Post-New Public Management Governance and Information Issues

Abstract

Starting in the 1980s, both the government and corporations reformed their governance policies and procedures. In the government, “new public management” was introduced in the 1980s, followed by “new public governance” in the 1990s. The shift from new public management to new public governance did not simply replace old procedures with new ones. Instead, it included three distinct phases from new public management: separation, succession, and development. At the same time, reforms in corporate governance were being pushed through to deal with the increasing complexity and liquidity in the business world as well as a series of corporate scandals. The concept of internal controls has been expanded, and governance structures that focus on internal controls have been established. A comparison of public and corporate governance today reveals three common elements. First, both have incorporated internal and external controls and have formed structures that force the creation of autonomous entities. Second, both government and corporate organizations are being called upon to perform not only primary functions but also secondary (legal, ethical, and social) functions as well. Third, both are attempting to develop a common management information system for risk management. This leads us to the recognition that establishing modern governance involves five issues relating to information management: 1) collection and archiving issues, 2) conversion issues, 3) assessment issues, 4) sharing issues, and 5) design issues. Social informatics needs to clarify these information issues and their inherent social structures.