MANAGING THE NEW ORGANIZATION - SOME PROBLEMS OF INSTITUTIONAL TRANSITION - A NEW-ZEALAND PERSPECTIVE

The article presents a policy-maker's view of one of the most radical and most-consistently sustained policy and institutional reforms. It b egins by reviewing factors affecting the nature and tempo of New Zeala nd's reform initiatives, including 'woodenheadedness', the political c apacity to deliver sustained economic change, the failure of universit ies and other centres of research and scholarship to generate new idea s; the resistance of entrenched systems; the significance of generatin g a popular conceptual framework for reform in a literate, articulate society. Issues that are relevant in implementing policy initiatives i nclude: the scarcity of competent managers, particularly associated wi th the country's small scale; the impact of geography and technology; timing and queuing; loss of institutional memory; the power of communi cation to fail; and the persistence of ideological, professional ways of thinking, backed by the power of unions and professional associatio ns. This article surveys essential concepts and elements of New Zealan d's state sector reforms, focusing on: the guiding philosophy-transpar ency and consistency; operating principles-the distinction between out puts and outcomes, purchaser and provider, government and departments; the principal instruments-purchase agreements between ministers and c hief executives, delegation, performance measures. ((C) 1997 by John W iley & Sons, Ltd.)