Public administration reforms have propagated the use of private sector management skills in the public sector, and an increased openness to managers with a private sector background. This has... Show morePublic administration reforms have propagated the use of private sector management skills in the public sector, and an increased openness to managers with a private sector background. This has created a debate between those who think private sector experience improves public institutions by bringing core managerial values such as results orientation, efficiency, or openness to innovation, and those who argue that private sector experience can damage core public sector values, such as impartiality and equity. Despite the abundant anecdotal evidence, broad empirical evidence on the effects of private sector experience on public managers' values remains limited. Using data from a survey among central government top managers in 18 European countries, we show that public managers with private sector experience have, as expected, more core managerial values. Yet, unlike the conventional view, core public values do not suffer. Show less
Toshkov, D.D.; Schmidt, E.; Berg, C.F. van den 2018
Sinds het begin van deze eeuw heeft de Rijksoverheid te maken gehad met tal van bezuinigingen en reorganisaties. Dit artikel bekijkt hoe de samenstelling van het centrale overheidsapparaat in de... Show moreSinds het begin van deze eeuw heeft de Rijksoverheid te maken gehad met tal van bezuinigingen en reorganisaties. Dit artikel bekijkt hoe de samenstelling van het centrale overheidsapparaat in de afgelopen 15 jaar is veranderd. Op basis van de bestaande literatuur theoretiseren we 4 methoden waarmee overheidskrimp gerealiseerd kan worden, en identificeren we per methode de mogelijke gevolgen voor de samenstelling van de rijksdienst in termen van hiërarchische opbouw en van leeftijd. Open data van de Kennisbank Openbaar Bestuur wordt gebruikt om te laten zien hoe de samenstelling is veranderd als het gaat om functieniveaus, geslacht en leeftijd. Het totaal aantal ambtenaren is slechts marginaal gedaald maar door sterke interne verschuivingen in schalen, geslacht en leeftijd ziet de rijksdienst er nu heel anders uit dan in 2000. Het aantal ambtenaren in lagere functieniveaus is sterk afgenomen, terwijl in hogere functieniveaus juist een toename zichtbaar is. Ten tweede is de verdeling van mannen en vrouwen binnen de overheid gelijker geworden, zeker op de hogere niveaus. Ten derde is de gemiddelde leeftijd van rijksambtenaren aanmerkelijk gestegen. Het artikel sluit af met aanbevelingen voor zowel wetenschap als praktijk. Show less
This chapter investigates patterns in the application of policy analytical techniques by government officials across different types of policy sectors in three subnational administrations in... Show moreThis chapter investigates patterns in the application of policy analytical techniques by government officials across different types of policy sectors in three subnational administrations in Belgium. Even when there is general consensus about the importance of policy analytical capacity, government officials’ deployment of policy analytical tools may vary across policy sectors, both in terms of frequency as well as in terms of type. To explain these variations, the chapter examines the role of three explanatory conditions that were originally identified to account for variance in policy analytical practice at the national level of analysis, but may also be relevant for the diffusion of policy analytical praxis across different types of policy sectors. These conditions are the role of social scientists in a particular sector, the degree of government spending per sector, and the receipt of EU subsidies. The analysis draws on recent survey material in Belgium carried out in three different subnational administrations: the Flemish government administration (Flanders), the administration of the Walloon Regional government (Walloon Region), and the administration of the government of the French-speaking community of Belgium (French-speaking Community). Show less
