Förvaltningsakademin

En blogg från centrumbildningen Förvaltningsakademin vid Södertörns högskola.

De små medlens betydelse: Om meningsskapande, mångtydighet och styrning i offentlig förvaltning Lindgren, Christofer Stockholms universitet, Samhällsvetenskapliga fakulteten, Statsvetenskapliga institutionen. ORCID-id: 0000-0002-0393-4891 2018 (Svenska) Doktorsavhandling, monografi (Övrigt vetenskapligt) Alternativ titel The significance of the little measures : On sensemaking, ambiguity and steering in public administration (Engelska)

Abstract [en]

Some policy work within public administrations these days seems to rely heavily on individual officials’ efforts to make sense of new policy proposals and practices to other groups in their organizations. This is the case especially with local work on cross-cutting issues such as gender and equal treatment policies, children’s rights issues, sustainability and climate policies etc. Typically, work on these matters are meant to be carried out in all parts of the public sector. However, operations in many parts of this sector are guided by managerial models giving little weight to what is usually perceived as “side issues”. Also, new policy proposals in these areas tend to be formed in complex boundary-spanning practices, involving partnerships and collaborative work, not easily compatible with administrative ideals of clear divisions of tasks and mandates. As a result, the officials responsible for work with these issues often seem to have to invest time in explaining both why certain steps ought to be implemented, and by what legitimate processes they have come about. 

In this study, such micro-level attempts to gain support for new policy proposals or practices in the administration through efforts to influence the meanings ascribed to them, is seen as a form of steering. The aim of the thesis is to investigate them as such, with the help of governance theory and Karl Weick’s sensemaking perspective. Thereby, the study seeks to provide insights into questions of how this micro-level steering may be analyzed, as well as issues of what they may mean for public administrations’ capacity to make sense of conflicting demands. 

Theoretically, the study arrives at an analytical model based on two arguments. The first is that attempts to mobilize other members of an administration in complex practices via means of influencing their understanding of these practices, could be seen a project with two thresholds. One concerns the need of explaining what type of situation or practice members are faced with, and how it fits into the order of the administration. The other concerns the need to visualize its aims in such a way that it appears desirable to groups targeted for mobilization. The second argument is that micro-level attempts to influence meaning-making processes in public administrations could be undertaken in both direct and indirect ways. They may come in the form of words and “talk” directly intended to enact certain images in the organization, but also in the form of efforts to stabilize or reinforce the social dynamics holding such images in place. The study discusses several ways in which attempts to manage this dynamic may be carried out.

Empirically, the analytical model is applied to two case studies focusing on officials working in Swedish municipalities. The task set out for the cases is to investigate the officials’ attempts to gain support for an EU-funded partnership, with the objective of changing recruitment routines in their administrations. The results show that the officials indeed used both direct and indirect means to influence other members understanding of this practice. But also that there appeared to exist a certain dynamic between these means, underlining the need to apply a broad analytical framework when studying this steering, and on a more general note that such steering should be thought of as a product of both communicative and organizing skills.      

Ort, förlag, år, upplaga, sidor

Stockholm: Statsvetenskapliga institutionen, Stockholms universitet , 2018. , s. 298

Serie

Stockholm studies in politics, ISSN 0346-6620 ; 177

Consulting or holding to account?: The Swedish National Audit Office as an agent of change in public administration Carrington, Thomas Stockholms universitet, Samhällsvetenskapliga fakulteten, Företagsekonomiska institutionen. ORCID-id: 0000-0002-2719-8497 2017 (Engelska) Ingår i: Statsvetenskaplig Tidskrift, ISSN 0039-0747, Vol. 119, nr 1, s. 91-109

Abstract [en]

This paper explores the impact of the performance audits of a national audit office, Sweden’s Riksrevisionen, on the public administration it audits. It does so by investigating how the auditee perceives their relationship with the auditor in terms of accountability and consulting with the aim to explore the role of the national audit office as an agent of change in the entities of the public administration. Riksrevi- sionen is found to take a consulting approach in their performance audits and the stronger the relationship is perceived as consulting, the higher the propensity to change. The same relationship is found with regard to the accountability relationship when the accountability pressure is perceived internally in the organization. When the accountability pressure is external no relationship with change can be corroborated. 

Ort, förlag, år, upplaga, sidor

2017. Vol. 119, nr 1, s. 91-109

Nyckelord [en]

auditing, performance audit, consulting, accountability

Nationell ämneskategori

Studier av offentlig förvaltning

Användning av utvärderingar inom Arbetsförmedlingen Zovko, Davor Mälardalens högskola, Akademin för hälsa, vård och välfärd, Hälsa och välfärd. Örebro Universitet, Sweden. Ekermo, Mats Mälardalens högskola, Akademin för hälsa, vård och välfärd, Hälsa och välfärd. ORCID-id: 0000-0003-1391-033X Brunnberg, Elinor Mälardalens högskola, Akademin för hälsa, vård och välfärd, Hälsa och välfärd. Mälardalen Research Center.(MRC) ORCID-id: 0000-0002-8690-3002 2016 (Svenska) Ingår i: Arbetsmarknad & Arbetsliv, ISSN 1400-9692, Vol. 22, nr 1, s. 6-26

Abstract [sv]

Arbetsförmedlingen använder utvärdering huvudsakligen för kontroll och återrapportering till regeringen och inte för verksamhetsutveckling avseende utveckling av stödet till de arbetssökande. Det visar en analys av policydokument och kvalitativa intervjuer med ledningspersonal inom ett lokalt arbetsmarknadsområde. Arbetsförmedlingens utvärderingar genomförs centralt och kommuniceras nedåt i organisationen. New Public Management-modellen i organisationen tycks vara överordnad Arbetsförmedlingens funktion som människobehandlande organisation.

Ort, förlag, år, upplaga, sidor

2016. Vol. 22, nr 1, s. 6-26

Nationell ämneskategori

Samhällsvetenskap Annan samhällsvetenskap

Forskningsämne

socialt arbete

Strategic Management in the Public Sector: How Tools Enable and Constrain Strategy Making Höglund, Linda Mälardalen University. Holmgren Caicedo, Mikael Stockholm University. Mårtensson, Maria Stockholm University. ORCID-id: 0000-0002-7889-2331 Svärdsten, Fredrik Stockholm University. 2018 (Engelska) Ingår i: International Public Management Journal, ISSN 1096-7494, E-ISSN 1559-3169, Vol. 21, nr 5, s. 822-849

Abstract [en]

Strategic management (SM) has become prominent on the agenda in several public organizations due to new public management (NPM) reforms. Nevertheless, there are few studies investigating how public organizations apply SM in practice and what tools are used. As a result, calls have been made for such studies. This article can be seen as an attempt to meet this call by presenting a qualitative case study of how SM has been applied in the Swedish Transport Administration (STA), a central government agency in Sweden, and what tools it used in strategy making. By analyzing the micro processes of strategizing at STA, our results indicate that public organizations need to be aware of at least three specific tensions that can enable or constrain strategy making. These tensions are: short v. long-term, parts v. whole, and reactivity v. proactivity.

Ort, förlag, år, upplaga, sidor

Taylor & Francis, 2018. Vol. 21, nr 5, s. 822-849

Nationell ämneskategori

Företagsekonomi

Forskningsämne

Searching for managerial discretion: How public managers engage managerialism as a rationalization for increased latitude of action Artikel i vetenskaplig tidskrift, refereegranskad Författare Tom Karlsson | Förvaltningshögskolan Publikationsår 2019Publicerad i Public Management Review, 21 (3), 315-333

SammanfattningThis article focuses on the managerial discretion that public managers experience. More specifically, it discusses how managerialism is an embedded ideological stance that influences understandings of public sector governance. I argue that managers’ perceptions of discretion are affected by these understandings. The analysis draws on empirical data from a longitudinal study, demonstrating how public managers engage discourses emanating from managerialism in order to rationalize increased discretion. The findings suggest that customer perspectives functions as a rationalizing factor for engaging public managers’ transition towards increased discretion. As such, this article contributes to knowledge about managerial discretion as well as managerialism.Länkar

ISSN1471-9037E-ISSN1471-9045Ämnesord

  • SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP | Statsvetenskap
  • SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP | Ekonomi och näringsliv | Företagsekonomi
  • SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP | Statsvetenskap | Studier av offentlig förvaltning
  • SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP | Ekonomi och näringsliv

NyckelordPublic management, managerialization, management as ideology, latitude of action, customersSpråkEngelskaPublikations-ID268335Identifikatorer

Public Administration in transition: Studying understandings and legitimations amongst middle managers within a government agency Artikel i vetenskaplig tidskrift, refereegranskad Författare Tom Karlsson | Förvaltningshögskolan Publikationsår 2019Publicerad i Journal of Language and Politics, 18 (1), 107-130

SammanfattningThis article focuses on how common-sense knowledge is enacted by middle managers in order to make sense of contemporary public administration. Specifically, the article demonstrates how managerialization and market logics is embedded in actors’ perceptions of public administration and becomes manifested through understandings and legitimations. The article presents an analysis of conversational data from middle management positions within a Swedish government agency. The analysis demonstrates how actors categorize a traditional hierarchy together with contemporary ideas of consumerism. It is also demonstrated how actors draw on legitimations of authority and mythopoesis in order to make sense of and to understand their managerial role within the agency. As such, the article contributes to contemporary public administration literature and its discussion regarding the effects of embedding marketization logics on actor and organizational levels as well as to ethnomethodologically informed literature within the social science and humanities.Länkar

ISSN1569-2159Ämnesord

  • SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP | Ekonomi och näringsliv | Företagsekonomi
  • SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP | Statsvetenskap | Studier av offentlig förvaltning
  • SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP | Statsvetenskap

Nyckelordpublic administration, marketization, sense making, legitimation, Membership Categorization Analysis, mythopoesisSpråkEngelskaPublikations-ID277326Identifikatorer

The development of the management accountant’s role revisited: An example from the Swedish Social Insurance Agency Holmgren Caicedo, Mikael Stockholm University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Stockholm Business School, Accounting. ORCID iD: 0000-0001-5639-3569 Mårtensson, Maria Stockholm University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Stockholm Business School, Accounting. Linnaeus University, Sweden. Tamm Hallström, Kristina Stockholm University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Stockholm Centre for Organizational Research (SCORE). 2018 (English) In: Financial Accountability and Management, ISSN 0267-4424, E-ISSN 1468-0408, Vol. 34, no 3, p. 240-251 Article in journal (Refereed) Published

Abstract [en]

This study traces the development of the management accountant (MA) role at the Swedish Social Insurance Agency (SIA). In 2012, the agency began a reformation by implementing the Lean management system in hopes of increasing customer trust. The results of this study show that the authority of the MA rests on decentralization and the proximity of MAs to managers, as previous research has shown, and more specifically on a definitional and a moral prerogative that may or may not be awarded to MAs enabling them to act as de facto managers. The study shows how the role of the SIA’s operative level MAs changed into a helpdesk function with the role of assisting other groups to help themselves, in this case operative-level teams that had begun performing management accounting tasks. Thus, this study bears witness not to the expansion and hybridization of existing MA roles, but to the reduction in authority and de-hybridization of the MA role, from business partner to a pedagogical role on a consultative basis.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages

2018. Vol. 34, no 3, p. 240-251

Keywords [en]

Bean counter, business partner, Lean, Management accountant, NPM

National Category

Business Administration

Identifiers

URN: urn:nbn:se:su:diva-153498DOI: 10.1111/faam.12156ISI: 000437738100003OAI: oai:DiVA.org:su-153498DiVA, id: diva2:1186966

The impact of new public management through outsourcing on the management of government information: The case of Sweden Svärd, Proscovia University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa; Södertörn University College. 2019 (Engelska) Ingår i: Records Management Journal, ISSN 0956-5698, E-ISSN 1758-7689, Vol. 29, nr 1/2, s. 134-151 Artikel i tidskrift (Refereegranskat) Published

Abstract [en]

Purpose: Using a case study method, the article investigates the impact New Public Management (NPM), through outsourcing has had on the management of government information at the Swedish Transport Agency. In April 2015 the Agency outsourced its IT-operations to IBM company. Some of the IBM sub-contractors had not been cleared by the Swedish Security Service. This exposed the Agency’s information to risk. By outsourcing the IT operations, the General Director of the Agency deviated from the laws governing government information such as the Swedish Security Protection Act, the Personal Data Act and the Publicity and Secrecy Act. Design/methodology/approach: The researcher has applied a case study method as the investigation focuses on a phenomenon in a real-life setting. The case study method entails the use of past studies, which facilitates the exploration and understanding of a complex issue. The phenomenon under investigation is NPM’s impact, through outsourcing, on the management of public information at the Swedish Transportation Agency. Findings: Outsourcing should be foregone by well-formulated contracts that should put into consideration the management of government information and the involvement of all stakeholders such as records managers/archivists, IT personnel, heads of departments, lawyers and business analysts. Outsourcing risks to compromise the two tenets of democracy that is, accountability and transparency which are central to Swedish public administrations’ operations. Research limitations/implications: The study is limited by the fact that it only presents the views of the archivists. This was, however, purposely done because their voice was missing during the discussions that followed after the data breach scandal had become public knowledge. Additionally, archivists are supposed to play a major role in the management of government information at Swedish institutions. Further research that will involve different categories of employees might give a deeper and better understanding of the impact that NPM, through outsourcing, is having on the management of government information and what implications this might have on issues of trust, transparency and accountability. Practical implications: The study demonstrates the need for well-formulated outsourcing contracts that will include information management clauses. It is of crucial importance in a democratic society that access to government information is not compromised as institutions endeavor to achieve efficiency and high-quality service delivery. Social implications: It is government information that gives citizens knowledge about the various processes of government institutions. It is therefore of paramount importance that government information is not left in the hands of unauthorized companies that are involved in the outsourcing activity but should be securely managed and guarded, as the opposite might pose privacy and national security challenges and hence undermine the trust that citizens have in government institutions. Originality/value: The search that the author conducted confirmed paucity in research that discusses issues related to NPM, outsourcing and the management of government information. This paper is therefore a contribution to the discourse from an archives and information management perspective.

Ort, förlag, år, upplaga, sidor

2019. Vol. 29, nr 1/2, s. 134-151

Nyckelord [en]

Accountability, Government information, New public management, Outsourcing, Transparency, Information Studies, Biblioteks- och informationsvetenskap

Nationell ämneskategori

Biblioteks- och informationsvetenskap

Identifikatorer

URN: urn:nbn:se:miun:diva-35741DOI: 10.1108/RMJ-09-2018-0038OAI: oai:DiVA.org:miun-35741DiVA, id: diva2:1294512

Influence as the key to consent? Swedish director generals’ perceptions of reporting requirements Artikel i vetenskaplig tidskrift, refereegranskad Författare Jenny De Fine Licht | Förvaltningshögskolan Jon Pierre | Statsvetenskapliga institutionen Publikationsår 2019Publicerad i International Journal of Public Sector Management, 32 (4), 388-402

Sammanfattning© 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: Performance measurements have become a prominent part of government steering of public agencies. At the same time, they are increasingly criticized for creating heavy administrative burdens. The purpose of this paper is to argue that consent on part of the heads of agencies is vital for making performance measurement an efficient tool for not only control but also organizational learning. Design/methodology/approach: The paper reports a survey with a nearly total sample of Swedish Director Generals. Findings: Findings suggest that Director Generals who feel that they are able to influence the goals and indicators of their agencies are significantly more willing to consent to the government’s reporting requirements. Originality/value: The paper suggests that a more encompassing, interactive and participatory process might increase agency consent with reporting requirements.Länkar

ISSN0951-3558Ämnesord

  • SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP | Statsvetenskap

NyckelordDirector Generals, Performance measurement, Reporting requirementsSpråkEngelskaPublikations-ID278914Identifikatorer

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