Public sector bureaucracies have been subjected to harsh criticism. One solution which has been widely adopted over the past two decades has been to 'unbundle government' - that is to break down monolithic departments and ministries into smaller, semi-autonomous 'agencies'. These are often governed by some type of performance contract, are at 'arm's length' or further from their 'parent' ministry or department and are freed from many of the normal rules governing civil service bodies. This, the first book to survey the 'why' and the 'how' of this epidemic of 'agencification', is essential reading for advanced students and researchers of public management. It includes case studies from every continent - from Japan to America and from Sweden to Tanzania, these 14 case studies (some covering more than one country) critically examine how such agencies have been set up and managed.

This book focuses on regulatory reforms and the autonomization and agencification of public sector organizations across Europe, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. The central argument of the book is that regulation and agencification occur and perform in tandem. Comparative analysis on the processes, effects and implications of regulatory reform and the establishment of semi-independent agencies are undertaken, and the practice of trade-offs between political control and agency autonomy is explored. The contributors also discuss the challenges of fragmentation, coordination, 'joined-up' government and other government initiatives in the aftermath of the New Public Management movement and its focus on agencification. Finally, the complexity of deregulation/re-regulation, new emergent forms of regulation, control and auditing as well as reassertion of the centre are examined. Until now, there has been little attempt to link the study on regulation and regulatory reforms with that of autonomous central agencies. In this book the two fields are brought together. Autonomy and Regulation will find its audience amongst scholars and researchers working in the areas of political science, public administration and public management, organization theory, institutional analyses and comparative administration. It will also appeal to scholars and those directly involved in public sector and regulatory reforms including politicians and managers.

Many countries now use agencies rather than ministries to deliver central government services. There have been many claims about the benefits of organizing and delivering government in this way, but there has been little research into how they work in practice. Agencies both reviews existing theories and models of 'agentification' and adds detailed analysis of major new empirical evidence. Based partly on a major international research project and partly on a reinterpretation of the existing literature, this book gets inside the world of agencies and ministries. An in-depth analysis of agencies in four EU countries serves as a basis for testing alternative theoretical models and developing a new approach to the complexities of contemporary government.

In . . . And Communications for All, 16 leading communications policy scholars present a comprehensive telecommunications policy agenda for the new federal administration. This agenda emphasizes the potential of information technologies to improve democratic discourse, social responsibility, and the quality of life along with the means by which it can be made available to all Americans. Schejter has assembled an analysis of the reasons for the failure of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, and offers an international benchmark for the future of telecommunications. Addressing a range of topics, including network neutrality, rural connectivity, media ownership, minority ownership, spectrum policy, universal broadband policy, and media for children, it articulates a comprehensive vision for the United States as a twenty-first-century information society that is both internally inclusive and globally competitive.

Presents an interview-based study of how political and professional agendas affect government statistical agencies in five liberal democracies.

Following on from the success of the editors' previous book, New Public Management: The Transformation of Ideas and Practice, which examined the public reform process up to the end of the last decade, this new volume draws on the previous knowledge both theoretically and empirically. It examines and debates the post-new public management reform development in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Australia and New Zealand. The ideal follow-up to the previous volume, this book includes many of the same contributors in addition to some fresh voices, and is a must for anyone looking for an integrated framework of analysis. Comprehensive and analytical, it is an important contribution to the study of public administration and particularly to the reform of public management.

Globalization and New Public Management pose major challenges to the policy capacity of the state. Challenges to State Policy Capacity offers the most timely and comprehensive coverage of contemporary state policy capacity. Drawing on the work by international leading scholars in political science and public administration, the book is indispensable to anyone interested in policy capacity, administrative reform and the state.