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The Palgrave Handbook of Public Administration and Management in Europe pp 475–495Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Consulting for the Public Sector in Europe

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Abstract

External consultants in the public sector have gained increasing significance in Europe. They are understood as economic and societal experts, who deliver a mandated, ad hoc and paid consulting service to the public administration or political actors with a focus on processes or structures of public administration or on policies. Despite the importance of the topic, studies on the diffusion, role, processes and effects of management consultancy in the public sector are still scarce. Therefore, the chapter provides an overview of the topic, analyzing triggers, diffusion, content, actors, roles, and processes as well as evaluation and outcomes of public sector consultancy. In conclusion, public sector institutions are advised to reflect about the function of external consulting in their organization before the engagement.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Management and Law, Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur, Switzerland

    Reto Steiner & Claire Kaiser

  2. Swiss Institute for Public Management, Bern, Switzerland

    Lukas Reichmuth

Authors
  1. Reto Steiner
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  2. Claire Kaiser
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  3. Lukas Reichmuth
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Correspondence to Reto Steiner .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department for Public Leadership and Social Enterprise—PulSE Faculty of Business and Law , The Open University, Milton Keynes, United Kingdom

    Edoardo Ongaro

  2. Institute for Management Research, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands

    Sandra Van Thiel

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Steiner, R., Kaiser, C., Reichmuth, L. (2018). Consulting for the Public Sector in Europe. In: Ongaro, E., Van Thiel, S. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Public Administration and Management in Europe. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-55269-3_25

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