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Fostering organizational change through co-production. Insights from an Italian experience

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Abstract

Even though public service co-production is achieving a growing popularity among scholars and practitioners, there is limited evidence on its implications and consequences. To contribute in filling such a gap, this paper investigates the role of public service co-production in fostering organizational change. A descriptive case study approach was taken, concerning a group co-production experience targeted to the reorganization of primary school meal services in the Municipality of Quarrata, a medium-sized town established in Central Italy. A step-by-step approach was implemented to realize the full potential of public service co-production. Direct and indirect stakeholders were concomitantly involved in the reorganization of school meal services. Service co-production paved the way for several positive outcomes, including: increased user satisfaction, cost savings, greater social and environmental sustainability, and lower water footprint. The research findings suggested that public sector organizations need to perform as enablers of the co-producers’ sleeping resources, enacting a self-nourishing cycle of public value co-creation. The enhancement of the co-producing skills that are available in the community is a fundamental ingredient of the recipe for more effective and smooth processes of organizational change. This is one of the first attempts to examine the role of service co-production in promoting organizational change in public sector organizations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Salerno, Via Giovanni Paolo II, no. 132, 84084, Fisciano, SA, Italy

    Rocco Palumbo & Carmela Annarumma

  2. Department of Prevention, Middle Tuscany LHU, Viale Matteotti 19, 51100, Pistoia, Italy

    Stefania Vezzosi & Paola Picciolli

  3. School Meal Services, Municipality of Quarrata, 51039, Piazzetta Emanuela Loi, Quarrata, PT, Italy

    Alessandro Landini

  4. University Parthenope of Naples, Via Ammiraglio Ferdinando Acton, no. 38, 80133, Naples, Italy

    Rosalba Manna

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  1. Rocco Palumbo
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  2. Stefania Vezzosi
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  3. Paola Picciolli
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  4. Alessandro Landini
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  5. Carmela Annarumma
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  6. Rosalba Manna
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Correspondence to Rocco Palumbo.

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Palumbo, R., Vezzosi, S., Picciolli, P. et al. Fostering organizational change through co-production. Insights from an Italian experience. Int Rev Public Nonprofit Mark 15, 371–391 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12208-018-0205-7

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