The ‘post-bureaucratic’ public sector organization. New organizational forms and HRM in ten UK public sector organizations

This paper evaluates the extent to which ‘post-bureaucratic’ organizational forms have been introduced to the UK public sector and the implications for human resource management policies and practices in the sector. The study draws from interview data at ten public sector organizations including local authorities, the National Health Service, the Civil Service, police authorities, broadcasting and transport. It concludes that certain structural changes have been made, but that older functional lines of authority still exist and thus post-bureaucratic claims are misleading. However, a harsher working environment has arisen for managers in these public sector organizations, with longer hours and a more complex working environment. Older certainties such as job security, a safe career path and seniority-based pay have all been eroded.     

Are standardized EMSs useful in local authorities? A study of how a tool from the private sector is used in the public sector

Following the trend in the private sector, standardized environmental management systems (EMSs) have been introduced in several local authorities around the world. When the tool is transferred from the private sector to the public, one can ask how useful the tool is in the new environment, since the private and the public sectors are two different types of social sphere, with different institutional logics. Taking a closer look at the situation in Sweden, this paper aims to investigate the applicability of standardized EMSs in local authorities and the public sector in general. Based on qualitative interviews with public officers in two municipalities in Sweden, it is argued that EMSs are useful in municipalities. However, the study also reveals that an EMS seems to be more suitable for technical service administrations and municipally owned companies than social service administrations. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.     

Tensions in local government employment relationships

Abstract

A wide variety of initiatives characterized under the umbrella term of new public management have been introduced over the past two decades to improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness in the public sector. The implications of these initiatives for public sector employment relationships have been the subject of on-going debate. This article contributes to this debate through examining how employees within local authorities are managed in a time of personal crisis with a particular focus on long-term sickness absence in the context of increased management drives for efficiency under the NPM agenda. The findings reveal that for managers in two local authorities that form the focus of this study there is a tension in struggling to achieve a workable balance between the needs of employees and wider operational requirements, resulting in role ambiguity for line managers and detrimental effects for vulnerable public service workers.     

Briefing Paper: The Interdependence of Fiscal and Monetary Policy under Economic and Monetary Union

This article explores the implications of Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) for the conduct of fiscal policy. Under EMU, where the European Central Bank is successful in controlling inflation, the loss of seigniorage revenues causes a potential problem for public sector deficits. To prevent the debt-income ratio from spiralling upwards, a primary budget surplus is ultimately required. EMU has usually been considered as a strong central monetary authority which forces fiscal discipline on lax national governments. But this is not the only possibility. Because the debt ratio can be reduced by surprise inflation, the price expectations of the private sector are important. Once these are taken into account, EMU can be examined in a 'game' framework in which the reputation of the authorities and the existence or otherwise of cooperation between the fiscal and monetary authorities becomes a critical factor.
The paper finds that where the authorities enjoy reputation and cooperate, a one-off reduction in public spending will lead to a permanent decline in the real interest rate and crowd in extra private spending (consumption and investment). Without reputation the cut in government spending has to be sustained. Where there is neither reputation nor cooperation, the outcome depends on the structure of the European economy and whether fiscal policy can effect the terms of trade between countries. If the terms of trade remain unchanged, the outturn is similar to the case of cooperation without reputation, but where the terms of trade can be improved in one country, there is no incentive to cut public spending. In this case the outturn is higher inflation with private spending crowded out.     

Strategic human capital and the performance of public sector organizations

Organization scientists have long considered human capital as a strategic asset that contributes to organizational effectiveness. Whereas the strategic importance of human capital has been widely studied in the case of for-profit organizations, measurement difficulties and the role of human capital in the public sector have received little attention. The present study attempts to bridge this gap by suggesting a behavioral approach to measuring organization-specific human capital and examining its impact on the financial performance of local government authorities in Israel. The results confirm the strategic importance of human capital. Local government authorities that possess strategic human capital—namely, a workforce that is highly educated, that exhibits organization-specific competencies and experience, and that is valuable, unique, and imperfectly imitable—exhibited a better financial performance, as measured by a three-financial ratio scale over 2 fiscal years.     

The Modernization of UK Local Government: Markets,Managers, Monitors and Mixed Fortunes

Since 1997 UK central government has launched a bewildering array of new initiatives known collectively as the 'local government modernizing agenda' which represent an ambitious attempt to transform the performance and the politics of local authorities in the UK. The aim is to improve local services, enhance community governance and increase public confidence in the institutions of local government. Some of the key elements of this agenda, notably attempts to persuade authorities to make greater use of markets, to encourage strategic management techniques and the reliance on external monitoring, draw heavily upon the New Public Management and build directly upon previous reforms. Others, in particular the emergence of a more diversified approach to regulation of local government, signal a new and distinctive approach to public service improvement. The result is a combination of multiple drivers of change and paradoxical 'operating codes' which reflect both the politics of the modernizing agenda and our current lack of understanding about which approaches will prove most effective in enabling performance improvement in the public sector.     

Exploring social media usage in the public sector: Public employees' perceptions of ICT's usefulness in delivering value added

The present paper explores the effectiveness of the implementation and use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in the public sector, with a specific focus on the role of social media in improving both public decision-making processes and the quality of public services. We sought to deepen knowledge on this issue by disseminating structured questionnaires to Italian public servants, questioning them about the potentialities and criticalities of social media use in the public sector. Logistic regression analysis was used to analyse the data.The paper has two main goals. First, we aim to explore public servants' evaluation of social media's impact on public decision-making processes. Second, we are interested in understanding the main socio-demographic variables affecting public servants' perceptions about the importance of social media in these processes. This paper enriches the literature on public sector use of ICT and advances topical discussion on organizational change and decision-making processes in public administrations. In so doing, the paper reveals interesting practical and policy implications by highlighting the key aspects affecting social media's effectiveness and usefulness in the decision-making process and its impact on the public services delivered to the citizenry.     

Green public procurement: An empirical analysis of the uptake of organic food policy

This paper analyses the uptake of a voluntary green public procurement policy in Sweden. The policy, decided in 2006, stated a national goal for the public sector to increase its share of organic food purchases to 25% by 2010. The overall purpose was to increase organic farming. Municipalities, which are highly independent authorities with self-determination, were encouraged to formulate own political goals. Based on survey data on organic food purchases for the period 2003–2016, supplemented with data on municipality characteristics, we analyse the determinants of the local uptake of the national policy, accounting for potential selection bias. The main finding is that local political goals are set and that these have in turn, a significant and positive effect on the share of organic food purchases. This suggests that there is an uptake of the voluntary policy. Also, we find that the increase in expenditures per capita devoted to organic food is quite substantial following the adoption of a local policy.     

On the contribution of public procurement to entrepreneurship and small business policy

Public procurement in industrialized nations accounts for a significant share of gross domestic product; hence it is imperative for local, regional and national economic development to utilize this potential. However, previous discussions of entrepreneurship and small business policy have by and large marginalized public sector procurement. As a contribution to giving greater salience to the linkages between regional development, entrepreneurship and public procurement, this paper presents empirical results of a qualitative study into local government authorities in the United Kingdom. In particular, it draws out a range of enablers and barriers for sourcing from small- and medium-sized enterprises that were perceived by procurement managers. The focus on public sector procurement furthermore leads to a more systematic theoretical elaboration of entrepreneurship policy as being based on legal authority or the market or network effects from geographic proximity.     

Evaluating the extent of inter-organizational learning and change in local authorities through the english beacon council scheme

During the 1990s the contract has become a key feature in the restructuring of the UK public sector. Currently available literature demonstrates awareness that the implementation of contracting must entail new forms of management control and organizational structure which involve new patterns of intra-and extra-organizational relationships. However there is little consideration of the nature of the relationships that are developing between contractors and clients nor the factors that, influence those behavioural processes. This paper reports on research funded by ESRC into contractual relationships in ten local authorities in England. Analysis was undertaken to identify the nature of the contracts and the factors which both clients and contractors felt had led them to develop a particular type of relationship. Finally implications for practice under ‘best value’ are considered.     

The effect of ownership on sustainable development and environmental policy in urban waste management: An explicatory empirical analysis of Italian municipal corporations

This paper investigates the effect of ownership on sustainable development and environmental policy in Italian municipally owned corporations (MOCs) dealing with urban waste management, trying to understand if multiple ownership can generate better performance compared to single ownership and if the presence of private partners could be crucial in this. The research question is answered by analyzing 41 MOCs of the largest Italian cities operating in urban waste management. In this specific sector, public administrations have tried to improve their offer in terms of sustainable development, environmental policy, and efficiency. The paper covers the Italian case study, where urban waste production per capita is higher than the European average figure. The waste cycle management service is operated in Italy at local level through totally publicly owned companies (monoadministration or multiadministration), mixed (public–private) companies, or via a full externalization achieved by means of public tenders. Through a multinomial ordered probit panel, we show that MOCs with multiple owners perform better than those having a single owner and perform much better with the presence of a private partner, confirming those academic findings according to which collaborative arrangements can increase efficiency, do better than public sector bureaucracy, and lower the costs of service provision. The results of this paper can be used by academics, practitioners, and policy makers alike. To the best of our knowledge, this is the only study that applies this perspective to the analysis of the current international waste management scenario with relation to MOCs having multiple ownerships.     

The functioning of co-opetition in the health-care sector: An explorative analysis

The doctrine on the management of the health-care sector has mainly considered cooperation and competition to be opposite models. However, several recent studies of the private sector have stressed the positive effects of balancing competitive and cooperative stimuli in inter-firm relationships. Since many public health-care sectors are often characterized by the presence of both cooperative and competitive forces, this explorative analysis is aimed at identifying the possible determinants of these stimuli and analyzing the likely results of the interaction between these forces within a network of health-care trusts. A better understanding of how simultaneous cooperation and competition impact one another could help regulatory bodies to avoid implementing policies that could produce inconsistent results.     

The disclosure of key performance indicators in the public sector

This article investigates the disclosure of key performance indicators in the annual reports of Irish public sector organizations. It begins by discussing the two main driving forces behind public sector bodies disclosing performance information in their annual reports for the first time as well as looking at other contributing factors. The present situation with regard to the disclosure of key performance indicators in the whole of Ireland is then analysed. A number of annual reports from central government departments or agencies, local government bodies, other public sector entities and, in the case of the Republic of Ireland, semi-state organizations are examined to see whether such information is being disclosed and, more importantly, whether performance indicators are being linked to predetermined objectives and targets.     

Entrepreneurship at the Local Government Level: Stimulating and restraining forces in the Swedish waste management industry

Abstract

This article explores influential forces on public sector entrepreneurship in two different organizational forms: the local government administration and the local government corporation. In arguing for the need to consider the context of organizational form, this article presents a development beyond existing research on public entrepreneurship (PE) which so far has been conducted only to a limited extent. The inductive analysis identifies factors not previously perceived as influential on PE. These findings support the importance of distinguishing between organizational forms. Finally, the findings can be used for formulating hypotheses possible to test in larger research designs.     

Understanding continuity in public sector HRM through neo‐institutional theory: why national collective bargaining has survived in English local government

Most HRM research over recent decades has concentrated on ‘change’, charting ever more fragmented, individualised and unitarist employment relationships. This is equally true of public sector HRM, where the emphasis has been on neo‐liberalism and marketisation. However, in many countries and sectors, collective, pluralist approaches to HRM and industrial relations have proved remarkably resilient. This article uses Neo‐Institutional theory to explain the ‘continuity’ of one such HRM system: national collective bargaining in English local government (1979–2007). We argue that this survives because it manages the political and managerial processes that link central government and central–local relations and acts as a conduit between institutional stakeholders to deliver services to the public. By understanding the ‘passive consensus’ that holds the collectivist HRM system together, we can anticipate the forces that might pull it apart.     

Local Political Corruption: Potential structural malfunctions at the central–local,local–local and intra-local levels

Abstract

Despite growing preoccupation on the part of both the public and researchers with the concept of political corruption and the ‘corruption eruption’ phenomenon, research studies addressing corruption in local government are few and far between. This exploratory research offers a theoretical conceptualization of institutionalized corruption in local government, and identifies structural factors that lead to such corruption. Further, this study empirically assesses institutional corruption at the local level and its correlation to attitudes and characteristics of local authorities and their populations, based on a survey of 1,709 residents of 156 local authorities in Israel and data on the local authorities from a separate database. This article proposes a model according to which local corruption arises from structural factors at three levels: the central–local level (relations between local authorities and the central government); the local–local level (competition between local authorities) and the intra-local level (factors relating to the performance of local councils and local democracy). Our analyses reveal correlations among characteristics of the local authority and community, residents' perceptions of local performance and perceptions of local corruption. Implications of the findings in light of strategies conventionally employed against corruption in local government are discussed.     

Supporting decision-making process in facilities management services procurement: A methodological approach

The aim of this paper is to make a contribution to the decision-making process related to procurement of facilities management services in the public sector, particularly with reference to local authorities. Adopting a contingency approach, a model for selecting sourcing strategies is presented. Some empirical evidence resulting from the analysis of various managers’ experiences is reported and, based on the results of the testing of the model, theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.     

Public Managers’ Skills Development for Effective Performance Management: Empirical evidence from Italian local governments

Performance management has become an important element of the reform agenda of public sector around the world. However, scholars and practitioners highlight that many public administrations do not manage performance very well. A ‘litmus test’ of the success of a performance-based reform is observing whether public managers use performance information to make better-informed decisions. Having said that, the aim of this article is to see whether public managers of Italian local governments in the Apulia region (the South of Italy) use performance information after the last performance-based reform (Brunetta’s Reform: decree No. 150/09). The learning purpose is analysed and discussed. The research may suggest scholars, practitioners and policy makers the routes for developing performance utilization in difficult organizational contexts where performance management systems do not work.     

Is local authority procurement ‘lean’? An exploration to determine if ‘lean’ can provide a useful explanation of practice

This article makes a contribution to the research debate examining relationships between public and private sector procurement practice by exploring the influence of ‘lean’ upon procurement practices in English local authorities. A survey found that whilst some characteristics, such as a reducing supply base, resembled those of lean thinking, they could also be associated with a partnership approach. Other evidence highlighted gaps between practice and lean, leading to the conclusion that lean is not currently an influence. However, many procurement officers are aware of the concept and are willing to embrace the idea. There is a need to monitor and examine progress further.