Narrow Results

This paper compares the perceptions of private and public sector managers in regard to knowledge management (KM), using data derived from a survey conducted in Australia. The objective is to develop understanding of the current practice to assist in developing strategies to improve public sector KM practice. Findings revealed that public sector respondents in Australia had a less developed understanding in KM and intellectual capital (IC), as compared to the private sector respondents. This poorer understanding had led to a much weaker KM practice in the public sector: KM initiatives were not commonly addressed at the strategic level; employees were less trained and developed; few measurement systems were developed and almost no incentive and reward measures were established. In addition, public sector respondents were less confident about the roles of organisational culture, organisational structure and IT in KM in their organisation. They had lower agreement on the role of organisational structure, culture and IT as knowledge creation and sharing facilitators. The study, to a certain extent, supports the proposition that industrial context has an effect on managers' perceptions of KM.

The ageing workforce soon leads to a number of retirements in government organisations that will put the knowledge basis at risk. Addressing this point the present study provides an analysis and evaluation of a Swedish municipality’s dealing with the aspects of knowledge management and succession planning against the background of demographic developments and the increased relevance of knowledge. It reports findings based on semi-structured interviews conducted with executive staff of the municipality. Results of data analysed show that the municipality is far from being ready to master the challenges ahead. To date the municipality follows a sporadic approach rather than a strategic and planned one when addressing the issue of succession planning. Indeed, the findings suggest that a muddling through approach prevails. Based on the findings some suggestions were derived that may help both municipalities facing similar circumstances as well as policy makers drafting suitable policies.

We studied the optimal funding of the public sector for the Hi-Tech industry in the presence of short-term, cyclical, venture capital (VC) funding by constructing a decision-making model that results in the optimal governmental support and a model that accounts for the dynamics of the VC industry. We found that the VC industry is highly correlated with the NASDAQ stock index and that the optimal public policy for funding the Hi-Tech sector should be anti-cyclical, dynamic, and conditioned on the VC investments. The models and their validation are discussed as well as the practical implications for policy and decision makers.

Management control systems (MCSs) are commonly assumed to limit autonomy and freedom, thereby hindering innovation. Over the past several years, researchers have studied this relationship in western societies and have compiled contradictory findings. As such, the relationship between MCSs and innovation needs to be further explored. This study seeks to provide a better understanding of this relationship by applying the theoretical levers-of-control (LoC) framework while using two new second-order constructs. Quantitative data are collected from large Indian public sector enterprises (PSE) and are analyzed using the structural equation modeling (SEM) partial least squares (PLS) method. Findings confirm that Indian PSEs tend to use all four levers of the framework and that control and innovation can co-exist. It also differentiates the effect on innovation of two new second-order control constructs: constraining and inspirational. Findings of this study may help managers influence innovation by giving them the ability to adjust the different LoC.

Background: In an era where technological advancements are reshaping the global workforce, understanding the dynamics of technology adoption within the public sector becomes paramount. This study examines how employees in the Ghanaian public sector respond to technology readiness (TR) in terms of their career adaptability (CA) and innovative work behavior (IWB). The uniqueness of this research lies in its empirical investigation of how TR’s motivational and inhibitory dimensions influence CA and, subsequently, IWB, within a context marked by rapid digital transformation. This study is essential due to the key role of Ghana’s public sector employees in national development, especially with ongoing digitization. It fills a research gap by assessing how these employees’ psychological readiness for technology affects their careers and innovation.

Method: The study used a cross-sectional survey design and collected data from 484 public sector employees and their supervisors. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to test the hypotheses. Results: Findings reveal that optimism, insecurity, and discomfort — components of TR — exert a significant influence on CA, which in turn fosters IWB. Interestingly, innovativeness did not predict CA, suggesting a nuanced interplay between TR dimensions and adaptability. Implications: By elucidating the factors that drive CA and IWB in response to TR, this study offers valuable insights for policymakers and organizational leaders seeking to enhance employee adaptability and innovation amidst technological changes. It underscores the importance of nurturing an optimistic and secure technological environment to cultivate a resilient and forward-thinking public sector workforce. Originality/Value: This study pioneers the exploration of TR’s impact on CA and IWB, utilizing the career construction model of adaptation as a theoretical lens. The findings provide actionable strategies for bolstering the public sector’s technological and innovative capacity, informed by the empirical evidence from the surveyed sample.

Most studies addressing the issue of financial reporting quality (FRQ) focus on corporations. This study investigates the determinants of FRQ in the public sector. We use the type of audit opinion as a proxy for reporting quality, with an unqualified opinion representing the best reporting quality while a disclaimer of opinion represents the worst quality. Using manually collected data from 3018 financial reports of local governments in Indonesia from 2008 to 2014, we find that a high proportion of capital expenditures in the total budget is associated with low FRQ. Further, we find that larger and wealthier local governments are associated with higher FRQ. Finally, we find that local governments under more experienced mayors have higher reporting quality. Our results are robust to different measures of FRQ. This study contributes to the reporting quality literature by providing empirical evidence on the determinants of FRQ in the public sector, which has been relatively underexplored. We conclude that certain characteristics of local governments and of mayors are associated with the types of audit opinion and that financial incentives accelerate the improvement of reporting quality.

Previous research is inconclusive about when and how job challenge affects innovative behaviour. To address this inconsistency, we primarily draw on the job characteristics theory (JCT) and job demands–resources model (JD–R model) to examine the effect of job challenge on intrinsic motivation and employee innovative behaviour as well as the moderating role of supervisor coaching behaviour. We employ a time-lagged research design to collect data from 318 public sector employees in the UAE. Our finding offers support for a moderated mediation model in which job challenge has a positive and significant effect on innovative behaviour. The study also shows that the association between job challenge and innovative behaviour via intrinsic motivation is stronger under high supervisor coaching behaviour. The findings provide prescriptive insights into the critical role that supervisor coaching behaviours play in clarifying when and how job challenge affects innovative behaviour and indicate relevant managerial implications aimed at encouraging innovative behaviour in the public sector.

This article aims to explore some potentials and risks of benchmarking in environmental assessment. The dominant image derived from theory and empirical data is that benchmark tests tend to be based on quantitative measures, which, under certain conditions, produces perverse effects and bureaucracy.

The answer to the central question — Can benchmarks be useful in environmental assessment? — is affirmative. The problem, however, is that due to an inherent characteristic of environmental issues, using quantitative measures will create perverse effects and bureaucracy thus reducing their effectiveness. This article proposes the formulation of rules of the game to increase the effectiveness of benchmarking. These rules are mutual agreements that regulate for instance who are allowed to use and interpret the figures.

This paper is a case study on Brunei Darussalam’s public sector employees’ observations regarding the new performance appraisal system introduced in 2018. While the new system was aimed at instilling a more “performance-driven” public sector, however, based on the survey findings of this paper, a majority of respondents raised their concerns on the key performance indicators (KPIs) and other aspects of the appraisal system. The findings highlight the need for more research to be done on appraisal systems and their processes, specifically in the public sector, where an effective appraisal system can create a performance-driven public sector which can improve overall governance.

This chapter presents an analysis of geographically and disciplinarily scattered academic publications on information technology outsourcing (ITO) in public organizations. It defines the interdisciplinary scope of public ITO research area, confirms the tendencies in the public ITO research that follow the tendencies of the ITO research in general, and discusses the differences in the conceptual approaches of IS and public administration research fields to the public ITO. Consolidation and analysis of diverse findings will benefit both public officials and outsourcing vendors. Highlighting organizational characteristics of public agencies that affect ITO decisions, governance, and outcomes, makes a contribution to ITO research in general. The chapter also suggests directions for future research.

The public sector is under increasing pressure to reform in order to improve public administration and services. By adopting more information and communication technology (ICT) and reinventing public management, the potential of e-government has been increasingly recognized. However, the ever increasing complexity and heterogeneity of technology creates the need for improving interoperability between the different systems and among stakeholders. This paper addresses the public sector interoperability issue brought by the e-government practice. It analyzes administrative coordination challenges in providing integrated e-service delivery and proposes policy recommendations. The study contributes to the discussion of promoting e-government innovatively and enhancing public service quality in practice.