Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

In the Pursuit of the Balance between Efficiency and Responsiveness: A Case Study on the Innovation of the administrative Service Organization in Chinese Local Government

  • Published:
Public Organization Review Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Efficiency and responsiveness are always considered to be two essential but often contradictory values in theory and practice of public administration. This article mainly addresses whether there is a possibility that the efficiency and responsiveness are able to be balanced. Through outlining the evolution process of the Administrative Service Organization in Nanhu District, we argue that the government has gradually focused on providing better services to the public. We concluded that the structural innovation, along with process innovation and conceptual innovation, can be viewed as effective measures to keep the balance between government efficiency and responsiveness to citizens.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Anand, N., & Daft, R. (2007). What Is the Right Organization Design? Organizational Dynamics, 36(4), 329–344

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bason, C. (2018). Leading Public Sector Innovation: Co-Creating for A Better Society (2nd ed., p. 19). Policy Press

  • Bekkers, V., & Tummers, L. (2018). Innovation in the Public Sector: Towards an Open and Collaborative Approach. International Review of Administrative Science, 84(2), 209–213

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bhatti, Y., Olsen, A., & Pedersen, L. (2011). Administrative Professionals and the Diffusion of Innovations: The Case of Citizen Service Centers. Public Administration, 89(2), 577–594

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borins, S. (2000). Loose Cannons and Rule Breakers, or Enterprising Leaders? Some Evidence About Innovative Public Managers. Public Administrative Review, 60(6), 498–507

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bourgon, J. (2007). Responsive, responsible and respected government. International Review of Administrative Science, 73(1), 7–26

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bozeman, B. (2002). Public-Value Failure: When Efficiency Markets May Not Do. Public Administration Review, 62(2), 145–161

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bryer, T. (2006). Toward a Relevant Agenda for a Responsive Public Administration. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 17(3), 479–500

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  • Bryson, J., & Barbara, C., and Bloomberg L (2014). Public Value Governance: Moving Beyond Traditional Public Administration and the New Public Management. Public Administration Review, 74(4), 445–456

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Christensen, T., Fimreite, A., & Laegreid, P. (2007). Reform of the Employment and Welfare Administrations - the Challenges of Co-coordinating Diverse Public Organizations. International Review of Administrative Sciences, 73(3), 389–408

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, S., & Eimicke, W. (1995). Ethics and Public Administrator. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 537(1), 96–108

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cope, G. (1997). Bureaucratic Reform and Issues of Political Responsiveness. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 7(3), 461–471

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Damanpor, F. (1991). Organizational Innovation: A Meta-Analysis of Effects of Determinants and Moderators. Academy of Management, 34(3), 555–590

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Denhardt, J., & Denhardt, R. (2015). The New Public Service Revisited. Public Administration Review, 75(5), 664–672

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Denhardt, R. (2011). Public Organization Theory. Fifth Edition. China: Renmin University Press,132

  • Denhardt, R., & Denhardt, J. (2000). The New Public Service: Serving Rather than Steering. Public Administration Review, 60(6), 549–559

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Vries, H., Bekkers, V., & Tummers, L. (2016). Innovation in The Public Sector: A Systematic Review and Future Research Agenda. Public Administration, 94(1), 146–166

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dong, L., Shou, Z., Christensen, T., & Painter, M. (2014). One-Stop Shop Reform in China as Sequencing: A Case of Chuzhou City. Journal of US-China Public Administration, 11(7), 564–578

    Google Scholar 

  • Eimicke, W. (1974). Public Administration in a Democratic Context: Theory and Practice (p. 17). Sage Publications

  • Florini, A., Lai, H., & Tan, Y. (2012). China Experiments: From Local Innovations to National Reform (p. 61). Washington D.C.: Brookings Institution Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Hartley, J. (2005). Innovation in Governance and Public Services: Past and Present. Public Money & Management, 25(1), 27–34

    Google Scholar 

  • Heintzman, R., & Marson, B. (2005). People, Service and Trust: Is there a Public Sector Service Value Chain? International Review of Administrative Sciences, 71(4), 549–575

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaufman, H. (1956). Emerging Conflicts in the Doctrines of Public Administration. The American Political Science Review, 50(4), 1057–1073

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCamy, J. (1954). Responsiveness versus efficiency in public service. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 292(1), 30–38

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ma, L., Chung, J., & Thorson, S. (2005). E-government in China: Bringing Economic Development through Administrative Reform. Government Information Quarterly, 22(1), 20–37

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Misuraca, G., & Viscusi, G. (2015). Shaping Public Sector Innovation Theory: An Interpretative Framework for ICT-enabled Governance Innovation. Electronic Commerce Research, 15(3), 303–322

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moore, M., & Hartley, J. (2008). Innovation in Governance. Public Management Review, 10(1), 3–20

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moynihan, D., & Hawes, D. (2012). Responsiveness to Reform Values: The influence of the Environment on Performance Information Use. Public Administration Review, 72(1), S95–S105

    Google Scholar 

  • Moynihan, D., Herd, P., & Harvey, H. (2015). Administrative Burden: Learning, Psychological, and Compliance Costs in Citizen- State Interactions. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 25(1), 43–69

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oi, J. (1995). The Role of the Local State in China’s Transitional Economy. The China Quarterly, 144(S), 1132–1149

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Osborne, D., & Gaebler, T. (1992). Reinventing Government: How the Entrepreneurial Spirit Is Transforming the Public Sector. MA: Addison-Wesley

    Google Scholar 

  • Rodrik, D., & Zeckhauser, R. (1988). The Dilemma of Government Responsiveness. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 7(4), 601–620

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rourke, F. (1992). Responsiveness and neutral competence in American bureaucracy. Public Administration Review, 52, 539–546

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salminen, A., & Mäntysalo, V. (2013). Exploring the Public Service Ethos. Public Integrity, 15(2), 167–186

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shen, K. (1999). An Analysis of the Bearing of China’s Ownership Structure Change in the 20 Years of Reform on the Industrial Structure Change. Management World, 2, 86–94

    Google Scholar 

  • Tao, R., & Yang, D. (2008). The Revenue Imperative and the Role of Local Government in China’s Transition and Growth. In Presentation at Conference on China’s Reform, University of Chicago, July

  • Teofilovic, N. (2002). The Reality of Innovation in Government. Innovation Journal, 7(3), 1–22

    Google Scholar 

  • Vetter, A., & Kersting, N. (2003). Democracy versus efficiency? Comparing local government reforms across Europe. In Reforming Local Government in Europe. Kersting N., Vetter A. eds. 11–28

  • Vigoda, E. (2002). From Responsiveness to Collaboration: Governance, Citizens, and the Next Generation of Public Administration. Public Administration Review, 62(5), 527–540

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Waldo, D. (1948). The Administrative State (p. 23). New York: Ronald Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Windrum, P. (2008). Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Public Services. Innovation in Public Sector Services: Entrepreneurship, Creativity and Management (pp. 9–10). Windrum P &Koch

  • Wilson, W. (1887). The Study of Administration. Political Science Quarterly, 2(2), 197–222

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wu, J., Ma, L., & Yang, Y. (2013). Innovation in the Chinese Public Sectors: Typology and Distribution. Public Administration, 91(2), 347–365

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yang, D. (2006). Economic Transformation and Its Political Discontents in China: Authoritarianism, Unequal Growth, and the Dilemmas of Political Development. Annual Review of Political Science, 9, 143–164

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yang, K., & Pandey, A. (2007). Public Responsiveness of Government Organizations: Testing a Preliminary Model. Public Performance & Management Review, 31(2), 215–240

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhu, Q. (2016). Modernization of National Governance and Administrative Reform. Academics, 11, 16–25

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhu, X., & Jiao, Q. (2012). “New Public Management” in China at the Local Level: Competition-Driven Local Public Service Reform in Tianjin. Journal of Local Self-Government, 10(2), 153–170

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhu, X., & Zhang, Y. (2015). Political Mobility and Dynamic Diffusion of Innovation: The Spread of Municipal Pro-Business Administrative Reform in China. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 26(3), 535–551

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We appreciate the funding support from China Scholarship Council and suggestions from Dr. Robert Denhardt and Dr. Chuncheng Li.

Funding

This study was funded by China Scholarship Council.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Public Administration, Hunan University, Lushan Road, Yuelu District, 410082, Changsha, Hunan Province China, China

    Huijuan Zhang

  2. Picker Center for Executive Education, Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, 400 West 119th Street, 10027, New York, USA

    William B. Eimicke

Authors
  1. Huijuan Zhang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. William B. Eimicke
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Huijuan Zhang.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The authors have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Zhang, H., Eimicke, W.B. In the Pursuit of the Balance between Efficiency and Responsiveness: A Case Study on the Innovation of the administrative Service Organization in Chinese Local Government. Public Organiz Rev 24, 201–216 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11115-022-00627-8

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11115-022-00627-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation