A Managerialist Strikes Back

In view of a rather one‐sided recent debate, “managerialism” in bureaucracy calls for a defence. The alternate paradigm, which is said to turn on legal as opposed to economic rationality, has not been systematically dealt with by the anti‐managerialists. The functions to which it refers have always in practice been only a small element of public sector activity. The new artifacts of administration are properly viewed as a public sector reflection of wider thought on organisations and quality of working life. They have some common origins with contemporary private sector practice rather than being derived by copying the private sector. Management and policy skills are not mutually exclusive; indeed the contrary is true. Finally, in relation to broadly accepted ethical norms, modern public administration compares well with that which has gone before.