1. CHANGING PUBLIC MANAGEMENT AND PUBLIC MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
DR GEERT BOUCKAERT
INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC MANAGEMENT
KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVEN
BELGIUM
Presented in Hong Kong Feb 98.
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES 1

2. 1. STARTING POSITIONS FOR CHANGING PUBLIC
MANAGEMENT: MORE AND LESS SIMILAR FEATURES
2. TRENDS IN CHANGING PUBLIC MANAGEMENT
3. TRENDS IN PUBLIC MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE:
STRATEGIES
4. TRENDS IN PUBLIC MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE: TACTICS
5. FOCUS FOR A FUTURE CHANGE AGENDA
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES

3. MORE SIMILAR FEATURES WITH AN IMPACT ON CHANGE
1. STARTING POSITIONS FOR CHANGING PUBLIC MANAGEMENT: MORE AND LESS SIMILAR FEATURES
MORE SIMILAR FEATURES WITH AN IMPACT ON CHANGE
pressure on the public sector
public sector as a significant actor in society
investments in the public sector as a necessity
quality is good but should improve
performance equals results and presentation of results
the European Administrative Space
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES

4. LESS SIMILAR FEATURES WITH AN IMPACT ON CHANGE
1. STARTING POSITIONS FOR CHANGING PUBLIC MANAGEMENT: MORE AND LESS SIMILAR FEATURES
LESS SIMILAR FEATURES WITH AN IMPACT ON CHANGE
terminology of change
state structure: centralised versus decentralised
type of executive: majoritarian versus consensual
minister/mandarin relations: seperate versus osmosis
administrative cultures
sources of policy advice
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES

5. 2. TRENDS IN CHANGING PUBLIC MANAGEMENT
more focus on performance
mechanism:
- more internal pressure results in better performance
(strategy, finance, personnel, organisation)
- more external pressure results in better performance
(Market-type-mechanisms)
  more specialisation results in better performance
(autonomous agencies)
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES

6. 2. TRENDS IN CHANGING PUBLIC MANAGEMENT
more focus on responsibility and accountability
mechanism:
- new patterns to define responsibility
(contracts, mandates, enveloppes, etc.) 
- new patterns for accountability
(audit and evaluation)
more focus on societal actors as partners
- focus on societal chains of value added
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES

7. 2. TRENDS IN CHANGING PUBLIC MANAGEMENT
conclusion
4 M's:
Maintain
Modernise
Marketise
Minimise
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES

8. 3. TRENDS IN PUBLIC MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE
STRATEGIES OF CHANGE
Chronologies of change
Early birds and others
Timelines of change
Continuity or not
Coherence of change (levels of government)
Leading levels of government
Coherence of change (content)
Leading sectors of change
Change as a policy cycle
Design, Implementation and Evaluation of Change
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES

9. direction: top down versus bottom up style: de jure versus de facto
4. TACTICS OF CHANGE
direction: top down versus bottom up
style: de jure versus de facto
scope: incremental versus exhaustive
pressure: compulsory versus voluntary
allocation of new tasks: existing or new institutions
triggers: external versus internal
key actors: politics versus administration
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES

10. 5. FOCUS FOR A FUTURE CHANGE AGENDA
GENERAL REMARKS
change towards the European Administrative Space
change as a learning cycle
between countries
between levels of government
between types of services
learning from failures, not just best practices
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES

11. 5. FOCUS FOR A FUTURE CHANGE AGENDA
WHAT IS NEXT
not what to do
but how to avoid and how to approach
don't treat without diagnosis
don't say: "let's cut/change/substitute and see what happens"
don't imitate or buy solutions blindly
involve stakeholders
guarantee also administrative leadership
guarantee ownership in the long run
don't reduce reality to a prefabricated consultancy model
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES

12. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Public Management Reform: A Comparative Analysis, Bouckaert & Pollitt, 2000, Oxford University Press, 248p.
37th Meeting of European Director-Generals responsible for public service
- 26 and 27 November BRUGES