Organizations in the Public Sector in Hong Kong: Core Government, Quasi-Government and Private Bodies with Public Functions

Twenty-five years ago, the Hong Kong government was lauded as the model of a small, restricted government which was most suited to capitalist economic growth. Since that time, the government and the organizations which it has created have expanded to such an extent that there has been widespread concern that the public sector has grown too large. This article examines the reasons for the rapid growth in the size of the public sector, reflects on the organizational forms outside the traditional civil service that have been adopted, and analyzes the attempts that have been made to reduce the public bureaucracy by corporatizing and privatizing some of the services that it provides. Central to the argument presented is the question of whether an ideological commitment to small government or other functional and political factors have been the critical determinants of organizational change.     

Revisiting the Dartmouth Court Decision: Why the US has Private Nonprofit Agencies Instead of Public Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)

In 1819, the US Supreme Court ruled in Dartmouth v. Woodward that Dartmouth College, even though originally chartered by government, was legally akin to a private corporation. This landmark decision was the founding legal document of what has become the American private nonprofit sector. While the decision has attained hagiographic status, this paper explores what the US nonprofit sector would look like if the Supreme Court had ruled the other way. Using alternate history and scenario writing as research methodologies, it highlights the invisible losses due to the decision and depicts what a public nonprofit sector would have looked like.

Business in Metropolis: Local Governance of for-Profit Organisations in Finland

European local governments face strong pressures to privatisation and market-based reforms in the near future to combat economic austerity and demands for efficiency. This article shows how Finnish metropolitan city has been able to organise its for-profit activities in the new competitive landscape which requires balancing between political demands, legal restrictions and economic efficiency. The governance of for-profit activities in metropolitan city shows that there is both demand and room for administrative innovation to accommodate past administrative idiosyncrasies to market environment. In conclusion, local governments need to pay attention to their own role in shaping local competitive landscape.     

Measuring Citizen Satisfaction with Aspects of Public Services from a Local Authority and Determining Their Importance: A Case Study

The measurement of service quality is a theme of great importance to service providers, particularly public agencies. Over the years their role has been changing by providing more and more high quality services, away from basic ones. In this paper the service quality of a local government is analyzed through the measurement of customer satisfaction. The analysis, based on a questionnaire survey, identified and classified the most essential factors that make up the customer satisfaction with the services provided by the Demographic Department of Gioia del Colle, a town in southern Italy.

金融危机背景下的公司治理改革与优化——第五届公司治理国际研讨会综述

2008年以来,全球性的金融危机令众多的金融机构以及实体经济遭受重创,在金融危机的背景下,第五届公司治理国际研讨会于2009年9月5日到6日在南开大学商学院召开。国内外的专家、学者通过主题报告、主题会场等方式,就金融危机与公司治理之间的关系等方面的问题进行了深入的交流和探讨,在导致此次金融危机的主因,公司治理转型,基于监管视角下的公司治理风险的表现形式,深化公司治理改革、提高公司治理水平等方面达成了重要共识,并就金融危机背景下的公司治理改革与优化提出了各种有价值的观点。