Making Strategic Planning Work in Local Government: An Empirical Study of Success And Failure

Öz

Since the 1990s, local governments all over Europe have launched reforms to improve local democracy, public management and efficiency in the provision of local services. Some of these reforms are inspired by what previously has worked in private management and some of them have also a macro-level approach, whose main aim is to introduce institutional reforms and reorganizations to ensure contextual problem solving by strengthening governance within the local public sector. In this context, Strategic Planning in public organizations has attracted interest among academic researchers and practitioners as an instrument for dealing with a complex environment and for the achievement of higher performance and the attainment of greater democracy. But the decision on how to introduce Strategic Planning might follow a different rationale.

The hypothesis maintained in this paper is that those that are based in an endogenous rationale are more likely to succeed. To test our hypothesis this paper draws on a comparative empirical analysis concerning the design and implementation of a Strategic Planning process within two Spanish city governments: one considered to have been a failure and the other a success. Focusing on the way in which the use of Strategic Planning has to face the trade-offs between urban and economic development and democracy, the paper explores how this formal mechanism of citizen´s and business’ participation serves to establish relational processes to reinvigorate local economic development, democracy and administrative modernization only when a strong political and administrative leadership is put into motion. Overall, the study yields evidence consistent with the notion that a successful Strategic Planning at the local level has to take into account not only institutional issues, but also the communal, social and political resources that frame the deliberations propelled by the Strategic Planning process.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Strategic Management,Strategic Planning

Kaynakça

1. Arthur Andersen (1989). Experiencias en planificación estratégica de ciudades, Madrid: Promadrid.
2. Ayuntamiento de Madrid (2012), PECAM, Madrid: Ayuntamiento de Madrid
3. Barzelay, M. (2007). Learning from Second-Hand Experience: Methodology for Extrapolation-Oriented Research; Governance 20 (3) pp. 521-525
4. Behn, R.D. (1993). Case-Analysis Research and Management Effectiveness: Learning How to Lead Organizations Up Sand Dunes” en Bozeman, B. (coord.), Public Management, San Francisco: Jossey Bass
5. Beltrán, M. (2000). El problema de la calidad en los servicios públicos, in: Trinidad Requena, A. (coord.), Evaluación y Calidad en las organizaciones públicas, Madrid: Ministerio de Administraciones Públicas
6. Berry, F.S. (1994). Innovation in Public management: The Adoption of Strategic Planning, Public Administration Review 54 (3) pp. 332-330
7. Blacksher, E., Diebel, A., Pierre-Gerlier, S, Abelson, J. (2012).What is Public Deliberation? Hastings Center Report 42 (2) pp. 14-17
8. Boaz, A., Grayson, Levitt, R., Solesbury, W. (2008). Does Evidence-based Policy Work? Learning from the UK experience.Evidence and Policy: A Journal of Research, Debate and Practice 4(2) pp. 233-253

9. Brugué, Q.; Gomá, R. y Subirats, J. (2002). Gobierno y territorio: del Estado a las redes”, in: Subirats, J. (Ed.), Redes, territorios y gobierno. Nuevas respuestas locales a los retos de la globalización. Barcelona: Diputació de Barcelona.
10. Bryson, J.M. (2004).Strategic Planning for public and non-profit organizations: A guide to strengthening and sustaining organizational achievement, 3a ed. San Francisco: Jossey Bass.
11. Bryson, J.M., Quick, K, Slotterback, C.S. and Crosby, B. (2013). Designing Public Participation Process, Public Administration Review, 73 (1), pp. 23-34
12. Denters, B. y Rose, E. (Eds.) (2005)Comparing Local Governance: Trends and Developments. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
13. Fernandez Güell, J.M. (1997).Planificación Estratégica de ciudades. Barcelona: Editorial Gustavo Gili.
14. French, P.E. y Folz D.H. (2004).Executive Behavior and decision making in small U.S.cities. American Review of Public Administration, 34 (1) pp. 52-66
15. Fung.A. (2006). Varieties of participation in Complex Governance, Public Administration Review, December 2006, special number pp. 35-48
16. Heinrich, C.J. (2007). Evidence-Based Policy and Performance Management: Challenges and Prospects in Two Parallel Movements. American Review of Public Administration 37(3), pp. 255-77
17. Lynn, L.E. (Jr) (1996).Public Management as Art, Science and Profession, Chatam: Chatam House.
18. González Gómez, F. y Ortega Almon, M. (2003). Una panorámica sobre el crecimiento de las ciudades: aportaciones más recientes en el campo de la economía, Ciudad y Territorio, Estudios Territoriales, XXXV (135), pp. 37-52
19. Kaufman, H. (1960).The Forest Ranger: A Study in Administrative Behavior. Baltimore: H. Hopkins Press.
20. Larrea Arangueren, M. (2003). Clusters y territorio: retos del desarrollo local en la Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco. Ekonomiaz, 53, pp. 138-159
21. McGregor, E.B. (1993). Toward a Theory of Public Management Success in Bozeman, B. (coord.)Public Management.San Francisco: Jossey Bass
22. Miller, D. Y Mintzberg, H. (1983). The case for configuration in Beyond Method:Strategies for Social Research, Morgan G., (Ed.).Beverly Hills:Sage
23. Mintzberg, H. (2002).La estructuración de las organizaciones, Barcelona: Ariel.
24. Mintzberg, H., Lampel, J., Quinn, J. Y Ghosal, S. (2003).The strategy process: Concepts, contexts, cases.Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall.
25. Pascual i Esteve, J. (2002).La gestión estratégica de ciudades. Un instrumento para gobernar las ciudades en la era info-global, Dirección General de la Administración Local. Consejería de Gobernación. Seville: Junta de Andalucía.
26. Perry, J.L. y Kraemer, K.L. (1990).Research Methodology in Public Administration: Issues and Patterns in Lynn y Wildavsky (eds.), Public Administration: The State of the Discipline .New Jersey: Chatman House.
27. Pollit, Ch., and Bouckaert, (2004).Public Management Reforms: A comparative Analysis.Oxford:Oxford University Press.
28. Poister, T.H. y Streib, G. (2005). Elements of Strategic Planning in management and municipal government: Status after two decades. Public Administration Review, 65 (1) pp. 45-56.
29. Porth, S. (2003).Strategic management: A cross-functional approach, Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River.
30. Stoker, G. (2008). Mayors and Urban Governance: Developing a Facilitative Leadership Style, Public Administration Review, July-August, 2008, pp. 722-728.
31. Villoria, M. (1997). Modernización Administrativa y gobierno postburocrático, in: Bañón, R. y Carrillo, E. (eds.), La nueva Administración Pública. Madrid: Alianza Editorial.
32. Wheeland, C. (2003).Implementing a community-wide strategic plan: Rock Hill’s empowering vision 10 years later.American Review of Public Administration, 33 (1), pp. 460-475.