Page 87 - RIMD_2012_3
P. 87
Revue de l’Institut du Monde et du Développement | 87
In functional terms, an administrative organization must be innovative and,
therefore, it must pursue clear and precise goals, previously defined by poli-
tics.
The policy is the strategic level of the Administration and the latter must
intelligently perform the goals determined by the Policy; in principle, the
Administration is only a performer.
However, the notion of performance has changed in time because the per-
former has become more autonomous today and thus enjoys a margin of
freedom.
Especially locally, the link between Administration and Policy is very close,
even tight.
The emphasis by the European Commission on "multi-level governance" can
lead us to expect a clarification of responsibilities between the European,
national and local levels, in time, under the principle of subsidiarity.
To summarize, an administrative organization needs a strategic mission, a
role and motivating objectives, which would motivate even more the civil
servants in order to work and build the society of tomorrow.
In material terms, an administrative organization must be useful, i.e. it must
do things that would improve people’s daily lives. It must support and facili-
tate the development of civil society, in all its forms.
The Administration produces and it must be proud of what it produces every
day.
It delivers services for inhabitants; it creates solidarity for the society and it
draws perspectives for present and future generations.
In evaluative terms, an administrative organization needs to be controlled
and accountable for both its action and for what it spends and how it spends
public money, because this public money is the product of taxes and fees.
The control ensures the Administration’s fully compliance with the legal and
financial rules in the exercise of its actions.
As a consequence, the evaluative aspect of public action is twofold: firstly, it
consists of control and, secondly, of assessment.
The latter estimates the efficiency of public action.
That is, it verifies whether the Administration achieved the goals assigned by
the Policy, goals which are implemented by the former by its own means. It
is also necessary that such means are adapted to the tasks it must accomplish.
The assessment estimates the results of the public action, which are most
often quantitative.
However, since the Administration is not a private company, it should better
assess the administrative action by increasingly resorting to both quantitative
and qualitative indicators.
RIMD – n o 3 – 2012
In functional terms, an administrative organization must be innovative and,
therefore, it must pursue clear and precise goals, previously defined by poli-
tics.
The policy is the strategic level of the Administration and the latter must
intelligently perform the goals determined by the Policy; in principle, the
Administration is only a performer.
However, the notion of performance has changed in time because the per-
former has become more autonomous today and thus enjoys a margin of
freedom.
Especially locally, the link between Administration and Policy is very close,
even tight.
The emphasis by the European Commission on "multi-level governance" can
lead us to expect a clarification of responsibilities between the European,
national and local levels, in time, under the principle of subsidiarity.
To summarize, an administrative organization needs a strategic mission, a
role and motivating objectives, which would motivate even more the civil
servants in order to work and build the society of tomorrow.
In material terms, an administrative organization must be useful, i.e. it must
do things that would improve people’s daily lives. It must support and facili-
tate the development of civil society, in all its forms.
The Administration produces and it must be proud of what it produces every
day.
It delivers services for inhabitants; it creates solidarity for the society and it
draws perspectives for present and future generations.
In evaluative terms, an administrative organization needs to be controlled
and accountable for both its action and for what it spends and how it spends
public money, because this public money is the product of taxes and fees.
The control ensures the Administration’s fully compliance with the legal and
financial rules in the exercise of its actions.
As a consequence, the evaluative aspect of public action is twofold: firstly, it
consists of control and, secondly, of assessment.
The latter estimates the efficiency of public action.
That is, it verifies whether the Administration achieved the goals assigned by
the Policy, goals which are implemented by the former by its own means. It
is also necessary that such means are adapted to the tasks it must accomplish.
The assessment estimates the results of the public action, which are most
often quantitative.
However, since the Administration is not a private company, it should better
assess the administrative action by increasingly resorting to both quantitative
and qualitative indicators.
RIMD – n o 3 – 2012
