The Paradigm Shift from New Public Management (NPM) to Post-NPM in the UK (Essay Sample)

Question 1: The Paradigm Shift from NPM to Post-NPM in the UK
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Word Count: 2930 words
Table of Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u 1.Introduction PAGEREF _Toc122100843 \h 32.New Public Management PAGEREF _Toc122100844 \h 32.1.NPM Concept PAGEREF _Toc122100845 \h 32.2.Success of NPM PAGEREF _Toc122100846 \h 42.3.Challenges of NPM PAGEREF _Toc122100847 \h 53.Post-New Public Management PAGEREF _Toc122100848 \h 63.1.Post-NPM Concept PAGEREF _Toc122100849 \h 63.2.Benefits of Post-NPM PAGEREF _Toc122100850 \h 73.3.Post-NPM in the UK PAGEREF _Toc122100851 \h 83.4.Challenges of Post-NPM in the UK PAGEREF _Toc122100852 \h 104.Conclusion PAGEREF _Toc122100853 \h 11References PAGEREF _Toc122100854 \h 12
1 Introduction
Two systems of public administration—the New Public Management (NPM) as well as the post-NPM reforms—have dominated many developed nations worldwide since the 1980s. NPM has been associated with the public industry for the last 30 years (Reiter and Klenk, 2018). The majority of NPM reforms concentrated on enhancing efficiency, contracting out, marketization, privation, horizontal specialisation in public apparatuses, and privatisation. Additionally, it influenced the adoption of performance management and an outcome-based approach to management (Cohen, 2016). Reiter and Klenk (2018) observe that numerous administrative systems all across the world were dominated by this wave. However, the NPM has also received harsh criticism for more than 15 years. The wave of post-NPM reforms, which started in the late 1990s, concentrated on the issues caused by the growing vertical and horizontal specialisation within NPM. Through structural reintegration and boosting capability at the top, the fundamental principles and policies of post-NPM are intended to improve the core political and administrative levels (Cohen, 2016; Fakhrul, 2015). This essay uses pertinent academic literature to critically analyse the shift from NPM to post-NPM. It will also look into the difficulties with NPM that lead to the development of post-NPM. Additionally, it will use essential data to examine the UK's current position regarding post-NPM reforms.
2 New Public Management
1 NPM Concept
Prior to anything else, the NPM notion must be defined. Funck and Karlsson (2019) emphasise how versatile NPM is as a notion and framework. This has prompted a number of academics to develop well-founded and persuasive theories, considerably enhancing our comprehension of NPM as a universal phenomenon. NPM, a framework developed by Hood, is among the best (Funck and Karlsson, 2019). Seven doctrines are developed under Hood's framework (Johansson et al., 2022). The first is that it is professional management that is done on-site. Second, it includes clear performance metrics and standards. Thirdly, it emphasises output controls more strongly. Fourth, it switches to the division of the public sector into separate units. Fifth, there was a shift to more competitiveness in the provision of public services. Sixth, it put emphasis on the management practices used in the private sector. Additionally, it emphasised tighter control and resource efficiency (Funck and Karlsson, 2019; Johansson et al., 2022). NPM was now convenient to comprehend as a result.
However, there have been other frameworks analysing NPM. Dunleavy et al. (2005) developed three components of NPM, that is, incentivisation, competition and disaggregation. Incentivisation emphasizes rewarding for specific performance rather than more diffuse performance (Lapuente and Van de Walle, 2020). It also implied a shift from low-powered incentives characteristic of traditional bureaucracies such as flat salaries for civil servants in exchange for commitment. It led to high-powered incentives such as performance-related pay (Lapuente and Van de Walle, 2020). Moreover, NPM implies