The ‘third hand’: Private sector consultants in public sector accounting change

Abstract

This paper explores the role of large private sector consulting firms in the promotion and implementation of public sector accrual accounting. By focusing on an early adopter of accrual accounting for its entire public sector, this research presents an analysis of the activities of large consulting firms in the process of a significant public sector accounting change. The role of consultants in the change is presented by analysing primary data extracted from archival sources and oral histories provided by a number of prominent actors classified as users of information (politicians), producers of information (bureaucrats) or accounting consultants. The role and impact of the consulting firms' actions can be better understood by applying concepts of non-coercive isomorphism and the interplay between self-interest and perceived public interest. The consulting firms are shown to have used phantom images to promote the case for accounting change. This was done with a zealous belief that bringing public sector accounting into line with private sector accounting was an inherently righteous objective.     

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.     

Institutional Sources of Distrust in Government Contracting

Abstract

This interview-based study explores trust in public–private co-operation by addressing the research questions: What are the main sources of distrust in public–private contracting? And why? We compare two Spanish social services subfields: one with high levels of cross-sector distrust and another one with low distrust between public and private sectors. We conclude that the sources of the identified cross-sector distrust are institutional: insufficient regulation and legislation, lack of business certification, and low local government administrative capacity. The article is a pioneering exploration of the under-researched theme of institutional distrust and its effect on public–private co-operation management.     

Regional Disparities and Government Quality: Redistributive Conflict Crowds Out Good Government

Abstract

In this paper, we argue and provide empirical evidence to support the claim that higher income differences across regions increase the salience of interregional redistribution and, as a result, crowd out policies aiming towards improvements in government quality or efficiency. In the presence of greater regional disparities, the balance of politics may tilt towards redistributive concerns and away from government efficiency considerations, especially since the latter can be opposed by organized public sector interest groups. Our empirical analysis, based on a sample of 22 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries over the period from the mid-1990s to 2005, supports our basic intuition that regional disparities may lead to territorially based redistributive conflict to the detriment of government quality.     

“You can try to press different emotional buttons”: The conflicts and strategies of eliciting emotions for fundraisers

In a competitive climate in which charities must increasingly rely on fundraising with the public, emotions such as hope, guilt, and fear are powerful tools that can be used strategically to secure donations or participation. This paper explores data from interviews with 23 fundraisers and voluntary sector workers, managers, and officials, to argue that decisions around how, why, and when to invest in the elicitation of emotion in fundraising are often difficult and conflicted, with some identifying a battle between ethics and effectiveness. We identify 3 key levels of conflict that must be negotiated: at the level of the charity sector, where the emotional ethics particularly of larger charities have been met with some resistance from the public and press; at the level of the organisation itself, where the ethics of representation are often a subject of conflict between fundraising and other departments such as policy; and, finally, at the experiential level of individual fundraisers themselves, who report being routinely internally conflicted around the rights and wrongs of using emotion in their work. A strategic approach to eliciting emotion emerges in the data as a useful way to address some of these areas of conflict, with fundraisers making careful “balancing” decisions about how and with whom to mobilise certain emotions at specific times.     

Driving Public Sector Environmental Reporting

Abstract

This article analyses environmental reporting practices within public sector entities. It explores the type and extent of environmental disclosures by all 19 Australian Commonwealth Departments in annual reports and sustainability reports, through a legitimacy approach and a content analysis instrument based on the global reporting initiative (GRI). The findings of this research indicate that there is relatively little difference in the reporting practices of departments with legitimacy drivers of size and mission than other departments. We see little evidence of a wide-spread adoption of GRI reporting and argue that drivers internal to government, particularly the coercive influence of legislation and government-regulation, are a better explanation of public sector environment reporting than a legitimacy explanation. We argue that there is some support for a legitimacy argument in that the most significant category of environmental reporting was reporting of departmental initiatives which could be seen as having potential legitimacy motivation and benefits. We conclude with the argument that a more sophisticated approach to legitimacy is required to understand the role of environmental reporting in the public sector context.     

When Public–Private Partnerships Fail

Abstract

This article explores the dynamic and the results of efforts by citizens to resist the costs passed onto them by public–private partnerships for infrastructure, through examining citizen engagement in two problematic projects in Taiwan and China. In both cases, the design and procurement phase focused on the government–investor relation, with no obvious opportunity for citizen voice and costs were displaced onto users. In the operational phase, citizen protest (voice) was more effective in resisting costs in Taiwan where the institutional environment was more open and responsive; in the China case, availability of alternative roads (choice) was crucial in resisting costs.     

TRUST AND PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY IN A LIBERAL MARKET

Although apparently anti-competitive, the organised professions are deemed to be in the public interest because they ensure a supply of expertise within an ethical framework. Since they rely on the concept of a fiduciary relationship between the professional and the client, any failure of trust can undermine the structure. The paper explores the basis for trust, why trust may have failed, and how it might be restored.     

Examining transformational leadership,job satisfaction,organizational commitment and organizational trust in Turkish hospitals: public servants versus private sector employees

Leadership, job satisfaction, organizational commitment and trust have become important processes for healthcare management in recent years. One of the contemporary human resource management functions in the organizations involves engaging in leadership development, improving organizational trust and organizational commitment and increasing job satisfaction. Considering the rapidly changing healthcare technology and higher levels of occupational complexity, healthcare organizations are increasingly in need of engaging in leadership development in any given area of expertise to address ever-changing nature of the industry and the delivery of quality of care while remaining cost-effective and competitive. This paper investigates the perceptions of both public servants and private sector employees (outsourcing) on transformational leadership, organizational commitment, organizational trust and job satisfaction in Turkish healthcare industry. Additionally, the paper analyzes the predictability of organizational commitment based on employee – both public servants (physicians, nurses, administrative personnel and other healthcare professionals) and private sector employees (outsourcing) (auxiliary services such as administrative assistants, security personnel, kitchen, laundry and housekeeping employees) – perceptions of transformational leadership, job satisfaction and organizational trust. Using a survey instrument with items adopted from the transformational leadership inventory (TLI) [Podsakoff, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Moorman, R. H., & Fetter, R. (1990). Transformational leader behaviors and their effects on followers' trust in leader, satisfaction, and organizational citizenship behaviors. Leadership Quarterly, 1, 107–142], the organizational commitment questionnaire [Meyer, J. P., & Allen, N. J. (1997). Commitment in the workplace: Theory, research, and application. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage], the organizational trust inventory (OTI) [Cummings, L. L., & Bromiley, P. (1996). The occupational trust inventory (OTI): Development and validation. In R. Kramer & T. Tyler (Eds.), Trust in organizations: Frontiers of Theory and Research (pp. 302–330). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage] and job satisfaction survey (JSS) [Spector, P. E. (1985). Measurement of human service staff satisfaction: Development of the job satisfaction survey. American Journal of Community Psychology, 13, 693–731], this quantitative study was conducted among 2108 healthcare employees (public servants and private employees) in two large government hospitals in Turkey. The study findings indicate a significant difference between the public servants and private sector employees in terms of their perceptions on two dimensions of transformational leadership (being an appropriate model, providing individualized support), overall transformational leadership and one dimension of job satisfaction (communication). The two dimensions of job satisfaction – operating procedures and communication – as well as organizational trust were the significant predictors of organizational commitment of public servants, whereas the two dimensions of leadership – individualized support and fostering the acceptance – as well as the two dimensions of job satisfaction – promotion and contingent rewards – and organizational trust were the significant regressors of organizational commitment of private sector employees. In addition, there is a significant difference between the predictors of the dimensions of organizational commitment (transformational leadership, job satisfaction and organizational trust) in terms of public servants versus private sector employees. Finally, organizational trust has a significant effect on overall organizational commitment as well as its three dimensions for public servants and private employees.     

Distinctive research patterns on public sector performance measurement of public administration and accounting disciplines

Abstract

This article explores distinctive research patterns of public administration and accounting disciplines concerning public sector performance measurement (PSPM). Our review shows that accounting researchers from Europe investigate reasons for limited PM use and factors explaining a rational or symbolic PM use, inspired by organization theory and institutional theory and conducting case/field studies. Public administration researchers from Europe and the USA prefer to study PM design and PM impact respectively, mainly using surveys in combination with various theories, like political theory. Public administration research from the USA examines the types of performance indicators in PM systems and contingent factors for PM design. Public administration research from Europe shows an interest in evaluating public sector reforms like Best Value and explaining learning processes for improvement. We argue that PSPM research could benefit from interdisciplinary efforts and intensified mutual communication between public administration and accounting.     

Can’t You Count? Public Service Delivery and Standardized Measurement Challenges – The Case of Community Composting

Abstract

Performance measurement is increasingly important for UK third sector organizations (TSOs) driven in part by policymakers’ interest in harnessing them as deliverers of public services. This article examines a developing and little researched constituency of TSOs – community composters – which has become attractive to policymakers facing obligations to reduce, recycle, and reuse waste. The research, which included the first extensive survey of this constituency combined with a purposive case study investigation, found a highly diverse set of organizations. The analysis proposes five types of community composters and explores the challenges to developing a standardized measurement regime.     

Employee isolation and support for change in the public sector: a study of the internal audit profession

ABSTRACT

We investigate the preferences of public sector internal auditors for changes in their work practices. Informed by the literature, we posit that feelings of trust in the workplace and/or frustrations arising from perceived organizational ‘isolation’—a dimension of work alienation—motivate support and acceptance of change. We also argue that professional bodies directly and indirectly influence these relationships. These conjectures are tested using structural equation modelling and a survey of Canadian public sector internal auditors. The findings provide valuable insights into the process of adaptation and transformation in public sector settings across countries, jurisdictions, and accountability functions.     

Human Resource Management Practices and Trust in Public Organizations

Abstract

Trust has been acknowledged as a valuable managerial resource within organizations. Working as a lubricant of organizational functioning, trust reduces opportunistic behaviours while it increases voluntary compliance to organizational norms and rules as well as enhancing individual and organizational performance. Considering the importance of trust, it is worthwhile to explore what factors may help build trust within organizations. This research investigates whether perceptions of several human resource management (HRM) practices are associated with trust in government organizations. According to social exchange theory, HRM practices signal management's commitment to employees which in turn leads to greater trust in the organization. Using data from an employee survey conducted for the Georgia Department of Transportation in 2007, this research tests how employee perceptions of HRM practices are related to trust in three distinct levels of management in a large department of state government: trust in department leadership, trust in one's leadership team, and trust in one's supervisor. Binary logit analyses suggest that perceptions of HRM practices focusing on autonomy, compensation, communication, performance appraisal, and career development are associated with trust in public organizations. According to the result, those practices present variation in their leverage on trust in leadership at different levels.     

Service Quality,Administrative Process,and Citizens’ Evaluation of Local Government in the US

Abstract

It is often assumed that citizens evaluate government based on service quality or outcomes (such as safe neighbourhoods or good schools), but aspects of administrative process (such as fairness and respect) are also important. Using data from two US surveys, this study examines how service quality and administrative process influence citizens’ evaluations of government. Results indicate that service quality matters most to ratings of the community; in contrast, administrative process is the dominant driver of trust; and both quality and process have large effects on judgements about government’s overall job performance. Implications for public management research and practice are discussed.     

Pitfalls and Challenges for Trust and Effectiveness in Collaborative Networks

Abstract

Collaborative networks in the public and non-profit sector face challenges that are typical for their institutional context. The typical characteristics that might impede the functioning of networks and, in particular, the development of trust and network effectiveness, are related to type of instigation, network flexibility, and power in the form of unbalanced influence and the vertical character of networks. In a sample of 52 networks, the effects of network flexibility, mandatory and vertical networks, and influence on trust and network effectiveness were studied. Findings indicated that particularly flexibility in networks was important and that cognition-based trust played a central role in obtaining effective networks.     

Political Authority and Bureaucratic Resilience

Abstract

Consumerism and choice have become prominent ideas in the design and delivery of public services. Often perceived as a way to improve the quality and value of public services, potential downsides and areas of concern that relate to a consumerist approach are frequently ignored. This review essay takes a critical stance on the application of a consumerist discourse to public service provision and management by exploring four key areas of concern: definitional problems, questions about the concept's transferability from a private to a public sector setting, the problematic nature of ‘choice’, and difficulties associated with implementing consumerist ideas within public service contexts..     

Weakening the glass ceiling: does organizational growth reduce gender segregation in the upper tiers of Danish local government?

ABSTRACT

The theory of representative bureaucracy highlights gender segregation in the public sector and its detrimental implications for public policy outcomes. Focusing attention on organisational responses to this protracted problem, we supply evidence on whether organizational growth provides potential for change in the upper echelons of the public sector. An evaluation of the relationship between new hires and gender representation within the management tiers of Danish local government reveals an association between the recruitment of additional employees and improved gender integration. This is particularly pronounced for public organizations that employ fewer women. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.     

Responses to public sector reform policy

Abstract

The article compares the ways in which different public sector organizations respond to similar federal government demands for public sector reform. The empirical basis of the article is a comparison of public sector reform in three agencies managing road systems in three Australian states. There are two constants in the research; namely, the nature of the responsibilities of the agencies with respect to the road network, and the demands of federal government policy for road reform throughout Australia. Yet within the ambit of these two constants, there is a distinctive contrast in the way the agencies have approached and implemented both policy and reforms. The article uses Hood's framework for viable organizational design options for variables relating to grid and group as an explanatory model for the results obtained from the research. Furthermore, it examines the utility of Hood's four styles of public sector organizations in order to explain different change outcomes in the three agencies studied.     

Returns to Scale and the Economic Impact of Migration

Abstract

This paper is concerned with the impact of international migration on a regional economy. It is based on the assumption that immigration causes the population of the region to grow, thereby increasing the cost of living for existing residents. In one version of the model, the government responds by increasing wages in the public sector so as to help offset the higher cost of living. The private sector follows suit. In another version of the model, wages are determined by supply and demand. The paper investigates what happens to living standards, unemployment and the location of the native population under different assumptions about returns to scale.     

Accounting Insights from the Healthcare Sector

There has been a major debate on the merits of accrual accounting in the public sector in general. This paper is an implementation study of accrual accounting in local government. It examines this issue from an implementation perspective. The implementation perspective adopted draws on Matland's ambiguity–conflict model (1995). This research is informed by a combined methods approach: the analysis of public documents and debates; a survey of local authority capital accountants and case study information on management's perceptions of this accounting information. This research reveals a complex outcome of reformers' initiatives which has resulted in these accounting changes being retained within the accounting domain and having limited impact on wider potential users of this information.