Guy Peters

This text examines the changes required to revitalize government in industrial democracies. The contributors to the book recognize both the difficulty of making predictions and the need to consider the future in order to prepare the public sector for new challenges.

In Governance in the Twenty-first Century Canadian and international experts recognize both the difficulty of making predictions and the need to consider the future in order to prepare the public sector for new challenges. The authors' predictions and recommendations are anchored in a thorough understanding of contemporary public administration. They point out that not only have previous reforms made yet more change necessary and inevitable but that the purpose of these reforms is to attempt to return government to the position of respect and competence it enjoyed in the past. Contributors include Peter Aucoin (Dalhousie), Jonathan Boston (University of Wellington, New Zealand), Jacques Bourgault (Ecole nationale d'administration publique Montreal), David R. Cameron (Toronto), Ralph Heintzman (Treasury Board Canada), Christopher Hood (London School of Economics and Political Science), Patricia W. Ingraham (The Maxwell School, Syracuse University), Donald P. Moynihan (The Maxwell School, Syracuse University), Jon Pierre (Goteborg University), B. Guy Peters, Christopher Pollitt (Erasmus University, The Netherlands), Donald J. Savoie, Richard Simeon (Toronto), Ignace Th.M. Snellen (Erasmus University, The Netherlands), and Vincent Wright (Oxford, England).

Distinguished scholars from six countries investigate the effects of reforms in a number of areas, including budgeting, personnel management, and accountability. While reforms have been beneficial in some of these areas, success has been far from universal. By comparing and contrasting measures in Canada, the United States, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe, contributors isolate and evaluate factors - such as individual political leaders and the complexity of government - that influence the success or failure of reforms. Contents: Introduction - B. Guy Peters (Pittsburgh) and Donald J. Savoie (Moncton) The Changing Role of the State - Bert A. Rockman (Pittsburgh) Managerialism Revisited - Christopher Pollitt (Brunel) What Works? The Antiphons of Administrative Reform - B. Guy Peters Public Sector Values and Administrative Reforms - Nicole de Montricher (Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris) Public Consultation and Citizen Participation: Dilemmas of Policy Advice - Jon Pierre (Goteborg) Making Public Policy: The Changing Role of the Higher Civil Service - Patricia W. Ingraham (Syracuse) Assessing Past and Current Personnel Reforms: The Pursuit of Flexibility, Pay-for-Performance, and the Management of Reform Initiatives - Hal G. Rainey (Georgia) Innovation in Public Sector Management - Michel Paquin (Ecole nationale d'administration publique) A New Generation of Budget Reform - Naomi Caiden (California State) Central Agencies and Departments: Empowerment and Coordination - John Hart (Australian National) Restructuring Government for the Management and Delivery of Public Services - Peter Aucoin (Dalhousie); The Changing Nature of Accountability - Paul G. Thomas (Manitoba); Fifteen Years of Reform: What Have We Learned? - Donald J. Savoie

Fiscal cutbacks, the public's declining confidence in government, and new ideologies are forcing the public sector in industrialized democracies to undertake major reforms. In these essays contributing authors examine changes to the political and economic envirnoment and the ways in which governments have responded. The essays attempt to explain what is happening in government in the late 20th century and suggest changes that can be expected in the future.

Fiscal cutbacks, the public's declining confidence in government, and new ideologies are forcing the public sector in industrialized democracies to undertake major reforms. In these essays contributing authors examine changes to the political and economic envirnoment and the ways in which governments have responded. The essays attempt to explain what is happening in government in the late 20th century and suggest changes that can be expected in the future.