Individualisation, Accounting and Management in the Public Sector - Accountability, Efficiency and the Makeablee Employee

Abstract

This paper suggests that despite various shortcomings of New Public Management (NPM) and the developments since the concept was introduced, NPM-like initiatives have seemed to remain important in the public sector in the Netherlands. The paper first addresses some societal forces, trends and developments in economic theory, which have played a role in the rise of NPM. Here the paper’s focus is on individualisation, and in particular on what Beck (2002) calls ‘institutionalised individualisation’, since this is an aspect which did not receive much attention in the NPM literature until now. In addition, the paper presents findings of recent field research in local government organisations in the Netherlands. The paper also sketches some recent developments in the management of a number of local government organisations (municipalities and provinces) in the Netherlands. The paper particularly focuses on the role of the (institutionalised) individualisation in these organisations. It seems that the more recent developments in the management of such organisations are largely directed at the individual civil servant, since (new) ‘technical’ changes in, for example, organisational structures and accounting instruments, were considered as not very effective. This emphasis implies in particular that the performance evaluation and ‘behaviour and personal development’ of the individual receive much attention from the management of the organisation. This should help organisations as a whole to improve their performance, i.e. to work more efficiently. The paper concludes that (institutionalised) individualisation, which has been an important factor behind the rise of NPM, is still a major force, and certainly since the start of the financial and economic crisis in 2008. This observation suggests that NPM-like influences continue to play a prominent role.