From New Public Management to New Public Governance? Hybridization and Implications for Public Sector Consumerism

Abstract

This paper examines how variations in the notion of public sector consumerism become embedded in diverse governance practices. To this end, we extend the literature on public governance logics with insights from research on public sector consumerism and hybridization in public sector management reforms. Through a comparative, multi-level analysis we trace the development of two governance logics largely corresponding to the distinction between New Public Management (NPM) and New Public Governance (NPG) in Swedish transport infrastructure policy. In contrast to research predicting or prescribing a relatively radical shift between such governance logics we show how they partly co-evolved along two reform paths entailing notable variations in the degree of hybridization and the embedding of consumerist notions in emerging governance practices. In doing so, we draw attention to how the hybridization of governance logics is contingent on the alignment of diverse interests and differences in the process through which such logics are brought together. We discuss the implications of these findings for future research into public sector consumerism and hybridization in public sector management reforms.

ICTs and value creation in public sector: Manufacturing logic vs service logic

“…Co-production helps public organizations to deliver better and more efficient public services (Kannan & Chang, 2013;Nambisan & Nambisan, 2013) overcoming the limits and constraints of a centralized service provision system. Alternative public management approaches such as the NPG, consider the co-production of public services as the solution to the inability of public organizations to provide effective services (Eriksson, 2012; S. P. Osborne, 2006;Pestoff et al, 2011;Wiesel & Modell, 2014).…”

Municipalities’ Choices of Service Delivery Modes: The Influence of Service, Political, Governance, and Financial Characteristics

“…With governance we refer to "the processes by which organizations are directed, controlled, and held to account" (IFAC 2001, 1). Wiesel and Modell (2014) describe three governance logics that are visible in public sector organizations: the Progressive Public Administration (PPA), New Public Management (NPM), and New Public Governance (NPG) logics. Under the traditional Progressive Public Administration (PPA), the focus is on compliance with rules and regulations.…”

“…From the second half of the 1990s onwards, new developments can be observed which are represented by names such as "Public Value" (PV) and "New Public Governance" (NPG), which (among others) propose that government activities should be performed in a network of actors. Here, the control focus is more on outcomes (Wiesel and Modell 2014). A recent empirical study among several large Dutch municipalities provides some evidence that municipalities differ in the extent to which they have implemented elements of PPA, NPM, and NPG (see Blokker et al 2014).…”

Traits of Leaders of Rural Non-governmental Organisations as Predictors of Collaboration Between NGOs and Rural Gmina Offices: Voices from Central Poland

“…This role has been emphasised in the new public governance (NPG) concept (Morgan and Cook 2014 (eds. ); Morgan and Shinn 2014;Osborne et al 2016;Osborne and Strokosch 2013;Radnor and Osborne 2013;Sørensen and Torfing 2015;Torfing and Triantafillou 2013;Wiesel and Modell 2014). The concept highlights the significance of sectors outside the public sphere in not only providing but also constructing social services (Bryan and Sapeha 2015, p. 250).…”