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Public Management in
Europe: The Quest for Efficiency and Effectiveness (1996), Delta
Business International, Helsinki, Finland, ISBN 984-401-244-9.
Focus:
The main focuses of the study was to analyse the
trends and directions of public management in the central European
countries i.e. Finland, France, Germany, Sweden, United Kingdom. The
study focus was also on the application of 'economic' or 'market
principle' in the public organisations. The study also focused on the
comparative aspects on debureaucratisation i.e. transfer of public
functions to non-governmental organisations, local governments, and
citizen groups to reduce the role of public administration.
Findings:
The book explains that the institutional and
administrative aspects are subsumed under the broader categories and
reform strategies (formulated in terms of future oriented substantive
goals and objectives). The study points out that to improve the
efficiency and effectiveness of the public sectors some countries have
started delegation of power and expenditure ceilings mechanisms, and
others are actively scrutinising public sector structures and operations
as part of their long-term goal of structural adjustments.
The book also reveals that the demands for reforms have
involved not only structural changes but also the traditional
administrative culture. The policy makers have become more and more
concerned with the 'steering' administrative organisation through a
combination of better information about goals and values through
appropriate incentives and controls.
It is also indicated in the book that
'effectiveness' and 'impact measures' have been developed as performance
targets and the case study countries have moved towards achievement
orientation and values concerning outcome (effectiveness, equity) rather
than outputs orientation. In the fields of human resources the study
witnessed a tension between the demands of academic rigor and the market
requirement for practical utility, tensions between different training
institutes, and lack of co-ordination universities and government
training institutes.
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