New public management and path dependence in public organisations in Ethiopia: a multiple case study

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to document how managers in public organisations in Ethiopia describe the nature and implementation of path breaking interventions for the effective adoption of NPM in order to improve services and social outcomes for low-income populations. In doing so, a multiple case study was applied. Qualitative data was based on insights derived from in-depth interviews with the identified participants. Key findings of the study show that in Ethiopia NPM reforms have been introduced following a system-wide approach for all government organisations, obstructing their clear articulation and communication thereof. The levels of performance in design, implementation, output in terms of service delivery, and outcomes to the society vary among enterprises. Leadership commitment, persistence, necessary work in the reward system, and human resource policies (soft S's), institutional development, autonomy and accountability, and benchmarking and contextualisation are some of the factors for effective adoption of NPM reforms.