The Impact of the New Public Management: Challenges for Coordination and Cohesion in European Public Sectors (Review Essay)

Halduskultuur – Administrative Culture, Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 190-209, 2011

20 Pages Posted: 12 Nov 2011

See all articles by Steven Van de Walle

Steven Van de Walle

KU Leuven - Department of Political Science; Erasmus University Rotterdam - Department of Public Administration

Gerhard Hammerschmid

Hertie School of Governance

Date Written: November 11, 2011

Abstract

New Public Management has been around for a quarter of a century in European public sectors, yet despite the movement’s emphasis on indicators and evidence, there have been surprisingly few encompassing evaluations. In this paper, we provide an overview of academic evaluation and impact studies of entire NPM-style reform programmes. We distinguish between two sets of NPM-style changes and reforms. One is that of specific managerial innovations within public organisations. The other consists of changes to the role of government and citizens as a result of NPM ideas. We conclude that a majority of academic research has focused on the first set of changes, while approaches to the second set has been mainly of a critical nature with relatively limited attention for empirical studies.

Keywords: New Public Management, fragmentation, cohesion, coordination

JEL Classification: D73

Suggested Citation

Van de Walle, Steven and Van de Walle, Steven and Hammerschmid, Gerhard, The Impact of the New Public Management: Challenges for Coordination and Cohesion in European Public Sectors (Review Essay) (November 11, 2011). Halduskultuur – Administrative Culture, Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 190-209, 2011, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1958168

Steven Van de Walle (Contact Author)

KU Leuven - Department of Political Science ( email )

Public Management Institute
Van Evenstraat 2A
B-3000 Leuven
Belgium
+32 16 323614 (Phone)
+32 16 323611 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.publicmanagementinstitute.be

Erasmus University Rotterdam - Department of Public Administration ( email )

3000 DR Rotterdam
Netherlands
0031 10 408 2518 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://www.stevenvandewalle.eu

Gerhard Hammerschmid

Hertie School of Governance ( email )

Schlossplatz 1
Berlin, 10178
Germany

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