Competing, collaborating or controlling? Comparing benchmarking in European local government

Abstract

The way that local authorities in OECD countries compare and benchmark their performance varies widely. This paper explains some of the reasons behind the variations. The current local government benchmarking schemes in Europe— their governance, coverage and impact—largely depend on the institutional characteristics of the respective administrative and local government systems (in other words, the starting conditions). There are signs that, as a result of the fiscal crisis in Europe and need to cut public sector costs, many countries (but not England and Wales) are leaning towards compulsory large-scale benchmarking projects.

Keywords:

• Benchmarking
• cross-country comparison
• local government
• performance assessment
• public sector reform

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sabine Kuhlmann

Sabine Kuhlmann is Professor of Political Science, Administration and Organization at the University of Potsdam, Germany.

Tim Jäkel

Tim Jäkel is research fellow at the German Research Institute for Public Administration, Speyer, Germany.