1. Gry Cecilie Høiland Researcher TIK-center, OSIRIS University of Oslo
Sociologist, NAV employee, Phd soon in leadership and implementation

2. PhD thesis: Frontline policy implementation in public organizations
Gry Cecilie Høiland, Ph.D. candidate, University of Stavanger
PhD thesis: Frontline policy implementation in public organizations
A sociological analysis of the ‘how and why’ of implementation gaps
4/10/2019

3. Background of the thesis
Major puzzle in the field of policy implementation:
Implementation gap
Empirical gap in street-level implementation research:
The how and why in a multilevel perspective
(Hupe, 2014; Goldman & Foldy, 2015)
An organizational case study
investigating a specific implementation effort (evidence based) in the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (NAV), through all levels of the organization
Implementation = Pressman and Wildavsky

4. Deeper understanding of implementation gaps
1. What: multi-level implementation context and process look like
2. How: frontline staff perceived and responded to implementation instructions
3. Why: implementation gap at the case office
MIS, Inst.logics
Critical realist analysis of structure/agency interaction,
Institutional logics as tools
Coping and need for authenticity at work,
Match between central intention of the policy and the values of the frontline workers
Mismatch between implementation strategy used and the values of the frontline workers
Central mechanisms that gives a deeper insight into whether and why implementation strategies work or not in the frontlines
4/10/2019

5. Article-based PhD
Article 1
Høiland, Gry & Elisabeth Willumsen (2016). Understanding implementation in complex public organizations - implication for practice. Journal of Comparative Social Work, 11(2).
Article 2
Høiland, Gry & Lars Klemsdal (forthcoming). Institutional logics as tools for maneuvering top-down implementation instructions. (Submitted 2018).
Article 3
Høiland, Gry & Elisabeth Willumsen (2018). Resistance-driven innovation? Frontline public welfare workers’ coping with top-down implementation. Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies 8(2).

6. OSIRIS project To study the impact of research in NAV - the Norwegian labour and welfare administration
NAV is: 1/3 BNP – work inclusion main mandate
A lot of research is being done in and on NAV.
A major aim is to use research based knowledge in work inclusion services - evidence based services
How is knowledge based upon research and science implemented in the organization?