1 - Introduction Non-marketability Differential information Interdependence Professionalism HEWS The structure of this study 2 - Managing in the core public services Introduction Concept of progress Differential information Agenda of government Core skills Street level public organizations(SLPOs) Rationing public resources Conflicting environmental forces Institutions of social obligation Code of professional ethics Conclusion 3 - Service delivery - meeting citizen needs Introduction Citizen, client, consumer: the language of service delivery Marketing of public services Design and delivery of service quality Rationing of core public services and appellate structures 4 - Managing resources for social gain Introduction The environment for government investment decisions The economic environment The social environment The technological environment Capital investment facilities Internal stages in the process of public capital investment Strategic and financial assessment Operational judgement Technical definition 5 - Strategic control of core public services Introduction Definition of the control function Legislation and strategic control Examples of legislative controls Strategic management of health care resources Legislative control in New Zealand Budgets, bureaucrats and health care Summary and conclusions 6 - Organizational structures for effective service delivery Introduction Organization and environment Professional bureaucracy New Zealand: educational change and community involvement Power to the parents: school charts and education management Professional bureaucracy and Germany's education reform Decentralized authority and effective organizational structures 7 - Managing professionals Introduction Professionals, citizens responsiveness The management of state professionals Middle managers, professionals and performance measurement Institutional functions Managerial functions New Zealand: partnerships and community Technical rationality and England's education reform 8 - Review of reform programmes Introduction Drawing lessons from the reform programmes Suitability Feasibility Acceptability Appendix I: Case studies Case study 1: The vision and reality of an executive agency - Charles Ferguson and Deirdre McGill Case study 2: Capital accounting case study - UK local government Geoff Jones Case study 3: Implementing community care - Alan Lawton Case study 4: The metropolitan police plus programme - Garry Elliot Case study 5: Wellcare hospital trust - Alan Lawton and David McKevitt