Context and innovation in traditional bureaucracies: A Hong Kong study
| Published date | 01 February 2021 |
| Author | Ian Scott |
| Date | 01 February 2021 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1002/pad.1899 |
Received: 6 April 2020
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Revised: 15 June 2020
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Accepted: 24 October 2020
DOI: 10.1002/pad.1899
SPECIAL ISSUE ARTICLE
Context and innovation in traditional bureaucracies: A Hong
Kong study
Ian Scott
1,2
1
Department of Government and Politics,
Murdoch University, Perth, Western Australia,
Australia
2
Department of Public Policy, City University
of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China
Correspondence
Ian Scott, Murdoch University, Perth,
Australia and Department of Public Policy,
City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon,
Hong Kong, China.
Email: sascott@cityu.edu.hk
Funding information
City University of Hong Kong, Grant/Award
Number: Project No. 7005144; Research
Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region, China, Grant/Award
Number: Projects No. 11605917, 11603219
Abstract
Traditional bureaucracies, defined in Weberian terms, are almost invariably seen as
antithetical to innovation. Yet, although the academic literature presents an array of
formidable structural barriers to the emergence and implementation of new ideas,
innovation does occur in traditional bureaucracies. How can the structural imped-
iments be overcome? What are the processes that enable innovation to take place?
Based on a longitudinal study of the Hong Kong government's innovation policies
and practices, it is argued that political context is a critical variable explaining how,
even in rigid traditional bureaucracies, barriers may be avoided or temporarily
suspended. Two contrasting case studies are used to illustrate, first, the importance
of political commitment in gaining acceptance for new ideas and, second, the failure
of agencies dedicated to innovation to achieve their objectives. It is postulated that
circumventing structural barriers or working through political channels to reduce
their impact may be a more constructive strategy than creating dedicated agencies
to develop innovative measures. The study is grounded in a literature review,
documentary evidence from the Hong Kong government's innovative agencies, and
interviews with senior staff from those agencies.
KEYWORDS
efficiency improvements, innovation policy, public sector innovation, traditional bureaucracy
1
|
INTRODUCTION
Public sector innovation describes how new ideas, good and bad,
make their way through organizational and decision‐making pro-
cesses to the point of acceptance, design and implementation (Bloch
& Bugge, 2013; De Vries, Bekkers, & Tummers, 2016). To achieve the
status of an innovation, an idea must be novel rather than simply an
improvement, must be taken up and must be useful (Hartley, 2005;
Mulgan, 2007, p. 6). Meeting those criteria is often difficult,
especially, at the systemic level where traditional bureaucratic
structures and organizational processes create barriers to innovation
at every turn (Cinar, Trott, & Simms, 2019; Moussa, 2018; Thompson,
1965). Where do innovative ideas come from in such organizations?
What conditions enable such ideas to gain acceptance? Very often,
their acceptance depends on the political context within which the
bureaucracy operates. Context determines how and where the
required resources for innovation will be allocated and the direction
and extent to which change will be permitted. Although the formi-
dable barriers presented by traditional bureaucracies never guar-
antee unimpeded implementation, innovative ideas may still gain
acceptance if there is political commitment to the idea and if normal
bureaucratic processes can be circumvented or suspended.
Traditional bureaucracies may be defined as permanent public
organizations which are composed of hierarchically organized
departments and agencies and are often highly centralized. They
follow rule‐governed procedures and are staffed by personnel
recruited on merit and organized into grades and ranks throughout
the bureaucracy. Staff have specialized roles and most have careers
for life (Weber, 1991, pp. 196–204; Pollitt, 2009). Impediments to
innovation seem to be intrinsic in the organizational design.
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Public Admin Dev. 2021;41:12–22. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/pad © 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
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