Purpose Strategic foresight remains marginal in public management. This article asks why, given the growth of foresight units, long-term national strategies and better analytical tools since Roberge’s (2013) diagnosis. Design/methodology/approach The paper develops a conceptual synthesis of the strategic foresight literature, illustrated with secondary evidence from recent crises and examples from OECD and non-OECD settings. It groups recurring barriers according to the institutional processes they describe and uses this synthesis to explain why foresight remains difficult to integrate into decision-making. Findings Foresight remains marginal because six recurring barriers form a self-reinforcing institutional pattern. The article identifies evidential standing as the central mechanism through which the lock-in is reproduced, since foresight is often not treated as usable policy evidence. Foresight is more likely to be treated as evidence when it is robust, fit for the policy context, inclusively produced and connected to decision processes, but these qualities usually develop only after foresight has already won a place in decision-making. This circularity explains why one-off reforms rarely last. Breaking this circularity requires both capability inside government and institutional backing for using foresight in decisions. Originality/value The paper goes beyond listing barriers to foresight integration. It shows how those barriers form a self-reinforcing lock-in that reabsorbs single-point reform, identifies evidential standing as the problem at its centre, and develops four propositions that public management scholars can test empirically.
Purpose The article identifies sufficient combinations of managerial conditions for public value-oriented integrated strategic planning in inter-municipal networks, addressing the limited cross-fertilization between the public value, strategic planning and network management literatures. Design/methodology/approach A configurational perspective is adopted, applying a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis to 24 Italian unions of municipalities. The aim is to examine how and to what extent combinations of political leadership, integrated planning, measurability and collaboration shape the orientation of strategic planning towards public value. Findings Public value-oriented integrated strategic planning emerges through multiple, equifinal configurations of conditions. Three alternative pathways are identified, highlighting the substitutable and complementary roles of political leadership, collaboration and externally anchored multidimensional measurement systems. Research limitations/implications The study examines a single national context. The positioning of Italian unions along established international taxonomies of inter-municipal governance supports their analytical value as a comparative reference point. Future research could test the configurations in other institutional settings. Practical implications The equifinal structure of the findings serves as a navigational guide for public managers. The measurability-only pathway is particularly accessible to resource-constrained unions, where externally validated frameworks can substitute for more demanding internal coordination mechanisms. Originality/value The study connects the public value, strategic planning and inter-municipal and collaborative governance literatures. It positions itself explicitly within ongoing debates on the operationalization of public value, demonstrating its analytical value.
Purpose This study explores how artificial intelligence (AI) adoption in public procurement emerges through dynamic capabilities across individual and organisational levels. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative study was conducted with 20 professionals from 13 Finnish public organisations engaged in AI-related procurement initiatives. Using the Gioia methodology, interviews and supplementary documents were analysed to identify enablers, barriers and transformation mechanisms. Findings The findings show that dynamic capabilities – sensing, seizing and transforming – are distributed across levels and shaped by bottom-up and top-down mechanisms. Individual experimentation feeds organisational learning, while leadership and governance structures enable or constrain scaling. Most organisations remain in the early phases, with transformation hampered by silos, vendor lock-in and weak orchestration. Originality/value The study advances dynamic capabilities theory by demonstrating its multilevel nature in the public sector. It provides actionable insights into aligning individual initiatives with organisational structures to achieve sustainable, AI-enabled procurement transformation.
Purpose This study examines how frontline employees (FLEs) in public service organisations appraise and engage with chatbot technologies in everyday service work. It investigates how employees interpret chatbots as public service resources and how these appraisals shape engagement with chatbot-mediated service delivery. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts an interpretive qualitative design based on 33 semi-structured interviews with FLEs from 17 public service organisations. Data were analysed through directed qualitative content analysis with inductive refinement, informed by willingness-to-collaborate research and an appraisal–coping perspective. Findings The findings show that employees' engagement with chatbots develops through two connected orientations. The willingness to interact reflects employees' initial appraisal of chatbots in relation to information reliability, bounded autonomy, communicative appropriateness, professional judgement and service-task fit. The willingness to collaborate depends on the organisational conditions that make chatbot-mediated work manageable, including rules, role boundaries, monitoring, training, continuing support and human intervention. Coping responses explain why employees may support chatbot use while also limiting their engagement when time, staffing or technological confidence are insufficient. Originality/value The study advances public service management research by showing how the value of chatbots as public service resources depends on employee appraisal, service-task fit and organisational conditions. It also contributes to research on human–AI collaboration by distinguishing willingness to interact from willingness to collaborate in chatbot-mediated public service work and by linking this distinction to coping responses in frontline practice.
Purpose This study examines the components that public administrations consider when designing remote work and whether these components combine into distinct organisational configurations. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design. The empirical material consisted of 30 Integrated Plans of Activities and Organization (PIAOs), the strategic planning document through which Italian public administrations formalise remote work arrangements. A qualitative content analysis, based on Parker and Grote's (2022) four-component work design model, identified the key components of remote work design. These findings informed a cluster analysis used to identify distinct remote work design configurations and examine their association with organisational size, sector and geographical location. Findings Results suggest that public administrations design remote work through a combination of strategic, regulatory, technological, HR-related and work design components, including eligibility criteria, working conditions, coordination mechanisms and performance monitoring. Four distinct remote work design configurations emerged. Of the organisational characteristics examined, only geographical location was significantly associated with cluster membership, suggesting that territorial context is related to remote work design. Originality/value Building on a sociotechnical systems perspective, this study extends Parker and Grote's (2022) work design model to the public administration context. It reframes remote work as a structured organisational configuration embedded in strategic planning rather than merely as a flexible work arrangement.
Purpose Prior research has established positive effects of boundary-spanning activities on collaboration and project performance. However, there is limited research examining how boundary-spanning activities contribute to collaborative success across public project phases - i.e. how it enables maintaining synergetic momentum in projects. Synergetic momentum is defined as the impetus gained from the interaction between partners that contributes to collaborative success.Design/methodology/approach The study applied a qualitative in-depth case study approach into the "A24 Blankenburgverbinding" project in the Netherlands, with events as the unit of analysis. Data were collected via newspaper articles, project documents and via semi-structured interviews with nine key stakeholders from public and private organizations involved in the project.Findings The results demonstrate from practice that boundary spanners facilitate open communication and conflict resolution. Through boundary spanning, the managers can exchange information, have room for customization and establish an active stakeholder network, which is beneficial for collaborative success amidst project phase transitions.Practical implications This article outlines six critical success factors, including mutual trust, open communication and top management support, that are impacted by boundary-spanning activities of public managers. It also outlines best practices for maintaining relationships between different stakeholders throughout the planning and implementation phases of public projects.Originality/value This article examines the interorganizational collaboration from boundary-spanning perspective to explore how synergetic momentum was maintained across the temporal order of the planning and implementation phases of the project lifecycle.
PurposeThis study reviews and problematizes the literature on the competencies enabling smart working in public administrations, by integrating change management and dynamic capabilities as complementary theoretical lenses. Design/methodology/approachA systematic review of 52 peer-reviewed studies was conducted. Papers were retrieved from Scopus and complemented through backward and forward citation searching. All contributions were coded into a 2 × 3 analytical matrix that intersects the two levels of change management (individual and organizational) with the three dimensions of dynamic capabilities (sensing, seizing, reconfiguring/transforming). A subsequent problematizing review was then developed to interrogate assumptions, conceptual boundaries, and contextual blind spots in the reviewed research. FindingsThe literature shows a marked organizational bias (63 out of 97 coded occurrences), while individual transforming remains underrepresented. The problematizing analysis highlights some interrelated theoretical openings based on: (1) heterogeneous definitions of both “competence” and “smart working”; (2) non-linear and always positive links between individual skills and organizational outcomes; (3) limited attention to external contingencies that shape the adoption of smart working in the public sector. Originality/valueBy combining systematic mapping with a problematizing lens and by operationalizing the integration of change management and dynamic capabilities through a six-cell matrix, the study provides a structured yet critical roadmap for future research. For practice, it suggests that technological investments must be coupled with interventions on autonomy, digital resilience, results-oriented culture, and adaptive leadership, tailored to the institutional specificities of each public administration.
Purpose Many public sector caseworkers experience the shift to digital administration as having changed their daily practices – especially in relation to their professional values. The purpose of this study is to find out in which ways these values have changed and how automation affect caseworkers’ possibilities of acting in accordance with their professional values. Design/methodology/approach Based on an interpretative case study-approach, we have conducted 15 semi-structured interviews with public caseworkers in Sweden: eight in social work and seven at a driving license department. Findings were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis and a framework of value positions for e-government. Findings We found that the following professional values were brought to the fore: equal treatment of clients and rule-adherence were emphasized, accountability of decisions was questioned in one organization, efficiency mainly increased and service-level was mainly improved. Other professional values affected by automation were that time for relational work increased and the discretion to make individual assessments decreased. Originality/value The study is original in how it addresses value positions by intersecting literature on e-government and sociology of professions. The study is also original by comparing caseworkers at different administrative levels, national and municipal.
Purpose This study addresses barriers to collaboration in the public service ecosystem through the lens of relationality. It asks how barriers to interorganizational collaboration are framed in the analytical context of the public service ecosystem. The empirical context draws from Finnish social and healthcare services and from the collaboration of wellbeing services counties (WSCs) and the Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela). Design/methodology/approach The data in this study consist of interviews with 56 persons (within 12 group and 26 individual interviews) representing either Kela or a WSC. The data were analysed using frame analysis, with the aim of identifying interpretations concerning barriers that emerge across ecosystemic levels. Findings The study identifies four frames that describe the barriers to collaboration in the public service ecosystem: (1) insufficient knowledge and flow of information, (2) institutional and organizational restrictions and scarcity, (3) immature organizations due to reform and (4) differing modes of action. The results also highlight the relational nature of reform as a social phenomenon that shapes the institutional context of collaboration. Originality/value This article sheds light on collaboration barriers by using extensive interview data from the Finnish social and healthcare context, which is currently shaped by major reforms. The relational lens and frame analysis provide a fruitful theoretical approach.
Purpose This article investigates the dynamics of participation of small municipalities in European cross-border cooperation programs, addressing a critical gap in understanding why some small entities can position themselves in transnational networks despite structural constrains. Combining resource-based view and multi-level governance (MLG) perspectives in an integrated framework, the study explains how variations in internal capacities and MLG conditions influence their ability to access and benefit from international funded projects.Design/methodology/approach A mixed-methods case study focuses on the Interreg Alcotra program (Italy-France, 2014-2023). Quantitative analysis of 382 beneficiaries identifies participation patterns, while semi-structured interviews with local administrators explore enabling factors and governance strategies.Findings Small municipalities represent only 13% of beneficiaries despite constituting 89% of local authorities in eligible areas. They predominantly assume partner roles (84%), with limited centrality in the network and low frequency of repeated participation. Success factors include strategic positioning, strong political leadership, relational embeddedness, minimum viable capacity (e.g. linguistic skills, preliminary project ideas, knowledge transfer routines) and alignment with EU objectives. Municipalities institutionalizing cross-border cooperation as ordinary practice demonstrate cumulative learning effects.Originality/value This research theoretically advances MLG by integrating organizational capability perspectives and demonstrates how micro-municipalities can leverage already-in-set context-specific knowledge and agility as competitive advantages. It provides practical managerial and policy insights for strengthening participation and promoting more inclusive territorial governance.
Purpose As generative AI tools like ChatGPT are increasingly explored for integration into public sector workflows, employee readiness emerges as a critical determinant of successful implementation. This study examines the psychological, organizational and social factors that influence public employees' readiness to adopt ChatGPT within the Dubai Government entities. Drawing on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), the study tests how perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, organizational readiness, technological readiness and social influence predict four dimensions of employee technology readiness: optimism, innovativeness, discomfort and insecurity. Design/methodology/approach Based on a cross-sectional survey of 651 public employees in Dubai, the multiple regression analyses method was used. Findings The findings reveal that perceived usefulness and ease of use are positively associated with optimism and negatively associated with insecurity and discomfort. Surprisingly, organizational and technological readiness do not uniformly enhance positive attitudes; in some cases, they actually increase feelings of unease. Social influence emerged as a double-edged factor, simultaneously promoting optimism and innovativeness while also elevating insecurity and discomfort. Originality/value These findings underscore the relationship between institutional support and individual readiness in public AI adoption, offering practical recommendations for policymakers, human resource leaders and AI implementers seeking to cultivate a future-ready workforce.
Purpose This study addresses the general issue of the behavioral implications of performance management systems (PMSs). More specifically, it explores how the perceived accuracy of PMS influences the job crafting (JC) behaviors of employees via public service ethos (PSE) while considering the moderating role of task uncertainty. Design/methodology/approach The data were obtained through a three-wave study from a sample of Italian municipalities and analyzed using a regression methodology. Findings Perceived PMS accuracy had a positive effect on JC behaviors aimed at increasing structural resources, increasing social resources, and increasing challenging demands and a negative effect on behaviors aimed at decreasing hindering demands via PSE. The indirect effect of perceived PMS accuracy on JC via PSE was significant only for low task uncertainty levels. Originality/value The main original contribution of this study is that it shows that the relationship between PMS and proactive employee behavior depends both on employees' value-based interpretation of performance management and on the contextual conditions under which performance is managed. This is a relevant issue, as it may have significant practical implications regarding how public managers should design and manage PMS.
Purpose This study examines how emerging technologies are influencing career development in Australian local government and the organisational responses to manage workforce adaptation in the context of ongoing digital transformation. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a sequential two-stage qualitative design. Stage one involved 30 semi-structured interviews with local government managers and industry experts to explore experiences of digital transformation and career development. Stage two involved analyses of 56 council documents to validate and contextualise emerging themes from the interviews and mapped organisational strategies supporting workforce adaptation. Findings The findings suggest that digital transformation in Australian local government is leading to gradual but ongoing job redesign, with more hybrid roles and increased demand for cross-functional skills across different types of work. As a result, organisations are mainly responding through redeployment, upskilling, and internal mobility pathways. However, the impact is uneven, as some employees benefit from new opportunities while other, particularly older workers or those less confident with digital tools, experience anxiety, skill mismatches, and reduced career control. Research limitations/implications The study contributes to public sector management debate by illustrating how institutional arrangements impact career outcomes under rapid digital transformation. Practical implications The findings offer insights for public sector managers seeking to align digital capability development with workforce sustainability and organisational resilience. Originality/value This study extends public sector management literature by empirically demonstrating how institutional employment protections and organisational practices mediate the career impacts of digital transformation in local government.
Purpose This paper examines the applicability of new public governance (NPG) in authoritarian states, using Central Asia as an empirical case. It tests and refines the theoretical scope conditions of NPG by evaluating its relevance in the five consolidated authoritarian regimes of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.Design/methodology/approach The study employs a nested comparative design combining a "critical case" logic, a most similar systems design across the five states and Estonia as a post-Soviet democratic benchmark. Secondary quantitative data from the Varieties of Democracy index, Worldwide Governance Indicators, World Values Survey and World Bank Open Data triangulate three analytical themes: civil society capacity, citizen engagement and public trust.Findings NPG's three core prerequisites - civil society capacity, citizen engagement and public trust - are systematically absent or suppressed across Central Asia. NPG-type instruments such as e-government platforms and public councils represent superficial isomorphic mimicry rather than substantive adoption, deployed by regimes for legitimacy and control. NPG rests on unarticulated liberal democratic foundations, yet an emerging "authoritarian-compatible NPG" is discernible, whereby managers pragmatically employ network tools to improve service delivery without challenging regime authority.Originality/value This paper provides an original systematic empirical examination of NPG within Central Asian authoritarian regimes. It challenges the implicit universalism of NPG scholarship, exposes its unarticulated liberal democratic assumptions and advances theoretical understanding of public governance in non-Western contexts, reducing Western bias in comparative public administration.
Purpose This study examines how organization- and community-level social capital and socioeconomic demands are associated with citizen co-production engagement, and whether these associations differ across types of co-production.Design/methodology/approach Multilevel mixed-effects models are estimated using data from New York City public schools, employing organization-level survey data and community-level census and administrative records.Findings Social capital is the most consistent predictor across both co-design and co-delivery: organization-level trust and community-level volunteering are positively associated with both types, with the trust-co-design link being particularly pronounced. Socioeconomic demand factors show more heterogeneous patterns: economic need is not associated with co-design and is negatively associated with co-delivery, while racial heterogeneity is positively associated with both.Research limitations/implications High-social-capital environments provide the normative foundations that sustain citizen engagement by reducing coordination costs and building relational trust. However, the mixed effects of socioeconomic demands indicate that co-production carries distinct resource demands that set it apart from other forms of civic engagement.Originality/value This study jointly examines factors within a unified multilevel framework, advancing theoretical understanding of contextual drivers of co-production that have received limited attention in prior research. Practically, the findings offer guidance for public managers seeking to build organizational and community environments for sustained citizen engagement.
Purpose The study explores how paradox theory helps explain how community leaders handle severe terror crises amid reduced trust and the co-production of services. Design/methodology/approach This is a phenomenological study based on interviews conducted in the first months following October 7th, with 18 local leaders from over half of the Gaza Envelope communities. Findings The findings reveal five paradoxes: (1) Together vs. Alone; (2) Helps vs. Creates Difficulties; (3) Bad vs. Good Experiences; (4) Certainty vs. Uncertainty; (5) Optimism vs. Pessimism. Practical implications The study can help local leaders identify diverse kinds of paradoxes and expand their repertoire for meaning-making and communication with their communities in challenging times. It also suggests four implications for models designed to manage extreme security crises. Originality/value The paper's empirical contribution stems from the voices of leaders in an extreme security crisis; its theoretical contribution deepens our understanding of local leaders' paradoxes in times of crisis, highlighting the role of emotional-cognitive paradoxes.
