New public management in Europe : adaptation and alternatives / edited by Christopher Pollitt, Sandra van Thiel and Vincent Homburg.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Pollitt, Christopher.

Thiel, Sandra van, 1968-

Homburg, Vincent, 1970-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Public administration--Europe.

Public administration.

Europe.

Physical Description:

xii, 229 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Basingstoke [England] ; New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.

Summary:

This new text offers a penetrating analysis of what happens when New Public Management (NPM) ideas collide with continental European systems of public administration. NPM ideas were mainly of Anglo-American origin, and, at first sight appear to have swept over much of the rest of the world. Specific implementations of NPM, however, show a surprisingly large variety of forms, shapes and results. These include performance indicators, personnel reforms, the creation and management of executive agencies, public private partnerships, benchmarking and evaluations of the reforms themselves.

This volume traces the ways in which different elements of NPM have been selected and re-interpreted for implementation in different national and sectoral contexts across Europe. It directly addresses issues of convergence and divergence, and how such variation can best be explained. It is therefore a must-read for students, scholars and practitioners who are studying and reflecting on the actual implementation of reform.

Contents:

2 Convergence or Divergence: What has been Happening in Europe? / Christopher Pollitt 10

3 Public Management Reforms in Countries with a Napoleonic State Model: France, Italy and Spain / Walter Kickert 26

4 The Management and Control of Executive Agencies: an Anglo-Dutch Comparison / Sandra van Thiel, Christopher Pollitt 52

5 Public-Private Partnership: a Two-Headed Reform. A Comparison of PPP in England and the Netherlands / Erik-Hans Klijn, Jurian Edelenbos, Michael Hughes 71

6 'New Public Managers' in Europe: Changes and Trends / Sandra van Thiel, Bram Steijn, Marine Allix 90

7 International Benchmarking of Public Organizations: a Critical Approach / Jan Hakvoort, Henk Klaassen 107

8 Will ICTs Finally Reinvent Government? The Mutual Shaping of Institutions and ICTs / Vincent Homburg, Ig Snellen 135

9 Hospital Performance Indicators: How and Why Neighbours Facing Similar Problems Go Different Ways - Building Explanations of Hospital Performance Indicator Systems in England and the Netherlands / Christopher Pollitt 149

10 New Public Management and Evaluation / Frans-Bauke van der Meer 165

11 Implementing NPM: a Complexity Perspective on Public Management Reform Trajectories / Geert Teisman, Arwin van Buuren 181.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 204-221) and indexes.

ISBN:

0230006930

9780230006935

OCLC:

70775795

Online:

Contributor biographical information

Publisher description