Changing governance structures as a means to public sector reform

Staatskanzlei des Kantons Aargau

European Cooperation in the field of Scientific and Technical Research (COST)

Jubilee Fund of the City of Vienna for the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration

This project focuses on changing governance structures in the course of public sector reform programmes. We especially analyse the various forms (e.g. corporatizations/agencies, public private partnerships, contracting out, etc.), the motives and objectives, and the dynamics of the corresponding developments of specific policy fields within their socio-political contexts and the reflection of these processes in the public agenda and debate. A comparative perspective is chosen in order to highlight specific national characteristics.
A main interest is the question what kind of factors (institutional, individual-rationality) impact the diffusion and success of new governance structures.
The current focus lies on public private partnerships (PPPs) and agencies (Ausgliederungen). The latter is embedded in a research network within the EU COST Action program “Comparative Research into Current Trends in Public Sector Organization (CRIPO)” which focuses on an EU-wide comparative research on the autonomisation, coordination and steering of agencies and its impact on both performance and accountability.