Nuw Public Management

1. Describe and analyse main differences between the bureaucratic model and the New Public Management paradigm drawing attention to the most significant and critical aspects of the change.

The bureaucratic model and the NPM are two different framework for managing the administrative apparatus. The first one is based on two principles: the separation of the public sector from the private one in terms of culture, ethic and general systems, and the provision of a defence from governmental corruption and personal power abuses through the development of a rigid and neutral set of rules; the second one, on the opposite is based on the necessity to remove any differences between the public and the private sector and to focus on results rather than procedures.

The bureaucratic model, theorised by Weber, emerged in the USA during the progressive era (1990-1930), in a period of high economic growth, where the main administrative aims were to provide all citizens a basic system of rights and duties, to protect them by subjective and political power biases, and to offer them a range of standardised services. To achieve such a grade of uniformity, stability and fairness, a set of objective and rational rules is defined, able to break the complexity of society into minimal operations to be followed a priori in a predetermined way. Moreover a system of neutral control of the respect of procedures is developed in order to avoid any political interference: the control is in fact guaranteed by the hierarchical structure of public administration. This model shaped the employment system, the accounting system and the control system.

The public service system is characterised by a general rigidity and slowness. The hiring procedure takes place through public exam, based on general and legal knowledge, a fixed assignment of offices is defined, without the possibility to move employees from one department to another, and there’s no evaluation of individual skills, what matteres is the blind respect of norms. Besides progresses in career are based on seniority and there’s no possibility to lay off employees in order to avoid any arbitrary dismissal.

The public accounting system is mainly based on a budget. This document is focused on preventive measurements, it provides ex ante limits and authorisations for future revenues and expenses, along a detailed list of line items. The money predisposed for one line item can’t be moved to an other one, and there’s no possibility to retain savings. This balance sheet must be kept in equilibrium, it’s a public compulsory document defined on an historical basis. Moreover it’s based on the cash principle: revenues and expenses can be recognised only when the cash receipt or payment has taken place. This principle allows governments and public administration not to take in account future obligations, such as pensions, tax deduction, subsidies and depreciation of public assets, so