From a normative stance, co-production has been recommended at all stages of the public service cycle. However, previous empirical studies on co-production have neglected the question of how to make this happen. Moreover, little attention has been paid to how co-production might occur in multi-level governance settings. The aim of this article is to fill these gaps, identifying triggers and organizational and managerial issues that could support the adoption of co-production in multi-level governance settings. The empirical analysis is based on a case study of services for autistic children. The findings highlight that co-production was prompted by inter-organizational arrangements and that trust-building among the actors played a pivotal role in nurturing a coproduction approach. Points for practitionersFrom an organizational perspective, our case study shows that, in order to foster coproduction in multi-level governance settings, all stages of the public service cycle should be aligned and inspired by the same logic. From a managerial perspective itCorresponding author: Enrico Guarini, University of Milano-Bicocca, Department of Business Administration, Finance, Management and Law, Via R. Bicocca degli Arcimboldi, 8, 20126 Milan, Italy. Email: enrico.guarini@unimib.it highlights that the implementation of co-production requires new managerial skills and tools. Public managers are asked to listen to community groups and individuals, to mobilize collective resources and knowledge, and exercise a meta-governance role. Finally, in order to have co-produced services, our findings point to the need to start thinking differently about the roles of civil society and government in satisfying the common good.

Shadows over accreditation in higher education: some quantitative evidenceAccreditation systems in Higher Education are widespread both in the US and in Europe. However, numerous reservations have appeared in the literature about whether these systems can comprehend and represent the quality of university courses. This study sets out to contribute to this debate by discussing whether the results of the recent university teaching accreditation system in Italy are influenced by the characteristics of degree programmes, their performance and the characteristics of incoming students. Whilst addressing this research question this paper intents above all to give a methodological contribution by proposing an evidence-based approach that tackles the limits found in the literature in relation to university accreditation and quality assurance

This article examines how co-production can contribute to information quality in support of labour-market decision-making. Data was gathered on different types of Labor Market Intelligence as decision-support systems for stakeholders, and subsequently by analyzing a specific program, with a focus on the role of information within its co-production process. Results confirm the importance of information systems to support employment services design, but highlight the limitations of existing channels, and outline the types of information that are needed for policy effectiveness: those that are gathered through continuous relations with employers and jobseekers, and which often derive from participation in policy networks.

D’un point de vue normatif, la coproduction est recommandée à tous les stades du cycle des services publics. Cependant, les études empiriques antérieures sur la coproduction ne se sont pas penchées sur la question de savoir comment la mettre en œuvre. Rares sont par ailleurs les auteurs qui s’intéressent à la manière dont la coproduction peut s’organiser dans les structures de gouvernance à niveaux multiples. Le but du présent article est de combler ces lacunes, en identifiant les éléments déclenchants, ainsi que les aspects organisationnels et managériaux susceptibles de favoriser l’adoption de la coproduction dans les structures de gouvernance à niveaux multiples. L’analyse empirique s’appuie sur une étude de cas axée sur les services destinés aux enfants autistes. Nous verrons que la coproduction est le résultat de dispositifs interorganisationnels et que le renforcement de la confiance entre les acteurs a joué un rôle essentiel dans la promotion d’une approche en faveur de la coproduction. Remarques à l’intention des praticiens D’un point de vue organisationnel, notre étude de cas révèle que pour favoriser la coproduction dans les structures de gouvernance à niveaux multiples, il convient d’axer les différents stades du cycle des services publics sur la même logique. D’un point de vue managérial, notre étude fait apparaître que la mise en œuvre de la coproduction exige de nouvelles compétences et de nouveaux outils au niveau managérial. Les gestionnaires publics sont invités à écouter les groupes communautaires et les individus, à mobiliser les ressources et les connaissances collectives et à exercer une fonction de métagouvernance. Enfin, si l’on veut assurer la coproduction des services, nos observations indiquent qu’il faut commencer à envisager de façon différente le rôle joué par la société civile et l’État dans la défense de l’intérêt commun.

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