1. What kind of a subject is public management/public administration?
Public management and public administration
Public management, private management, generic management?
What kind of theories and methods are used in PM?
Where does academic PM come from?
The layout of the rest of the book
Foreword: ontologies and epistemologies
Theory, concepts and description: why theory is so important, but not all important
Some big name theories: 1. neo-institutionalism
Some big name theories: 2. rational choice and principal-agent theory
Some big name theories: 3. governance theories
Time, change, stability and public management
3. Methods and approaches
Quantitative versus qualitative?
Qualitative comparative analysis (QCA)
Access, time and some other practicalities
4. The public management community
Measuring the performance of PM academics
Engagement with the world of practice
5. The relationship with practice
Why do practitioners want academic advice?
So what kinds of knowledge can academics offer that might be useful to practitioners?
Rules of engagement for PM academics working with practitioners
6. Current and future issues ("megatrends")
What are academics currently focusing on?
7. Public management in interesting times
