Lecture by Tom Nilsson, Malmö University, in Kiev, January 2016. THANK YOU TO POLITICAL ECONOMY DEPARTMENT at VADYM HETMAN University KIEV PORUCH EDUCATIONAL TRENDS WEBSITE

1. Innovations, sustainability and
regulations

2. Social innovation from a public
sector perspective
• The institutional setting (as in formal and
informal rules)
• Changes in public management that paved the
way for cross-sector collaboration and social
innovation
• New Public Management and Governance
inspired reforms (and discourses or new ideas
regarding the public sector)

3. Moving away from a
Weberian bureaucracy
• Changing the public leadership
• Changing the means of political steering
• Rewarding employees initiatives
• Introducing competition as a incentive for change
• Focusing on the citizens (or consumers of public
goods)
----------------
# The obedient and neutral weberian bureaucrat in
a formalised structure, compliant and implementing
quite detailed regulation

4. Governance
• A term that emerged in the late 80s and gained currency among
both academics and policy-makers in the 1990s
• A broader term than government. It refers, in its widest sense, to
the various ways through which social life is coordinated.
• Emphasis on the horizontal side of government. Coordination of
societal sectors, collaboration and co-operation between political,
economic and third sector actors (but often in the “shadow of
hierarchy”)
• Both analytical/descriptive and normative/prescriptive (as in ‘Good
Governance’).
• Rhodes argues that there has been a shift from “governance by a
unitary state to governance through and by networks”

5. Why Governance?
• The incapacity of the State to ‘steer’ and the
need to bring in other actors. “Government
overload” and an effort to share resources. A
remedy to horizontal policy coordination
problems.
• The idea of making politics more in tune with
citizens’ needs and wishes
• The greater impact of both supranational and
subnational organisations (multi-level
governance)

6. Vertical vs horizontal dimensions
• According to the vertical logic public administration is
expected to implement political decisions through a
vertically organised bureaucracy (”Weberian”)
• Key concepts: accountability (both democratic and
managerial), control, clear lines of responsibility,
standardisation
• According to the horizontal logic public administration
is expected to develop through horizontal collaboration
and coordination with external and internal partners
• Key concepts: autonomy, decentralisation, local
adaptation, networks, partnerships, projects

7. Governance has many shapes
and forms
• Formal – informal
• Policy-formulating - implementing
• Open – closed
• Inclusive – exclusive
• Permanent – temporary
• Orchestrated (by the state or the EU) –
spontaneous

8. Policy instruments
• Usually achieved by soft policy instruments:
- economic incentives (carrots)
- pursuation, information, knowledge (sermons)
Especially in sensitive or difficult policy areas where
results are hard to achieve by traditional means; i.e.
environmental issues, regional growth, integration,
social cohesion

9. One example
• Textile dialogues between the Swedish Chemicals
Agency and the fashion/clothes/textile companies.
• “The Swedish Chemicals Agency shall establish
dialogues with prioritized industries with the purpose
of strengthening the industries’ knowledge regarding
chemicals and follow up their activities to identify and
reduce risks and substitute harmful chemical
substances. The Agency shall see to that the industries
formulate monitorable targets for this work.
(Government instruction 2010)
• Self regulate

10. However…
• Obtaining change is difficult, organisations are
resistant and change challenges ”status quo”
and invested interests (i.e. the existing
dispersion of power).
• Challenges can be generational (old vs. new
mind-sets), or challenge professional norms or
value systems
• There are no quick fix, and local adaptation of
ideas and reforms are necessary