Organizational and Managerial Challenges of Reforming Slovenian Public Agencies

• Authors: Polonca Kovač
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

Introduction: Agencies are among the key contemporary public organizations, prospering within reforms carried out worldwide to increase professionalism and rationalism in public administration (PA). Hence, countries have been establishing agencies and delegating them public tasks in order to achieve expertise-based instead of politically-driven and thus more efficient public policies. In such context, the present article addresses the most important strategic documents related to public administration reform (PAR) in Slovenia, analyzing their goals in terms of agencification and the main implementation results and gaps. Research Design: The research is dedicated to exploring the governmental approach to agencification as a key aspect of PAR. It analyzes (1) the main PAR strategic documents on public agencies in Slovenia since the mid-90s, and (2) the perceived implementation of structural and managerial autonomy as the declared goal of agencification. Combined research methods are applied, including descriptive analysis, regional comparisons, structural interviews among representatives of public agencies and their parent ministries, and selected statistical data analysis. Results: As proven by different research methods, the hypothesis whereby agencification goals in Slovenia are largely achieved as part of PAR documents in terms of autonomous organizational structure was confirmed. A more elaborated agencification in PAR documents relates to higher implementation of autonomy. Conclusion: Nevertheless, the professionalism of Slovenian agencies is still an on-going process, particularly as regards the efficiency implementation gap. As for the future, a more consistent PAR incorporating cross-sectoral policy on agencies is required to pursue the development of a democratic and efficient PA.

Keywords

EN

public administration reform; agencies; autonomy; organization; management; Slovenia

• Publisher: Sciendo
• Journal: Organizacija
• Year: 2014
• Volume: 47
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 281-294

Dates

published

2014-11-01

received

2014-08-18

revised

2014-09-12

accepted

2014-10-11

online

2014-12-30

Contributors

author

Polonca Kovač

• University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Administration, Gosarjeva ulica 5, SI-1000 Ljubljana

References

• Bevir, M. (Ed.) (2011). The SAGE Handbook of Governance. Los Angeles: Sage.[WoS]
• Boston, J. (2011). Basic NPM ideas and their development. In Christensen, T., & Lægreid, P. (Eds.), New Public Management (17-32). Farnham: Ashgate.
• Bugarič, B. (2004). O prenosu pristojnosti z države na paradržavne in nedržavne organizacije: »razdržavljanje« države? [About delegation from state to para-state and non-state organizations: “dis-stating” the state?]. Podjetje in delo, XXX(6-7), 1394-1402.
• Christensen, T., & Lægreid, P. (Eds). (2006). Autonomy and Regulation. Coping with Agencies in the Modern State. Cheltenham: Northampton, MA: Elgar.
• Christensen, T., & Lægreid, P. (2011). Beyond NPM? Some Development Features. In Christensen, T., & Lægreid, P. (Eds.), New Public Management (391-403). Farnham: Ashgate.
• Dunn, N.W., Staronova, K., & Pushkarev, S. (Eds). (2006). Implementation - the Missing Link in Public Administration Reform in Central and Eastern Europe. Bratislava: NISPAcee.
• Eymeri-Douzans, J.-M., & Pierre, J. (Eds). (2011). Administrative Reforms and Democratic Governance. London, New York: Routledge.
• Hajnal, G., Nakrošis, V., & Randma-Liiv, T. (2011). Public sector organization in Central and Eastern Europe: from agencification to de-agencification. Transylvanian Review of Administrative Sciences, Special Issue (November 2011), 160-175.
• Government & National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia. (1996). Strategy for Slovenia’s Accession to the EU. Ljubljana: National Assembly Reporter, No. 48/97 and 48/I/97.
• Government of the Republic of Slovenia. (2003). Strategy of Further Development of the Slovenian Public Sector 2003-2005. Ljubljana: Government of the RS.
• Government of the Republic of Slovenia. (2005). Slovenia’s Development Strategy. Retrieved September 1, 2014, from http://www.umar.gov.si/fileadmin/user_upload/projekti/02_StrategijarazvojaSlovenije.pdf
• Government of the Republic of Slovenia. (2010). Exit Strategy 2010-2013. Retrieved August 5, 2014, from http://www.arhiv.svrez.gov.si/si/teme_in_projekti/izhod_iz_krize/slovenska_izhodna_strategija_20102013/
• Government of the Republic of Slovenia. (2011). Izhodišča za nadaljnji razvoj in organizacijsko ter normativno urejanje javnega sektorja [Origins of further development and organizational and normative regulation of the public sector]. Internal unpublished material (July 2011).
• Government of the Republic of Slovenia. (2012). Pregled sprememb pristojnosti ministrstev in predlog organiziranosti ministrstev, organov v sestavi, vladnih služb, javnih agencij in javnih skladov po posameznih ministrstvih [Overview and suggestions of changed jurisdiction of ministries, agencies and funds]. Internal material, appendix of State Administration Act amendment (February 2013).
• Government of the Republic of Slovenia. (2014). Izhodišča za pripravo Strategije nadaljnjega razvoja slovenske javne uprave 2014-2020 [Origins for further PA development 2014-2020], No. 01000-2/2014/6. Ljubljana: Government of the RS.
• Koprić, I. (2013). Managing Public Affairs in South Eastern Europe: Muddled Governance. In A. M. Bissessar (Ed.), Governance: Is it for everyone? Hauppauge: Nova Science Publisher.
• Koprić, I., Kovač, P., & Musa, A. (2012/13). Agencies in three South Eastern European countries: politics, expertise and law Agencies between expertise, politics and law: the case of countries in transition in South Eastern Europe. The NISPAcee journal of public administration and policy, 5 (2), 17-44.
• Kovač, P. (2006). Pravni in sociološki vidiki javnih pooblastil v Sloveniji [Legal and sociological aspects if public authorities in Slovenia]. Ljubljana: University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Administration.
• Kovač, P., & Virant, G. (Eds). (2011). Razvoj slovenske javne uprave 1991-2011 [Development of Slovenian Public Administration 1991-2011]. Ljubljana: Uradni list.
• Kovač, P., Rakar I., & Remic, M. (2012). Upravno-procesne dileme pri rabi ZUP 2 [Administrative-procedural dilemmas in use of the APA, 2]. Ljubljana: Uradni list.
• Laking, R. (2005). Agencies: Their Benefits and Risks. OECD Journal on Budgeting, 4(4), 7-25. Retrieved August 3, 2014, from http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/3/7/43487848.pdf
• Lane, J. E. (1995). The Public Sector. London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi: Sage.
• Musa, A., & Koprić, I. (2011). What Kind of Agencification in Croatia? Trends and Future Directions. Transylvanian Review of Administrative Sciences, Special Issue (November 2011), 33-53.
• OECD. (2002). Distributed Public Governance. Agencies, Authorities and Other Government Bodies. Paris: OECD.
• Peters, B.G., & Pierre, J. (Eds). (2005). Handbook of Public Administration. London: Sage.
• Pirnat, R. (2000). Nekatera vprašanja postopkov neodvisnih upravnih agencij [Some issues of procedures in independent administrative agencies]. Podjetje in delo, XXVI(6/7), 1393-1402.
• Pollitt, C. & Bouckaert, G. (2011). Public management reform. A comparative analysis. New Public Management, Governance and the New Weberian State (3rd edition). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Randma-Liiv, T. (2008). New Public Management versus Neo-Weberian State in Central and Eastern Europe.
• Paper presented at the Trans-European Dialogue (TED) 1, Towards the Neo-Weberian State? Europe and Beyond, January 31 - February 1, 2008, Tallinn.
• Pevcin, P., & Setnikar-Cankar, S. (Eds). (2012). Razumen in razumljen javni sektor v Sloveniji [Reasonable and understood public sector in Slovenia]. Ljubljana: Faculty of Administration.
• Pollitt, C., Bouckaert, G. Randma-Liiv, T., & Drechsler, W. (Eds). (2008/09). The NISPAcee Journal of Public Administration and Policy. Special Issue: A Distinctive European Model? The Neo-Weberian State 1(2).
• Pollitt, C., & Talbot, C. (Eds). (2004). Unbundled Government, A critical analysis of the global trend to agencies, quangos and contractualization. London, New York: Routledge.
• Polidano, C. (1999). The Bureaucrat Who Fell Under a Bus: Ministerial Responsibility, Executive Agencies and the Derek Lewis Affair in Britain. An International Journal of Policy and Administration, 12(2), 201-229, http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/0952-1895.981999098[Crossref]
• Raadschelders, J. C. N. (2011). Public Administration. Interdisciplinary Study of Government. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Rose-Ackerman, S. & P. L. Lindseth (Eds). (2011). Comparative Administrative Law. Cheltenham, Northampton: Elgar. UNAID. (2013). Agencies in Serbia. Analysis and Recommendations for Reform. Retrieved July 31, 2014, from http://www.bep.rs/documents/news/Analysis%20of%20agencies%20in%20Serbia.pdf
• Van Thiel, S. (2011). Comparing agencification in Central Eastern European and Western European countries: fundamentally alike in unimportant aspects? What Kind of Agencification in Croatia? Trends and Future Directions. Transylvanian Review of Administrative Sciences, Special Issue (November 2011), 15-32.
• Verhoest, K., van Thiel, S., Bouckaert, G., & Lægreid, P. (Eds). (2012). Government Agencies: Practices and Lessons from 30 Countries. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
• Verhoest, K., van Thiel, S., Bouckaert, G., & Lægreid, P. (2011). Governing Public Agencies in the 21st Century. Leuven: Catholic University of Leuven, Public Management Institute.
• Vintar, M., Rosenbaum, A., Jenei, G., & Drechsler, W. (Eds). (2013). The past, present and the future of public administration in Central and Eastern Europe. Bratislava: NISPAcee Press.

Identifiers

DOI

10.2478/orga-2014-0023