Let's Get Public Administration Right, But in What Sequence?: Lessons from Japan and Singapore

SUMMARY The so‐called Good Governance Model requires perfect public administration that is accountable, efficient, equitable, representative, responsive and transparent and that respects the rule of law. Accordingly, the Good Governance Movement promotes a variety of public administration reforms worldwide. However, the effectiveness of promoting all kinds of administrative reforms at once is in question, because that could overwhelm the reform capability of countries, and more important, some reforms can compete with, rather than complement, one another. Such scenarios are possible, and the implication is clear: administrative reform discourse must consider how to best sequence and prioritize reforms, the outcomes of which must be identified. The experiences of Japan and Singapore offer some insight into this. This study first codifies administrative reforms by using the concepts of administrative themes, and it systematically traces, compares and contrasts reforms in both countries in light of these themes. This leads to the conclusion that the sequences in which administrative reforms evolved in those places contributed to dissimilarities in their administrative traditions today. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.