Strategy in the Public Sector - Kennedy School of Government and Harvard Business School - Case Study Example

Name Class Unit Melbourne’s 2 am lock out Introduction Strategy in the public sector is a concept that was developed by the Kennedy School of Government and Harvard Business School. This concept led to the development of the strategic triangle which looks at the three complex issues. The three complex issues have to be addressed before the public sector executives and organisations commits to any course of action. The three issues are; public value, sources of legitimacy and support and the operational capabilities (Moore 2013, p.12). Public organisations and governments have to maintain a certain social credibility and legitimacy for them to be successful. Melbourne’s 2 a.m. lock out was a plan drafted to curb alcohol fuelled violence announced by the Victoria Brumby government in May 2008. The main aim was to prevent late venue hopping in the four inner municipalities. The move was welcomed by some who saw it as an avenue to curb the antisocial behaviour caused by alcohol abuse. The move was criticised by the club owners and goers who perceived it as oppressive. Those against the move claimed that it would punish club goers leaving them stranded. The move was seen as a means which can lead to exacerbate the problem. This report analysis 2 am lockout policy identifies and frames the issues. The report then identifies the mandates, determines the justification to intervene and comes up with alternative policy options. Using Moore alternative approach, the mandates are developed further. The report address public value to be delivered and shows how costs will be contained. Framing the issues The growth of alcohol fuelled violence on city streets led to the 2AM lock out in May 2008. The antisocial behaviour has been a major issue in the cities. Victoria drinking problem is a major concern for both the state and federal governments. The levels of risky and high risky drinking have been high in Australia at approximately 13.4%. Alcohol abuse leads to health issues and loss of economic productivity. The country cost of excessive alcohol consumption has been estimated to be at $15 billion annually. The issue of alcohol abuse is serious with alcohol being the major drug responsible for the highest deaths and main cause of hospitalisation. It’s clear that excessive consumption of alcohol in Australia is a major contributor to road accidents, domestic, sexual and physical violence and assaults. Based on the case, the current issues on alcohol abuse are based on enormous pressure to drink. Alcohol abuse is a major issue affecting Victoria. The manner in which the alcohol abuse was handed led to more issues. The task force did not act together and some of their advice was ignored. There was poor consultation among the stakeholders in the sector. This undermined the sources of legitimacy and support based on the strategic triangle (Moore 2013, p.25). In tackling alcohol abuse in the state, the Victoria government had to attain social credibility and legitimacy. Mandates and their capabilities For the victoria government, they set up mandates for different players in the industry. The local councils, Victorian police and the advisory group all have a part to play. The resources that are used in addressing the alcohol problem in Victoria are taxpayers’ contribution. Thus, there is need for the task to be accomplished so that the management can sell a story of public value creation. The task to curb alcohol problem is aimed at attaining aggregate results. The performance of this mandate has the capability to determine whether the government is capable of satisfying the stakeholders. The mandate to the council was issuing the planning permits and considering them for the licensed premises. The council is also responsible for stipulating the operating hours, licence applications, participate in liquor licensing forums, make by laws on alcohol consumption in public services and initiate disciplinary actions for the traders breaching the terms set. The police have a role in checking their questionnaires, checking the suitability of applicants, enforcing liquor laws, mentoring the licensed premises and participating in the liquor forums. The advisory group was part of the taskforce that came up with the 2 a.m. lockout. The task force is made up of health experts and other government officials. Despite the mandates being well qualified and positioned for the task, there were poor consultations. The taskforce had ignored vital advice from the health experts on binge drinking. The policy was hardly discussed before being implemented. Lack of opinions from the major stakeholders such as public, members of the task force and players in the industry made it hard to get the job done. Developing mandates further using Moore’s alternative approach Public services are funded by the taxpayers’ money and hence are subject to democratic accountability (Benington & Moore 2011, p.12). This implies that the public have to be involved in the service delivery. This is through deliberative governance. Moore calls for managing the authorising environment which is external. This implies that the mandates must be responsive to the public preferences. The public must have trust in the public realm. The mandates can be developed further through engaging all stakeholders. The public must decide what the objectives should be. This would eliminate the management being solely involved in drafting a policy. In this case, there are claims that the idea was based on a single person opinion. There is lack of public view, police, industry players and the health sector opinions. Lack of involvement makes the policy susceptible to poor accountability. The public among the rest of the stakeholders does not own the idea and there is lack of legitimacy. To further develop the mandate, it would be important to carry out a market research. This is through use of focus groups and market surveys. Before the plan was executed, there was no appropriate research which exposed the problem to possibility of failure. The mandate can also be improved through use of devolved responsibility. This is through use of community partnership and participatory budgeting. Based on the public value, it is suggestible that the management use the outside in frame of reference (Prebble 2012, p. 397). This is through use of keener appreciation to what the public values genuinely. The views of the citizens and other stakeholders must be addressed. Public value gives a framework that helps in making the final decision. It requires a constant dialogue between the public and the public managers. The mandate requires to be based on responsiveness to the refined preferences (Moore 2013, p. 47). 2 am lockout policy implementation strategies and tactics To ensure 2 am lockout policy will create social value, there is need to use Kennedy school strategic triangle. The three areas contained in the strategic triangle are; public value, source of legitimacy and support and operational capabilities. Public value idea is supposed to be shared by all stakeholders (Benington & Moore 2011, p.11). This is especially those in positions that can help in offering legitimacy. The policy to combat alcohol problem in Victoria must be able to address all issues in the strategic triangle. This is through commanding legitimacy and support, operationally doable and ability to create public value. Legitimacy and support The first step is gaining legitimacy and support in the new policy. The idea of legitimacy and support is based more on the social and political legitimacy. This is through the policy having the right to be applied to the social and political setting and the economic viability. The society must authorize the idea for it to be operative. The policy must be to the public interests. Alcohol abuse leads to loss to the society and in some cases can be fatal. The state and federal governments report loss of a lot of revenues. If the policy being implemented does not get legitimacy and support, it is bound to lead to loss (Williams & Shearer 2011, p. 1371). The individuals involved who include the stakeholders must be willing to put their resources in the implementation of the policy. For the policy to gain legitimacy there is need to involve the stakeholders while drafting it. This will make it possible for them to own the policy. The 2 a.m. lock down plan was not owned by stakeholders. The citizens who are the taxpayers are the main secure of legitimacy (Ospina, Kersh & Saz-Carranza 2012, p. 152). The taxpayers are analogous to the investors in the private sector. The politics that surrounds policy drafting and implementation must be resolved first. Politics in the public sector threatens the drafting of vital policies. The differences that arise on the public based on the best use of public resources are great (Jacobs 2014, p.483). This is due to the fact that they have to debate on the best way to attain the results on the alcohol problem and the amount of resources that are to be allocated. When developing a policy, it is important to look at the legal, moral and its practicability. The proposed policy is based on the laws and is meant to instil morality. The policy is also highly practical since it targets the violence hotspots. It would be unfair to draft a policy that punishes all levellers without determining those responsible for the violence. This ensures that the policy does not risk losing its legitimacy and support (Williams & Shearer 2011, p. 1373). Building legitimacy and support is a key aspect of a successful firm. Public value aim The public value aims are based on the public value outcomes of the project. The impact and perfoamcne of the policy will be measured. The aims of the policy are benefit the public sphere. This is through reduction of alcohol abuse and ensuring that the alcohol based violence is acted on and reduced (Benington & Moore 2011, p.14). The expressed and revealed priorities by the population must be met. The public values elimination of antisocial behaviour and ensuring that there is reduction of alcohol abuse. The public sphere looks at what long term public interests. This involves the future health for the generations to come. With continued alcohol abuse, the health of future generations is at stake. The alternative views will be sought and debated to ensure that there is creation of the public value. The policy will have to bring together the authority and expertise that is required to help in decision making. The value created will be a result of the combination of resources /operational capabilities and the authorising environment. The public value will be their goal for the policy being undertaken. Public value creation depends on the availability of legitimacy. According to Moore, the management should be able to develop skills that help them in making decisions that meet the expectations of the stakeholders, are feasible and within the budget. Public service involves accountability and the policies made must adhere to it (Ospina, Kersh & Saz-Carranza, 2012, p. 153). Resources For the policy to create public value there must be adequate resources. The resources are combined with other organisation processes to attain the set objectives. The ability of management to succeed in a policy depends on the ability to exploit the operational capabilities. This is due to fact that most of the capacity to create public value lies outside the organisation scope that can be controlled directly (Benington & Moore 2011, p.17). The policy will depend on the police department, taskforce group and all the stakeholders. This will make it possible to have all resources together that are required for the implementation of the policy. The capabilities will thus come from outside Victoria government and within. Through the strategic triangle, the following policy strategies will be developed. Policy options: identifying and monitoring hotspots with violent behaviour in the city and regulating them, and charging high fines to those caught engaging in alcohol fuelled violence. Implementation For the policy options to achieve sustainable public value, the alignment between the three factors in the test must be maintained. As the policy moves out of the alignment with strategic triangle, the public managers must make corrective actions. This will involve making sure that the key players involved in implementation are educated and informed on the alignment. This enables the key players to make adjustments to their services to ensure that they are able to meet acceptable values. Creation of public value demands an on-going process of engagement which also takes account of the circumstances. When working well, regulatory policies are able to deliver value at the lowest costs (Fisher & Grant 2012, p.2). Meeting the Moore test with an aim of containing costs and delivering public value The three tests that Moore argues must be met are; the action or strategy must be substantial. The policy must be of value to the public and produced at a low cost. The cost is looked in terms of money and authority. The policy options are expected to meet the value for the major stakeholders (Bryson, Crosby & Bloomberg 2014, p.445). In this context, value is based on the efficiency in administration, reduction in alcohol abuse, enhanced compliance by the players in the industry, and improved security in the state. The multiple benefits that are delivered by the policy options are a proof that the policy options have substantive value. The proposed policy is able to meet the substantive value test. The second test claims that the action/policy must be legitimate and politically sustainable. The action must be able to attract funding from the political authority which will sustain it (Prebble 2012, p. 498). The regulatory policy is supported by the government due to its low cost and feasibility. This will make the policy to be easily adopted by the government and gain authority and money to sustain it. The public values the contribution that the policy option will have on eliminating antisocial behaviour through a low cost manner. An industry will always favour a policy that is based on rewards rather than punishments (Bryson, Crosby & Bloomberg 2014, p.447). The policy options will engage key players that are members of the authorising environment. The industry will be able to work with the regulatory framework instead of a system that has been earlier imposed on them. This makes it easy for the policies to gain support. Lastly, the third test looks at the feasibility both operationally and administrative. This looks at the capability of the existing organisation to accomplish the task. This can be with the help of others who have the capacity to contribute to the goals. Victoria government is well endowed to carry out the policy. This is through the police departments, licencing department and the state. The public and other stakeholders will help the state in attaining their goal of curbing alcohol abuse. Coming up with an option which have high industry and public input makes it easy for the administrative purposes. The costs to be incurred are low making it the best option. From a public perspective of public value, the policy options are administratively feasible. The proposed policy meets all three tests in the strategic triangle. The policy has been able to meet the political, cooperation and operation tests based on strategic triangle. The political factor looks at the need to gain political support. The policy will be able to gain political support through an all-inclusive approach. This is through engaging all the stakeholders in the political environment and ensuring that their views on the policy are considered. The policy lacked political support since it failed to consider some of the stakeholder’s views (Jacobs, 2014 p. 487). Cooperation is based on taking governance into account. This is through networking between the social actors. The policy will involve all social actors to ensure that there is legitimacy and support. The policy is effective and efficient which makes it possible to meet the operations dimensions. The government will extend the mandate with an aim of entering new forms of cooperation. This will involve changing the operations and creating an influence to the political level (West & Davis 2011, p.230). The new operations based on the policy will attract new partnerships. The policy is aimed at regulating alcohol use and protecting the whole population from the negative effects of the alcohol abuse. The society is highly risk adverse. This has made society to engage in risky behaviours such as alcohol abuse. The new policy will ensure that the public demand for action on alcohol abuse is addressed without unfairly affecting other groups. A regulatory policy approach is a low cost tool and can lead to high rate of responsiveness. The policy does not require a complex administrative environment to draft and implement. The personnel to implement are ready and the state will only have to add social control making it less costly. The policy will be monitored and enforced through the state agencies. Third party will only be used for surveillance actions (West & Davis 2011, p.240). By meeting these tests, it will be possible for the policy to deliver the public value. The failure to meet any of the elements in the test can undermine the success of the policy. When a substantive idea lacks political support, it is bound to fail. The strategic triangle will make it possible for the policy to meet the public value. Each of the points in the strategic triangle have been met which have helped in determining what is feasible to do (West & Davis 2011, p.237). Public value delivered With the policy options, public value created is the ability to reduce the antisocial behaviour brought about by alcohol abuse. The public will benefit by the new regulation since they will address the root cause of the problem without punishing those who are innocent. The localised alcohol fuelled violence will be reduced to a great extent. This is of great value to the public who have to incur costs such as loss of family members, damage and hospital bills. The public will also be able to actively participate in giving their views on the new policy options since they are inclusive. Acceptability of costs incurred The costs incurred through the policies are justifiable and acceptable. The risky drinking behaviour has had high impacts on health to economy. The costs of excessive consumption based leads to the loss of billions of dollars annually. In Australia, alcohol has been a major cause of death and a leading cause of hospitalisation. The high costs are incurred due to hospital expenses and the situation is getting out of control unless measures are taken. With the growing number of licenced premises, measures are required to ensure that there is reduction of antisocial behaviour. Almost three quarters of the city residents feel that the city is becoming less safe due to alcohol induced violence. Due to the public value that is created by the policy options, the costs incurred are justifiable. The policy has been able to meet the Moore tests making it viable and a reasonable approach to tackle the alcohol problem (Spano 2014, p. 360). Conclusion With the growing alcohol fuelled violence in city streets, the Victoria government came up with the plans for 2 a.m. lockout policy. The policy was enacted in 2008. The plan main intentions had been to eliminate late night venue hoping to bars, clubs and night clubs. While the move was supported by some, club owners and patrons were against it. The lock out plan faced a lot of blows making it hard to implement smoothly. With Victoria drinking problem spiralling out of control, policy plans are required. Using Kennedy school strategic triangle, two policy options can be developed. These are; identifying and monitoring hotspots with violent behaviour in the city and charging high fines to those caught engaging in alcohol fuelled violence. The two policies have a regulatory aspect. The policies have been able to meet the strategic triangle test making them viable option for Victoria government. The policy options will reduce alcohol abuse since all the stakeholders are involved. The public will benefit by reduced costs of health, increased economic productivity and reduction in antisocial behaviour. The public value created exceeds the costs incurred. This makes the costs justifiable and acceptable. The policy options are supposed to be monitored and aligned with the strategic triangle in a continuous basis. References Benington, J., & Moore, M. H. 2011. “Public value in complex and changing times.” Public value: Theory and practice, p.1-30. Bryson, J. M., Crosby, B. C., & Bloomberg, L. 2014. “Public Value Governance: Moving Beyond Traditional Public Administration and the New Public Management.” Public Administration Review, Vol.74, no.4, p.445-456. Fisher, J., & Grant, B. 2012. “Beyond Corporate Social Responsibility: Public Value and the Business of Politics.” International Journal of Business and Management, Vol.7, no.7, p2. Jacobs, L. R. 2014. “The Contested Politics of Public Value.” Public Administration Review, Vol.74, no.4, p.480-494. Moore, M. H. 2013. Recognizing public value. Harvard University Press. Ospina, S. M., Kersh, R., & Saz-Carranza, A. 2012. “The quest for public value.” Public Administration Review, Vol.72, no.1, p.152-153. Prebble, M. 2012. “Public value and the ideal state: Rescuing public value from ambiguity.” Australian Journal of Public Administration, Vol.71, no.4, p.392-402. Spano, A. 2014. How Do We Measure Public Value? From Theory to Practice. Public Value Management, Measurement and Reporting (Studies in Public and Non-Profit Governance, Volume 3) Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 3, p.353-373. West, K., & Davis, P. 2011. “What is the public value of government action? Towards a (new) pragmatic approach to values questions in public endeavours.” Public Administration, Vol.89, no.2, p.226-241. Williams, I., & Shearer, H. 2011. “Appraising public value: Past, present and futures.” public administration, Vol.89, no.4, p.1367-1384. Read More