From policy program implementation to public value creation

This chapter aims to study the implications of and conditions for the shift from the inward-looking focus on the design and implementation of policy programs to a more outward-looking focus on public value outcomes. It first scrutinizes the bureaucratic preoccupation with the formation of policy programs and the attempt of NPM to broaden the original focus on bureaucratic rule-following to include concerns for the production of measurable results. The next section presents a critical analysis of the growing fragmentation of the public sector into a plethora of insulated public agencies that results from the efforts of NPM to reduce complexity through the creation of special-purpose agencies and secure efficient service delivery through performance management. Following this analysis, the public value concept is introduced as a part of a wider theory of public value management. Public value is argued to be a game-changer that opens up the public sector for the involvement of an array of public and private actors in producing governance solutions. The chapter is rounded off with a discussion of the barriers to the collaborative efforts to produce public value outcomes and the proactive strategies for achieving such outcomes.