Bureaucracy, network, or enterprise? Comparing models of governance in Australia, Britain, The Netherlands, and New Zealand

Theories of democratic government traditionally have relied on a model of organization in which officials act impartially, accept clear lines of accountability and supervision, and define their day-to-day activities through rules, procedures, and confined discretion. In the past 10 years, however, a serious challenge to this ideal has,been mounted by critics and reformers who favor market, network, or "mixed-economy" models. We assess the extent to which these new models have influenced the work orientations of frontline staff using three alternative service types-corporate, market, and network-to that proposed by the traditional, procedural model of public bureaucracy. Using surveys of frontline officials in four countries where the revolution in ideas has been accompanied by a revolution in methods for organizing government services, we measure the degree to which the new models are operating as service-delivery norms. A new corporate-market hybrid (called "enterprise governance") and a new network type have become significant models for the organization of frontline work in public programs.