Financial Delegation system in the Context of New Public Management: Evidence from an Australian Public Sector Organization
Year 2019,
, 1 - 11, 26.12.2019
Nikhil Chandra Shil
Anup Chowdhury
Abstract
This paper
contributes to the study of financial management in public sector organization
in the context of New Public Management (NPM). It deploys an earnest attempt to
explore the financial delegation system in the context of NPM initiatives in
Australia. A government department in the Australian Capital Territory has been
adopted as the field for investigation. The nature of the present research is
explorative and the focus of this research is to study in depth of a particular
phenomena. Qualitative research methodology was chosen to obtain a better
understanding of the phenomena. Case-based research method was used in
developing a fuller understanding of the relative role of financial delegation
system in the management of organisational performance. In this study, data
collection involved a triangulation approach and the three sources were archival
records, interviews and observation. As financial delegation system is socially
constructed, Giddens’ structuration theory was adopted in this research to
obtain a better understanding of human actions and to explore how these control
devices are implicated in the wider social context through time. Empirical
evidence from the field supported that the selected researched organisation has
adopted a wide range of financial delegation mechanisms within the
organization. The research also demonstrated that the implementation of financial
delegation system in the selected organization is the function of NPM in the
key areas of financial management. These findings are consistent with the view
that NPM promotes a culture of performance in Australian public sector.
References
- ACT Government (1996), Financial Management Act 1996, ACT, Australia.
- Alam, M. and Nandan, R. (2008), “Management Control Systems and Public Sector Reform: A Fijian Case Study”, Accounting, Accountability and Performance, Vol. 14, No.1, pp.1-28.
- Anessi-Pessina, E. and Stecolini, I. (2007), “Effects of budgetary and accruals accounting coexistence: Evidence from Italian local governments”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol.23. No. 2, pp. 113-131.
- Atreya, B. and Armstrong, A. (2002), “A Review of the Criticisms and the Future of the New Public Management”, Working Paper, School of Management and Information Systems, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia.
- Barrett, P. (2004), “Financial Management in the Public Sector- How Accrual Accounting and Budgeting Enhances Governance and Accountability”, Address to the Challenge of Change: Driving Governance and Accountability, CPA Forum 2004, Australian National Audit Office.
- Bertaut, C. C., Haliassos, M. and Reiter, M. (2009), “Credit Card Debt Puzzles and Debt Revolvers for Self Control”, Review of Finance, Vol. 13, Issue 4, pp. 657-692.
- Berry, A. J., Coad, A. F., Harris, E. P., Otley, D. T., and Stringer, C. (2009), “Emerging themes in management control: A review of recent literature”, The British Accounting Review, Vol. 41, pp. 2- 20.
- Boisclair, J. P. (1984), “The Challenge of Comprehensive Auditing: Thriving on Value for Money”, CA Magazine, January, pp. 24-29.
- Bouckaert, G. and Halligan, J. (2008), Managing Performance: International Comparisons, Routledge, London.
- Broadbent, J. and Guthrie, J. (2008), “Public Sector to Public Services: 20 Years of Contextual Accounting Research”, Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Vol. 21, No. 2, pp. 129-169.
- Christensen, M. (2005), “The Third Hand: Private Sector Consultants in Public Sector Accounting Change”, European Accounting Review, Vol. 14, No. 3, pp. 447-474.
- Christensen, M. and Parker, L. (2010), “Using Ideas to Advance Professions: Public Sector Accrual Accounting”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol. 26, Issue, 3, pp. 246-266.
- Christiaens, J. and Rommel, J. (2008), “Accrual Accounting Reforms: Only for Businesslike (Parts of) Governments”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol. 24, Issue 31, pp. 59-75.
- Cohen, S., Kaimenaki, E. and Zorgios, Y. (2007), “Assessing IT as a key success factor for accrual accounting implementation in Greek Municipalities”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol. 23, Issue 1, pp. 91-111.
- Crawford, L., Costello. K., Pollack, J., and Bentley, L. (2003), “Managing soft change projects in the public sector”, International Journal of Project Management, Vol. 21, pp. 443-448.
- DHCS (2007a), Corporate Governance Policy on Official Hospitality, ACT, Australia.
- DHCS (2007b), Corporate Governance Policy on Corporate Credit Card, ACT, Australia.
- Dixon, J. and Kouzmin, A. (1994), “The Commercialization of the Australian Public Sector: Competence, Elitism or Default in Management Education?”International Journal of Public Sector Management, Vol. 7, No.6, pp.52-73.
- Dooren, W. V. Bouckaert, W.G. and Halligan, J. (2010), Performance Management in the Public Sector, Routledge, London.
- Dunleavy, P. and Hood, C. (1994), “From Old Public Administration to New Public Management”, Public Money & Management, July-September, 1994, pp. 9-16.
- Geertz, C. (1973), The Interpretation of Cultures, Basic Books, New York.
- Giddens, A. (1976), New Rules of Sociological Method: A Positive Critique of Interpretative Sociologies, Basic Books, Inc., New York.
- Giddens, A. (1979), Central Problems in Social Theory, The Macmillan Press Ltd., London.
- Giddens, A. (1984), The Constitution of Society: outline of the theory of structuration, University of California Press, Berkeley.
- Giddens, A., Duneier, M., Appelbaum, R. P., and Carr, D. (2011), Introduction to Sociology, W. W. Norton & Company, New York.
- Girishankar, N. (2001), “Evaluating Public Sector Reform: Guidelines for Assessing Country-Level impact of Structural Reform and Capacity Building in the Public Sector”, World Bank Operation Evaluation Department, The World Bank, Washington.
- Goyal, A. (2008), “Managing perceived risk for credit card purchase through supplementary services”, Journal of Financial Services Marketing, Vol. 12, pp. 331-345.
- Guba, E. G. and Lincoln, Y. S. (1981), Effective evaluation, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco.
- Halligan, J. and Power, J. (1992), Political Management in the 1990’s, Oxford University Press, Melbourne.
- Halligan, J. (2009), “Performance and Public Management in Australia and New Zealand”, International Conference of the Institute of Public Administration, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 1-4 November.
- Hawke, R.J. (1990), “Challenges in public administration”, in Guthrie, J. Parker, L. and Shand, D. (eds.), The Public Sector: Contemporary Readings in Accounting and Auditing, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Publishers, Sydney, pp. 6-19.
- Hoque, Z. and Adams, C. (2011), “The Rise and Use of Balanced Scorecard Measures in Australian Government Departments”, Financial Accountability and Management, Vol. 27, pp. 308-334.
- Hood, C. (1991), “A Public Management for all Seasons”, Public Administration, Vol. 69, Spring, pp. 3-19.
- Hood, C. (1995), “The New public Management in the 1980’s: Variations on a Theme”, Accounting, organizations and Society, Vol. 20, No.2/3, pp. 93-109.
- Hughes, O. (1995), “The New Public Sector Management: A Focus on Performance”, in Guthrie, J. (ed), Making the Australian Public Sector Count in the 1990s, IIR Conferences Pty Ltd., NSW, pp. 140-143.
- Irvine, H. and Gaffikin, M. (2006), “Methodological insights: Getting in, getting on and getting out: reflections on a qualitative research project”, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 115-145.
- Jansen, E. P. (2004), “Performance Measurement in Governmental Organizations: A contingent Approach to Measurement and Management Control”, Managerial Finance, Vol. 30, No. 8, pp.54-68.
- Llewelyn, S. (2003), “Methodological Issues- What counts as “theory” in qualitative management and accounting research? Introducing five levels of theorizing”, Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Vol.16, No. 4, pp. 662-708.
- Malmi, T. And Brown, D. A. (2008), “Management control systems as a package-opportunities, challenges and research direction”, Management Accounting Research, Vol. 19, Issue 4, pp. 287-300.
- Mason, J. (2002), Qualitative Researching, Sage Publications Ltd., London.
- Massoud, N. and Scholnick, A. (2011), “The cost of being late? The case of credit card penalty fees”, Journal of Financial Stability, Vol. 7, Issue 2, pp. 49-59.
- McKay, K. (2003), “Two Generations of Performance Evaluation Management Systems in Australia”, Canberra Bulletin of Public Administration, Issue 110, pp. 8-20.
- McPhee, I (2005), “Outcomes and Outputs: Are we managing Better as a Result?” CPA National Public Sector Convention, 20 May.
- Merriam, S. B. (2009), Qualitative Research: A Guide to Design and Implementation, Jossey-Bass, California.
- Metcalfe, L. and Richards, S. (1992), Improving Public Management, Sage Publications, London.
- Miles, M. B. and Huberman, A. M. (1994), Qualitative Data Analysis: An Expanded Sourcebook, Sage Publications, London.
- Nagy, S., Hesse-Biber, Leavy, P. (2010), The Practice of Qualitative Research, Sage Publications Inc., London.
- Neely, A., Gregory, M. and Platts, K. (2005), “Performance measurement system design: A literature review and research agenda”, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, Vol. 25, Issue 12, pp. 1228-1263.
- Osborne, D. and Gaebler, T. (1992), Reinventing Government: How the Entrepreneurial Spirit Is Transforming the Public Sector, Addison- Wesley,Reading, MA.
- Patton, M.Q. (2002), Qualitative research and evaluation methods, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, California
- Painter, M. (1988), “Public Management: Fad or fallacy”, Australian Journal of Public Administration, Vol. 47, pp. 1-3.
- Parker, L. D. and Guthrie, J. (1993), “The Australian Public Sector in the 1990s: New Accountability Regimes in Motion”, Journal of International Accounting Auditing & Taxation, Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 59-81.
- Parker, R. and Bradley, L. (2000), “Organisational Culture in the public sector: evidence from six organizations”, The International Journal of Public Sector Management, Vol. 13, No. 2, pp.125-141.
- Robbins, G. (2007), “Obstacles to implementation of New Public Management in an Irish Hospital”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol. 23, Issue, 1, pp. 55-71.
- Ryan, B., Scapens, R.W. and Theobald, M. (1992), Research Method and Methodology in Finance and Accounting, Academic Press Limited, London.
- Shand, D. A. (1995), “Financial Management Reforms in Government: An International Perspective”, in Guthrie, J. (ed), Making the Australian Public Sector in the 1990s, IIR Conferences PTY Ltd. NSW, Australia, pp. 10-14.
- Telyukova, I. A. and Wright, R. (2008), “A Model of Money and Credit, with Application to the Credit Card Debt Puzzle”, Review of Economic Studies, Vol. 75, Issue 2, pp. 629-647.
- Ter Bogt, H. J. (2008), “Management Accounting Change and New Public Management in Local Government: A Reassessment of Ambitions and Results - An Institutionalist Approach to Accounting Change in the Dutch Public Sector”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol. 24, pp. 209-241.
- Tooley, S. (1999), “New Public Management and Change within New Zealand’s Education System: An Informed Critical Theory Perspective”, Discussion Paper Series 190, Massey University, College of Business, New Zealand.
- Vickland, S. and Nieuwenhuijs, I. (2005), “Critical success factors for modernising public financial management information systems in Bosnia and Herzegovina”, Public Administration and Development, Vol. 25, Issue 2, pp. 95-103.
- Walker, R. M. and Boyne, G.A. (2010), “Introduction: Determinants of performance in public organizations”, Public Administration, Vol. 87, Issue 3, pp. 433-439.
- Wanna, J., O’Faircheallaigh, and Weller, P. (1992), Public Sector Management in Australia, Macmillan, Sydney.
Financial Delegation System in the Context of New Public Management: Evidence from an Australian Public Sector Organization
Year 2019,
, 1 - 11, 26.12.2019
Nikhil Chandra Shil
Anup Chowdhury
Abstract
This paper
contributes to the study of financial management in public sector organization
in the context of New Public Management (NPM). It deploys an earnest attempt to
explore the financial delegation system in the context of NPM initiatives in
Australia. A government department in the Australian Capital Territory has been
adopted as the field for investigation. The nature of the present research is
explorative and the focus of this research is to study in depth of a particular
phenomena. Qualitative research methodology was chosen to obtain a better
understanding of the phenomena. Case-based research method was used in
developing a fuller understanding of the relative role of financial delegation
system in the management of organisational performance. In this study, data
collection involved a triangulation approach and the three sources were archival
records, interviews and observation. As financial delegation system is socially
constructed, Giddens’ structuration theory was adopted in this research to
obtain a better understanding of human actions and to explore how these control
devices are implicated in the wider social context through time. Empirical
evidence from the field supported that the selected researched organisation has
adopted a wide range of financial delegation mechanisms within the
organization. The research also demonstrated that the implementation of financial
delegation system in the selected organization is the function of NPM in the
key areas of financial management. These findings are consistent with the view
that NPM promotes a culture of performance in Australian public sector.
References
- ACT Government (1996), Financial Management Act 1996, ACT, Australia.
- Alam, M. and Nandan, R. (2008), “Management Control Systems and Public Sector Reform: A Fijian Case Study”, Accounting, Accountability and Performance, Vol. 14, No.1, pp.1-28.
- Anessi-Pessina, E. and Stecolini, I. (2007), “Effects of budgetary and accruals accounting coexistence: Evidence from Italian local governments”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol.23. No. 2, pp. 113-131.
- Atreya, B. and Armstrong, A. (2002), “A Review of the Criticisms and the Future of the New Public Management”, Working Paper, School of Management and Information Systems, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia.
- Barrett, P. (2004), “Financial Management in the Public Sector- How Accrual Accounting and Budgeting Enhances Governance and Accountability”, Address to the Challenge of Change: Driving Governance and Accountability, CPA Forum 2004, Australian National Audit Office.
- Bertaut, C. C., Haliassos, M. and Reiter, M. (2009), “Credit Card Debt Puzzles and Debt Revolvers for Self Control”, Review of Finance, Vol. 13, Issue 4, pp. 657-692.
- Berry, A. J., Coad, A. F., Harris, E. P., Otley, D. T., and Stringer, C. (2009), “Emerging themes in management control: A review of recent literature”, The British Accounting Review, Vol. 41, pp. 2- 20.
- Boisclair, J. P. (1984), “The Challenge of Comprehensive Auditing: Thriving on Value for Money”, CA Magazine, January, pp. 24-29.
- Bouckaert, G. and Halligan, J. (2008), Managing Performance: International Comparisons, Routledge, London.
- Broadbent, J. and Guthrie, J. (2008), “Public Sector to Public Services: 20 Years of Contextual Accounting Research”, Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Vol. 21, No. 2, pp. 129-169.
- Christensen, M. (2005), “The Third Hand: Private Sector Consultants in Public Sector Accounting Change”, European Accounting Review, Vol. 14, No. 3, pp. 447-474.
- Christensen, M. and Parker, L. (2010), “Using Ideas to Advance Professions: Public Sector Accrual Accounting”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol. 26, Issue, 3, pp. 246-266.
- Christiaens, J. and Rommel, J. (2008), “Accrual Accounting Reforms: Only for Businesslike (Parts of) Governments”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol. 24, Issue 31, pp. 59-75.
- Cohen, S., Kaimenaki, E. and Zorgios, Y. (2007), “Assessing IT as a key success factor for accrual accounting implementation in Greek Municipalities”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol. 23, Issue 1, pp. 91-111.
- Crawford, L., Costello. K., Pollack, J., and Bentley, L. (2003), “Managing soft change projects in the public sector”, International Journal of Project Management, Vol. 21, pp. 443-448.
- DHCS (2007a), Corporate Governance Policy on Official Hospitality, ACT, Australia.
- DHCS (2007b), Corporate Governance Policy on Corporate Credit Card, ACT, Australia.
- Dixon, J. and Kouzmin, A. (1994), “The Commercialization of the Australian Public Sector: Competence, Elitism or Default in Management Education?”International Journal of Public Sector Management, Vol. 7, No.6, pp.52-73.
- Dooren, W. V. Bouckaert, W.G. and Halligan, J. (2010), Performance Management in the Public Sector, Routledge, London.
- Dunleavy, P. and Hood, C. (1994), “From Old Public Administration to New Public Management”, Public Money & Management, July-September, 1994, pp. 9-16.
- Geertz, C. (1973), The Interpretation of Cultures, Basic Books, New York.
- Giddens, A. (1976), New Rules of Sociological Method: A Positive Critique of Interpretative Sociologies, Basic Books, Inc., New York.
- Giddens, A. (1979), Central Problems in Social Theory, The Macmillan Press Ltd., London.
- Giddens, A. (1984), The Constitution of Society: outline of the theory of structuration, University of California Press, Berkeley.
- Giddens, A., Duneier, M., Appelbaum, R. P., and Carr, D. (2011), Introduction to Sociology, W. W. Norton & Company, New York.
- Girishankar, N. (2001), “Evaluating Public Sector Reform: Guidelines for Assessing Country-Level impact of Structural Reform and Capacity Building in the Public Sector”, World Bank Operation Evaluation Department, The World Bank, Washington.
- Goyal, A. (2008), “Managing perceived risk for credit card purchase through supplementary services”, Journal of Financial Services Marketing, Vol. 12, pp. 331-345.
- Guba, E. G. and Lincoln, Y. S. (1981), Effective evaluation, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco.
- Halligan, J. and Power, J. (1992), Political Management in the 1990’s, Oxford University Press, Melbourne.
- Halligan, J. (2009), “Performance and Public Management in Australia and New Zealand”, International Conference of the Institute of Public Administration, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 1-4 November.
- Hawke, R.J. (1990), “Challenges in public administration”, in Guthrie, J. Parker, L. and Shand, D. (eds.), The Public Sector: Contemporary Readings in Accounting and Auditing, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Publishers, Sydney, pp. 6-19.
- Hoque, Z. and Adams, C. (2011), “The Rise and Use of Balanced Scorecard Measures in Australian Government Departments”, Financial Accountability and Management, Vol. 27, pp. 308-334.
- Hood, C. (1991), “A Public Management for all Seasons”, Public Administration, Vol. 69, Spring, pp. 3-19.
- Hood, C. (1995), “The New public Management in the 1980’s: Variations on a Theme”, Accounting, organizations and Society, Vol. 20, No.2/3, pp. 93-109.
- Hughes, O. (1995), “The New Public Sector Management: A Focus on Performance”, in Guthrie, J. (ed), Making the Australian Public Sector Count in the 1990s, IIR Conferences Pty Ltd., NSW, pp. 140-143.
- Irvine, H. and Gaffikin, M. (2006), “Methodological insights: Getting in, getting on and getting out: reflections on a qualitative research project”, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 115-145.
- Jansen, E. P. (2004), “Performance Measurement in Governmental Organizations: A contingent Approach to Measurement and Management Control”, Managerial Finance, Vol. 30, No. 8, pp.54-68.
- Llewelyn, S. (2003), “Methodological Issues- What counts as “theory” in qualitative management and accounting research? Introducing five levels of theorizing”, Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Vol.16, No. 4, pp. 662-708.
- Malmi, T. And Brown, D. A. (2008), “Management control systems as a package-opportunities, challenges and research direction”, Management Accounting Research, Vol. 19, Issue 4, pp. 287-300.
- Mason, J. (2002), Qualitative Researching, Sage Publications Ltd., London.
- Massoud, N. and Scholnick, A. (2011), “The cost of being late? The case of credit card penalty fees”, Journal of Financial Stability, Vol. 7, Issue 2, pp. 49-59.
- McKay, K. (2003), “Two Generations of Performance Evaluation Management Systems in Australia”, Canberra Bulletin of Public Administration, Issue 110, pp. 8-20.
- McPhee, I (2005), “Outcomes and Outputs: Are we managing Better as a Result?” CPA National Public Sector Convention, 20 May.
- Merriam, S. B. (2009), Qualitative Research: A Guide to Design and Implementation, Jossey-Bass, California.
- Metcalfe, L. and Richards, S. (1992), Improving Public Management, Sage Publications, London.
- Miles, M. B. and Huberman, A. M. (1994), Qualitative Data Analysis: An Expanded Sourcebook, Sage Publications, London.
- Nagy, S., Hesse-Biber, Leavy, P. (2010), The Practice of Qualitative Research, Sage Publications Inc., London.
- Neely, A., Gregory, M. and Platts, K. (2005), “Performance measurement system design: A literature review and research agenda”, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, Vol. 25, Issue 12, pp. 1228-1263.
- Osborne, D. and Gaebler, T. (1992), Reinventing Government: How the Entrepreneurial Spirit Is Transforming the Public Sector, Addison- Wesley,Reading, MA.
- Patton, M.Q. (2002), Qualitative research and evaluation methods, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, California
- Painter, M. (1988), “Public Management: Fad or fallacy”, Australian Journal of Public Administration, Vol. 47, pp. 1-3.
- Parker, L. D. and Guthrie, J. (1993), “The Australian Public Sector in the 1990s: New Accountability Regimes in Motion”, Journal of International Accounting Auditing & Taxation, Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 59-81.
- Parker, R. and Bradley, L. (2000), “Organisational Culture in the public sector: evidence from six organizations”, The International Journal of Public Sector Management, Vol. 13, No. 2, pp.125-141.
- Robbins, G. (2007), “Obstacles to implementation of New Public Management in an Irish Hospital”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol. 23, Issue, 1, pp. 55-71.
- Ryan, B., Scapens, R.W. and Theobald, M. (1992), Research Method and Methodology in Finance and Accounting, Academic Press Limited, London.
- Shand, D. A. (1995), “Financial Management Reforms in Government: An International Perspective”, in Guthrie, J. (ed), Making the Australian Public Sector in the 1990s, IIR Conferences PTY Ltd. NSW, Australia, pp. 10-14.
- Telyukova, I. A. and Wright, R. (2008), “A Model of Money and Credit, with Application to the Credit Card Debt Puzzle”, Review of Economic Studies, Vol. 75, Issue 2, pp. 629-647.
- Ter Bogt, H. J. (2008), “Management Accounting Change and New Public Management in Local Government: A Reassessment of Ambitions and Results - An Institutionalist Approach to Accounting Change in the Dutch Public Sector”, Financial Accountability & Management, Vol. 24, pp. 209-241.
- Tooley, S. (1999), “New Public Management and Change within New Zealand’s Education System: An Informed Critical Theory Perspective”, Discussion Paper Series 190, Massey University, College of Business, New Zealand.
- Vickland, S. and Nieuwenhuijs, I. (2005), “Critical success factors for modernising public financial management information systems in Bosnia and Herzegovina”, Public Administration and Development, Vol. 25, Issue 2, pp. 95-103.
- Walker, R. M. and Boyne, G.A. (2010), “Introduction: Determinants of performance in public organizations”, Public Administration, Vol. 87, Issue 3, pp. 433-439.
- Wanna, J., O’Faircheallaigh, and Weller, P. (1992), Public Sector Management in Australia, Macmillan, Sydney.