition the basic structure of the book has been retained but there has been a line-by-line rewriting, including the addition of extensive analyses and information about the impacts of austerity. Many new sources are cited and there is a new exploration of the interactions between austerity and the major paradigms of reform - NPM, the Neo-Weberian State and New Public Governance. The existing strengths of the previous editions have been retained while vital new material on developments since the Global Economic Crisis has been added. This remains the most authoritative, comprehensive, widely-cited academic text on public management reform in Europe, North America and Australasia.

In Mastering Public Administration, each chapter spotlights a significant theorist in the field, covering his/her life, research, writings, and impact, introducing the discipline′s most important scholarship in both a memorable and approachable manner. The combination of biographical narrative with explanation and analysis makes abstract theories understandable while showing how subject scholars relate to each other in their work, providing much needed context. The book’s chronological organization shows the evolution of public administration theory over time. With the new edition, the authors will be adding mini-chapters that link contemporary scholars and their research to the seminal literature.

A timely new perspective on the impact of populism on the relationship between democracy and public administration.

Today’s public managers not only have to function as leaders within their agencies, they must also establish and coordinate multi-organizational networks of other public agencies, private contractors, and the public. This important transformation has been the subject of an explosion of research in recent years. The Collaborative Public Manager brings together original contributions by some of today’s top public management and public policy scholars who address cutting-edge issues that affect government managers worldwide. State-of-the-art empirical research reveals why and how public managers collaborate and how they motivate others to do the same. Examining tough issues such as organizational design and performance, resource sharing, and contracting, the contributors draw lessons from real-life situations as they provide tools to meet the challenges of managing conflict within interorganizational, interpersonal networks. This book pushes scholars, students, and professionals to rethink what they know about collaborative public management—and to strive harder to achieve its full potential.

Examines the reconstruction of institutional power relationships that had to be negotiated among the courts, the parties, the President, the Congress, and the states in order to accommodate the expansion of national administrative capacities around the turn of the twentieth century.