This paper shows how interactive governance can be helpful in dealing with information asymmetries in the design and administration of public policy. It describes the checks and balances of a properly incentivized mechanism design of contextual or situational contracting that reveals information on diversity in demand for public intervention, deals with complexity, creates commitment to the public cause and disciplines uncooperative behavior. The contractual mode, moreover, discloses the actual trade-offs between rivalling criteria of good governance such as individual freedom, efficiency, distributional concerns and sustainability, deepening our insight in who gets – or pays for – what, when, where, how and why, as the key issues of policy analysis. Evidence from early applications is combined with suggestions for rolling out this new mode of relinking public policy, implementation and external control.

Reflection and debate initiates academically inspired discussions on issues that are on the current policy agenda.

This article examines who ‘21^st century public managers’ are and which skills and roles they have to master to function effectively in the 21^st century. Based on a large scale analysis of literature and years of interaction with senior practitioners, seven key 21^st century demands for public managers are identified, each of which creates dilemmas as well as opportunities. 21^st century public managers utilize a combination of traditional and new roles, competencies, and values to turn demands into opportunities. The article concludes with implications for public administration research and education.

The evaluation purpose is decisive for how a policy evaluation is eventually used and deserves more attention in policy evaluation studies. In the present article, we investigated the motives underpinning concrete evaluations, as outlined in four series of Flemish ministerial policy notes that altogether span a 20-year policy period. The most important key finding is that the evaluation purposes are not sensitive to certain modes, neither are they strongly influenced by reforms and corresponding discourse. Despite the introduction of New Public Management oriented reforms in the Flemish public sector and the financial crisis, the relative share of attention that each of the evaluation purposes get has remained relatively unchanged across time. There seems to be a stable demand for ex ante and ex post evaluations and associated evaluation purposes. The common perception of a trend towards ever more evidence-based policy can hence not be confirmed. Remarkable as well is the low share of attention given to ‘accountability’, at least in discourse.

Een lerende overheid heeft behoefte aan beleidsevaluaties die niet alleen van betekenis zijn voor het onderwerp waarop deze primair gericht zijn, maar ook bijdragen aan bredere, systematische opbouw van kennis en ervaring. Het interdepartementaal verbinden van expertise verruimt daarbij het zicht op factoren die het leren bevorderen of belemmeren.
Een centrale vraag is of de door het beleid beoogde publieke belangen inderdaad bevorderd worden. Beleidsevaluatie moet dan niet alleen gericht zijn op effectiviteit en doelmatigheid ten aanzien van relatief gemakkelijk meetbare indicatoren, maar ook op lastig te kwantificeren essentiële waarden zoals subjectief welzijn, rechtvaardigheid en maatschappelijke aanvaardbaarheid. Het verdient aanbeveling kostbare evaluatie-energie te concentreren op belangrijke kwesties waarover vooraf discussie of onzekerheid bestaat.
Uit een oogpunt van doelmatige beleidsvoorbereiding, en omdat de uitwerking van wetgeving en beleid ex post niet altijd eenvoudig is vast te stellen, is veel aandacht nodig voor ex ante evaluatie. Van onderzoek naar werkingsmechanismen van beleidsmaatregelen wordt in dit verband terecht veel verwacht.
Er is sprake van een paradoxaal spanningsveld tussen verwetenschappelijking en politisering van beleid. Daarom is stevig verankerde, onafhankelijke en onpartijdige beleidsevaluatie onmisbaar. Hoge methodologische kwaliteit biedt extra houvast om deze functie geloofwaardig te kunnen vervullen.
In het streven naar systematische opbouw van kennis en ervaring naast dossier-specifieke doelbereiking kan het helpen als evaluaties zowel een specifiek als een breder geldend algemeen deel bevatten. Belangrijk is ook te sturen op een evenwichtige evaluatieportfolio per beleidsterrein, met aandacht voor ex ante en ex post methoden, uiteenlopende waarden, en verschillende informatiebronnen. Naast best practices moet daarbij ook minder geslaagd beleid in beeld worden gebracht. Voor de bruikbaarheid van evaluaties voor de praktijk is goede vertegenwoordiging van het bottom-up perspectief noodzakelijk.
Evaluatie van beleid vereist gedegen inbedding binnen de nationale kennisinfrastructuur, effectieve samenwerking met kennisinstellingen en het up-to-date houden van het evalueren zelf. Dat is cruciaal voor het evaluatievermogen van de lerende overheid.

Big data is a well-known phenomenon, even a buzzword nowadays. It refers to an abundance of data and new possibilities to process and use them. Big data is subject of many publications. Some pay attention to the many possibilities of big data, others warn us for their consequences. This special issue goes beyond the hype. It contains accessible contributions about opportunities and threats of big data. The authors have put special emphasize on big data institutions. Many publications about big data seem relatively poor on institutions, reflecting a more technocratic approach. In this first contribution we will introduce core concepts around big data. Additionally, we will specify the need to delve into institutions of big data.

This article focuses on the question how Big, Open and Linked Data systems (BOLD) are shifting human-data relations. BOLD is creating a new type of society which is both data-focused and data-driven. Both governments and citizens are measuring, analyzing and verifying data and acting upon these types of analyses. As BOLD is itself becoming intelligent, the process of collecting, linking, and analyzing data is no longer merely the domain of humans. Machine-learning is picking up speed and algorithmic accuracy is being maximized as data are becoming more complex and unpredictable its output. Both citizens and governments will increasingly have to deal with non-human actors in the form of intelligent data-driven systems. By referring to literature on human-animal relations this article makes the argument that data systems are gaining autonomy and a certain level of wildness. As such systems are mediating human relations, the article argues that social relations are shifting to becoming triad relationships in which intelligent information systems are a significant actor.

This essay review discusses three publications on co-creation: ‘We, the government’ by Davied van Berlo (2012), ‘Co-creation of innovation’ by Corry Ehlen (2015), and ‘New Business Models’ by Jan Jonker et al. (2014). The theme of this essay is the specific character of co-creation compared to other buzzwords (e.g. participation, co-production, social responsibility) that can be heard in the search for a new balance between the state and civil society. We suggest that the distinctive character of co-creation lies in the active engagement of parties who work together to co-create. Co-creation means raising the bar of collaboration and dialogue. Openness, trust, equality and reciprocity are emphasised as essential elements in the process. It is literally about collectively creating multiple values in which there should be plenty of room for creativity and sharing ideas. Following on the publications of Ehlen and Jonker a dual vision on co-creation arises. In general terms, the potential of co-creation depends on the know-how, commitment and values of the actors involved (microscopic perspective) and on the social capital in the wider environment that they can draw upon to bolster the co-creation process (macroscopic perspective).

Big data has been adhered many potential benefits for the public sector. It could contribute to performance increase and to a better service delivery in many policy domains, across multiple public sector organisations and administrative levels. Within this debate the question of governance is blatantly absent, though crucial to address. To properly use big data in the public sector it will be necessary to integrate big data governance on three interconnected levels: micro, meso and macro-level, respectively referring to the proficient use of big data, its integrated use within an organisational context and the use of big data within the larger public sector for the benefit of public service delivery.

Nederlandse gemeenten baseren zich veelal op de uitkomsten van de Veiligheidsmonitor (VM) om te weten hoe inwoners de veiligheid in hun woonomgeving waarderen. Ze kijken hierbij onder andere naar het rapportcijfer voor de veiligheid in de eigen buurt. Maar is dit eigenlijk wel een bruikbaar cijfer? In dit artikel nemen we het conceptuele model van Oppelaar en Wittebrood (2006) als uitgangspunt voor het uitvoeren van een regressieanalyse om te achterhalen waardoor het rapportcijfer voor veiligheid in de eigen buurt wordt verklaard. Het rapportcijfer blijkt door vele zaken te worden beïnvloed, aangevoerd door de manier waarop bewoners aankijken tegen de omvang van de criminaliteit in de eigen omgeving, de ervaren overlast en het oordeel over de wijk. Vanwege de vele kenmerken die meespelen, zo beargumenteren we, doen gemeenten er verstandig aan om het rapportcijfer niet te gebruiken.

The Internet of Things generates a wealth of data (big data) about personal behaviour, which can be used for marketing purposes. It brings about both benefits and costs in terms of societal welfare. Various forms of government intervention are needed to safeguard the public interests associated with these welfare effects. These public interest relate, on the one hand, to public availability of data and information, to repairing informational asymmetries, and on the other hand to providing personal security and privacy protection. This article discusses, from the perspective of the principal/agent approach to regulation, how the design of applications and systems in the Internet of Things can best be shaped. The example of the smart thermostat Toon® of the Dutch energy provider Eneco shows how an intensive collaboration between designers and software engineers may contribute to both proper data protection and to provide an incentive to save energy.