Competitive Tendering and Contracting in the Public Sector: A Survey

This paper is a survey of the role and impact of competitive tendering and contracting (CTC) policies in the public sector. The paper examines the theoretical rationale for introducing competition in the provision of public services and the methodology by which contracting decisions are reached. It investigates the extent of implementation and nature of outcomes in several countries. A broad sweep of the empirical findings suggests that CTC generates substantial cost savings. Lack of adequate data makes an assessment of the effect on quality more troublesome, and further research is needed     

Contracting-out at local government level

Abstract

Contracting-out is a public sector reform tool, and it is used as a specific form of privatization. Because of its multi-dimensional character, it does not always lead to positive improvements, even in developed countries, and its impact in countries in Central and Eastern Europe may be limited. This issue is discussed in the theoretical part of this paper. Its analytical part investigates selected important dimensions of contracting-out for local public services in Slovakia and the Czech Republic, namely forms of delivery, decision-making processes concerning the selection of the form of delivery and of supplier, and costs comparisons. The final part provides a brief list of possible tools to improve the current negative situation.     

Support for contracting-out and public-private partnership: exploring citizens’ perspectives

ABSTRACT

Many studies have evaluated the merits and challenges of contracting-out and public-private partnership (PPP). However, few studies have examined citizens’ views of these alternative service-delivery mechanisms and what factors influence their views. Using results from a citizen survey of a mid-sized US city, the present study investigates how consumerism, the citizenry framework, and symbolic institutionalism influence public support for contracting-out and PPP. Our findings show that symbolic institutionalism provides the most significant and consistent explanation of public support for the mechanisms. Implications for public management practices and future research, especially on creating and capturing value through PPP, are discussed.