Contractual governance for sustainable service

Abstract

What is contractual governance in a scenario of performance management? When approached from a static viewpoint, contracting is largely connected with the securing of resources, thus acquiring a capacity focus. In this article, we focus on contractual governance as a part of performance management for a stakeholder network in a specific, government‐controlled context: Public Transport. In order to contribute to more dynamic and sustainable public service, a more process‐oriented approach to contractual governance is necessary. Public Transportation in Sweden has undergone an initial wave of development, the production paradigm, and is now undergoing what is more a second wave of service, the service paradigm. A third wave of development is approaching: sustainability. We argue that contractual governance creates a more dynamic contractual relationship as a key element of performance management leading to more sustainable public service. We also argue that a proactive approach during the mission will positively affect all the stakeholders involved.

Citation

Enquist, B., Johnson, M. and Camén, C. (2005), "Contractual governance for sustainable service", Qualitative Research in Accounting & Management, Vol. 2 No. 1, pp. 29-53. https://doi.org/10.1108/11766090510635370