Strategic Public Management Journal (Dec 2015)
Impact Orientation in Austria
Abstract
The implementation of impact orientation within the public sector constitutes an en-tirely new approach of governance. Until recently – and in many cases still so – public administration was primarily input-oriented, which means focusing on the resources (financial, personnel etc.) needed to fulfil existing public tasks instead of focusing on the results and final effects which are intended to be reached ultimately by these often long ago defined assignments. As experience shows, the pressing challenge of increasing steadily the effectiveness and efficiency within public administration cannot be reached by such a one-sided and consequently limited approach. Thus, a wider and more comprehensive concept is necessary to optimize the public sector in all its dimensions. As a result of prevalent budget crises, increasing pressure of stakeholders towards public administration and generally less room for manoeuver due to a growing regulatory burden, new/adapted and more flexible ways of thinking and acting within the public sector are required. Hence, modern concepts of steering and control – not only in Europe but in a larger number of OECD countries – now tend to give more importance to the targets and effects of public administration and its activities within the societal context. This rather new concept – the so called “impact orientation” which has been introduced in Austria as core element of the Federal Budget Law Reform 2009/2013 – requires a fundamental alignment of governmental actions and a new focus on the outputs and even on the outcomes of political and administrative strategies. The results until now have been primarily “outwardly-oriented” reform concepts concentrating on the external societal effects of politico-administrative actions. However, recent research results show for Austria, that this external dimension has to be linked more closely with internal reform efforts and internal impact targets in order to unfold its benefits in a holistic way.
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