Brotherhood Comment August 2007

ISSN 320 8632A regul Ar upd Ate from the r ese Arch And policy centreAugust 2007The rise of the community sectorAt the recent annual conference of have changed radically over the the invisible hand of the market. the Australia and New Zealand life of the Brotherhood, with each Welfare became for the few and only School of Government (ANZSOG) change dictating new organisational on strict conditions. Collaboration held in Canberra on June 28–29, forms, cultures and personnel in the sector was replaced by I was struck by the extent to which practice. The goals are changing competition. In a climate of public the idea of network governance again and suggest that in planning austerity, ‘value for money’ became has come to replace the market- for the future we ought not to a primary government concern and oriented thinking which informed expect simply more of the same. growing market share a driver for the New Public Management of the many sector agencies. While the 1990s. Equally impressive were the Brown et al. (2000) described an model is very much with us, it no new expectations attaching to the earlier sectoral transition in terms longer fits our new public policy third sector as a ‘co-producer’ of of a shift from an ‘activist’ model imperatives. Lifting productivity economic as well as social values. to an ‘industry‘ model. The former and participation in a third wave I came away wondering how was embedded in a Keynesian- of economic growth is dictating ...