Research
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Four lenses on people management in the public sector

Published Date: 17 May 2022
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
A paper from the Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford University reviews key questions, research areas and empirical evidence about people management in the public sector. This is conducted thro...
Research
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Unpacking value destruction

Published Date: 03 May 2022
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
Public services do not always create value. When poorly organised or delivered, they can destroy value and make service users' lives worse. A research paper in Public Administration examines value...
Research
Is the public sector creative?

Is the public sector creative?

Published Date: 20 April 2022
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
A research study in Public Management Review explores public sector creativity. It asks the questions:    what practices do public servants apply in coming up with ideas? what tri...
Research
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Seven strategies for wicked problems

Published Date: 06 April 2022
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
Wicked problems are often seen as complex, open-ended and intractable. A new e-book by Brian Head, Wicked Problems in Public Policy, examines how wicked problems are identified, understood and ma...
Research
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Mitigating risks in public–private partnerships

Published Date: 22 March 2022
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
Public–private partnerships (PPPs) are increasingly being used to overcome complex challenges and develop new opportunities with the private sector. High quality risk management is critical to ...
Research
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Overlooking frontline workers’ contribution to innovation

Published Date: 08 March 2022
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
The role of frontline workers in collaborative innovation in public services is underexplored. A paper in Public Administration discusses a case study of collaboration in social services. It foun...
Research
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Developing collective governance capacity

Published Date: 22 February 2022
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
In today’s network society, the capacity to deal with societal issues and realise public value is no longer limited to public agencies. It is spread among different actors and is influenced by ...
Research
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The war on red tape and the struggle to improve regulation

Published Date: 09 February 2022
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
Since the 1970s, successive Australian governments have consistently expressed a desire to reduce regulatory burdens. Yet regulation continues to grow, often in response to community demand. A pa...
Research
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Judging success in policy pilots

Published Date: 26 January 2022
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
Piloting policy initiatives before a wider rollout is increasingly commonplace. Research has shown pilots have multiple shifting purposes and judging the success of policy pilots is complex. A pa...
Research
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Rethinking the commissioning of consultants to enhance government policy capacity

Published Date: 01 December 2021
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
Can governments use consultants to preserve, and even enhance, the fundamental role of the public service? Featuring a case study analysis, ANZSOG’s Catherine Althaus, Lisa Carson and Ken Smith...
Research
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Building people up: Growth-oriented leadership in the public sector

Published Date: 16 November 2021
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
In an environment of unprecedented events and heightened uncertainty, public managers not only need to bounce back but also grow and develop. A paper in the Australian Journal of Public Administr...
Research
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Wicked and less wicked problems

Published Date: 03 November 2021
Key Topic and Teaching Concept: The Bridge
Wicked problems are those that are complex, open-ended and unpredictable. They include global warming, social disadvantage and terrorism. These problems are often presented as so intractable that...