The Future of Public Administration around the World

A once-in-a-generation event held every twenty years, the Minnowbrook conference brings together the top scholars in public administration and public management to reflect on the state of the field and its future. This unique volume brings together a group of distinguished authors—both seasoned and new—for a rare critical examination of the field of public administration yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

The book begins by examining the ideas of previous Minnowbrook conferences, such as relevance and change, which are reflective of the 1960s and 1980s. It then moves beyond old Minnowbrook concepts to focus on public administration challenges of the future: globalism, twenty-first century collaborative governance, the role of information technology in governance, deliberative democracy and public participation, the organization of the future, and teaching the next generation of leaders. The book ends by coming full circle to examine the current challenge of remaining relevant.

There is no other book like this—nor is there ever likely to be another—in print. Simply put, the ideas, concepts, and spirit of Minnowbrook are one-of-a-kind. This book captures the soul of public administration past, present, and future, and is a must-read for anyone serious about the theory and practice of public administration.

Table of Contents

Preface

Introduction: The Legacy of Minnowbrook
Soonhee Kim, Rosemary O’Leary, David Van Slyke, H. George Frederickson, and W. Henry Lambright

Part I. Studying and Managing Public Organizations of the Future

From Performance Management to Democratic Performance Governance
Donald P. Moynihan

An Argument for Fully Incorporating Nonmission-Based Values into Public Administration
Suzanne J. Piotrowski

Are We There Yet? From Taylor's Triangle to Follett's Web; From Knowledge Work to Emotion Work
Mary E. Guy, Meredith A. Newman, and Sharon H. Mastracci

The Raised Fist and the Magic Negro: Public Administration and the Black Public Administrator
Domonic Bearfield

Social Equity in Public Administration: The Need for Fire
Susan T. Gooden

. . . And the Pendulum Swings: A Call for Evidence-Based Public Organizations
Kimberley R. Isett

Public Administration: The Central Discipline in Homeland Security
Dale Jones and Austen Givens

Part II. Globalization

The Study of Comparative Public Administration: Future Trajectories and Prospects
Bidhya Bowornwathana

Reinventing Public Administration for the Twenty-First Century: Toward a More Global and Generic Paradigm
Yilin Hou

A Personal Memo from a Woman Teaching Public Administration in Asia
Ora-Orn Poocharoen

Part III. Collaboration

Collaborative Leadership and Local Governance
Soonhee Kim

The “New Emergency Management”: Applying the Lessons of Collaborative Governance to Twenty-First-Century Emergency Planning
Michael McGuire, Jeffrey L. Brudney, and Beth Gazley

Collaborative Governance and Cross-Boundary Information Sharing: Envisioning a Networked and IT-Enabled Public Administration
Theresa A. Pardo, J. Ramon Gil-Garcia, and Luis F. Luna-Reyes

Collaborative Governance and Climate Change: Opportunities for Public Administration
Kirk Emerson and Peter Murchie

Part IV. Deliberative Democracy and Public Participation

Why Public Administration Should Take Deliberative Democracy Seriously
Tina Nabatchi

When Should the Public be Involved in Public Management? Design Principles with Case Applications
John Clayton Thomas

The Use of Social Media to Dissolve Knowledge Silos in Government
Ines Mergel

Part V. Teaching the Next Generation of Leaders

Rebranding Public Administration for a Postsector Age
Scott E. Robinson

Can the Study and Practice of Public Service Ethics Be Recovered in a New Governance Era?
Guy B. Adams and Danny L. Balfour

The Status of The Law in Contemporary Public Administrative Literature, Education, and Practice
David H. Rosenbloom and Katherine C. Naff

Adding Value in a World of Diffuse Power: Reintroducing Public Management and Public Financial Management
Justin Marlowe and Daniel L. Smith

Teaching Democracy in Public Administration: Trends and Future Prospects
Matt Leighninger

Part VI. Remaining Relevant

Making Public Administration Scholarship Matter
David M. Van Slyke

The Challenge of Remaining Relevant
Kristina Lambright

Has Public Administration "Repositioned" Itself?: Advances and Inertias in Transitioning to the Collaborative Governance Paradigm
Kelly LeRoux

Public Administration and Management Research: Evidence of Isolation and Unrealized Opportunity
Bradley E. Wright

Improving Collaboration Research by Emphasizing the Role of the Public Manager
Beth Gazley

Conclusion: Challenges and Opportunities, Crosscutting Themes, and Thoughts on the Future of Public Administration
David M. Van Slyke, Rosemary O’Leary and Soonhee Kim

List of Contributors

Index

Reviews

"The Future of Public Administration Around the World: The Minnowbrook Perspective deserves tremendous credit for raising (or perhaps refocusing our attention on) these important big questions for the field."—International Public Management Journal

"Public administration is an incredibly diverse and rapidly globalizing field, including a broad range of actors with varying types and areas of expertise. This edited volume from the Minnowbrook III Conference has something important, and often invaluable, for all who engage it. Written in a readily accessible style and with a cutting-edge focus on both academic and professional themes, it is a must-read for those who want to stay or arrive at the forefront of public administration, as scholars or practitioners."—Carolyn Heinrich, director, La Follette School of Public Affairs and professor of public affairs and economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison

"Minnowbrook I (1968), II (1988), and III (2008) are watershed events in the intellectual development of public administration. This book is an indispensable and rich encapsulation of the thrust of Minnowbrook III and a guide to the ideas and forces that will shape public administration's next decade. No serious scholar of public administration should be without it."—Hon S. Chan, City University of Hong Kong

"This edited volume of Minnowbrook III’s best contributions provides readers a roadmap through the issues that frame the global field of public administration and management. The editors have compiled a comprehensive yet readable and accessible contribution to the public administration and management canon."—Trevor Brown, associate director of academic affairs and research, John Glenn School of Public Affairs, The Ohio State University

"We all complain about the 'bureaucracy', and our faith in government seems to erode even as the challenges multiply. The experts contributing to this book—all public administration scholars—know about the problems in all their complexity. Both practitioners and those promoting reforms will benefit from the insights and the different perspectives of the authors."—Paul A. Volcker

"A kaleidoscope of views of the future of public administration; it demonstrates a rich diversity of positions and viewpoints on what public administration will be or should be."—Kenneth J. Meier, Texas A&M University and Cardiff University

Contributors

Guy AdamsDanny BalfourDomonic BearfieldBidhya BowornwathanaJeffrey BrudneyKirk EmersonGeorge FredericksonBeth GazleyJ. R. Gil-GarciaAusten GivensSusan GoodenMary Ellen GuyYilin HouKim Isett Dale Jones Soonhee KimHarry LambrightKristina Lambright Matt LeighningerKelly LeRouxL. F. Luna-ReyesJustin Marlowe Sharon MastracciMichael McGuireInes MergelDonald MoynihanPeter MurchieTina NabatchiKathy NaffMeredith NewmanRosemary O’LearyTeresa PardoSuzanne PiotrowskiOra Orn PoocharoenScott Robinson David Rosenbloom John Clayton ThomasDan SmithDavid Van SlykeBrad Wright

Supplemental Materials

Awards

About the Author

Rosemary O'Leary is Distinguished Professor of Public Administration and Howard G. and Louise S. Phanstiel Chair in Strategic Management and Leadership at Syracuse University.

David M. Van Slyke is an associate professor of public administration at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University.

Soonhee Kim is an associate professor of public administration at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University.