Governing Complexity in Times of Turbulence

This book provides an understanding of how public organizations adapt to and manage situations characterized by fluidity, ambiguity, complexity and unclear technologies, thus exploring public governance in times of turbulence. An impressive selection of scholars present their research on governance in turbulent times and explore how public organizations adapt flexibly in turbulent situations. The editors introduce a diverse analytical toolkit contributing not only to an understanding of the role of complexity in public governance, but also suggesting how organizational formats may serve as usable design tools available to decision-makers in the pursuit of sustainable and responsible governance. Chapters explore a variety of topics and cases including artificial intelligence, antimicrobial resistance and sexuality education. Providing a broad coverage of empirical cases and a global outlook, this book will be an excellent read for scholars and practitioners in political science and public administration, as well as policy makers with interests in governance, leadership and citizen engagement.

Table of Contents:
Contents: Foreword xiii Preface xvi PART I SETTING THE STAGE 1 Governing complexity in times of turbulence 2 Jarle Trondal, Rómulo Pinheiro, Robyn Keast and David Noble 2 Complexity, resilience and public governance in times of turbulence 13 Jarle Trondal, Rómulo Pinheiro, Robyn Keast and David Noble PART II DESIGN 3 Transformative ideas, sturdy organizations: varieties of artificial intelligence policy in the Nordics 32 Frans af Malmborg and Jarle Trondal 4 Public–private partnership (PPP) in the context of European Union policy initiatives on critical infrastructure protection (CIP) from cyber attacks 53 Marzio Di Feo and Luigi Martino 5 Policy innovation and organizational design: connecting theory and practice 79 Jarle Trondal PART III AGENCY 6 Project sustainability and complex environments: the role of relationship networks and collaborative agency 101 Amanda Scott, Robyn Keast, Geoff Woolcott, Daniel Chamberlain and Deborah Che 7 Governing complexity: the public organizations’ shift in digital transformation 126 Dominika Ewa Harasimiuk and Tomasz Braun 8 The race to institutional change: the slow road to policy change in sexuality education 145 Elisa Bordin and Rómulo Pinheiro PART IV POWER 9 Power dynamics in multisector and multilevel coordination: the case of antimicrobial resistance 169 Martin Stangborli Time 10 Into the fray: conflict resolution in on-line environments 191 Jennifer Waterhouse PART V RESILIENCE 11 How collaboration antecedents affect the resilience of local governance networks 216 Katarzyna Sienkiewicz-Małyjurek 12 Turbulence within and beyond resilience in public organizations: a study of Italian opera theatres 238 Maria Laura Frigotto and Francesca Frigotto PART VI EPILOGUE 13 Towards a research and policy agenda for governing complexity 260 Robyn Keast, Christine Flynn, David Noble, Jarle Trondal and Rómulo Pinheiro Index

About the Author :
Edited by Jarle Trondal, Professor, ARENA Centre for European Studies, University of Oslo, Department of Political Science and Management, University of Agder, Norway, and Senior Fellow, Institute of European Studies, University of California, Berkeley, USA, Robyn Keast, Professor, Faculty of Business, Law and Arts, David Noble, Associate Professor, Faculty of Business, Law and Arts, Southern Cross University, Australia and Rómulo Pinheiro, Professor of Public Policy and Administration, University of Agder, Norway

Review :
‘Unpredictability, uncertainty and rapidly, drastically changing governance problems – in short: turbulence – challenge public organizations. This important edited volume discusses how public organizations respond to turbulence, both within their environment and within the organizations themselves. The empirical chapters provide fascinating insights into reactions within different policy fields and illustrate key organizational responses, centered on design, agency power and resilience.’ ‘The editors are to be congratulated for bringing together a unique selection of cross- and multi-disciplinary approaches describing and analysing the complexities of policy implementation across a wide range of sectors, fields and projects. The specific chapter examples and circumstances each reveal different dynamics. But the macro-lessons they provide, arising from real-life practicalities and challenges of cross-sectoral engagement, are especially noteworthy and vital for all of us interested in pursuing public engagement and delivering public value.’ ‘Clear governance structures in a time of turbulence are essential to successfully navigating uncharted waters. The COVID-19 pandemic exposed strong and weak governance arrangements across the world. Honed by disaster experiences of cyclones, floods, bushfires over decades, Queensland, an Australian state, drew on a proven response framework, of clear governance arrangements and role clarity, with leaders invoking citizens to come along with them. Despite such well-established governance frameworks and strategies, the disruptive power of the pandemic still tested Queensland’s resolve. This publication demonstrates the value of understanding design, agency, and power to deliver resilience for current and future planning. This volume is an important addition for practitioners to examine and understand the governance of complexity, delivered in a systematic and considered way.’ ‘The book could not have been published at a more appropriate time. Public sector organizations are facing enormous challenges in turbulent times, which means that there is need for change and adaptation. I am extremely impressed with how this book brings governing complexity to life. It is essential reading for public sector managers, professionals, students and researchers.’ ‘The COVID-19 crisis has served as a magnifying glass drawing our attention to the frequent emergence of crisis-induced turbulence and the need for public and private actors to engage in flexible adaptation and proactive innovation of governance solutions. This edited volume provides a timely and innovative theoretical perspective on this predicament and grounds this perspective in illuminating empirical analyses covering a lot of ground. It is bound to set the agenda for future governance research.’