Effective and Efficient Organisations?: Government Export Promotion in Germany and the UK from an Organisational Economics Perspective (Contributions to Economics)

Using organisational economics theory, the author develops a conceptual framework for analysing the effectiveness and efficiency of public services delivery. In applying the framework to case studies of export support organisations in Germany and the UK , the research establishes the causal links between organisational structures and outputs. The decisive variables are knowledge and incentives of the actors, and adaptability of the organisation. Since there are trade-offs between the variables, the findings help to explain why one organisation may be different from, but equally effective and efficient as another, and why, despite ongoing re-structuring of public and private sector organisations, no panacea for an effective and efficient organisation has been found. The analytical framework also provides a means for examining existing organisations and blueprints of future organisations, allowing for conclusions about improvability and the implications of change. This book develops a conceptual framework for the relationship between organisation and output, and applies it to the analysis of German and British export support services. These findings help to explain why one organisation may be different from another, but equally effective and efficient, and why no panacea for effective and efficient organisation has been found. They also suggest angles from which existing organisations and blueprints of ‘better’ organisations can be examined. Introduction....Pages 1-8 The context....Pages 9-24 Efficient and effective organisations — Approaches in organisational economics....Pages 25-54 Incentives, knowledge and adaptability....Pages 55-85 The research design....Pages 87-116 The organisation of trade fair support in Germany....Pages 117-157 The organisation of trade fair support in the United Kingdom....Pages 159-205 Organisation matters....Pages 207-222 "Using organisational economics theory, the author develops a conceptual framework for analysing the effectiveness and efficiency of public services delivery. In applying the framework to case studies of export support organisations in Germany and the UK, the research establishes the causal links between organisational structures and outputs."--BOOK JACKET This importance of export support to governments was not just a passing phenomenon in 1990, but is equally prevalent today.