| This thesis examines the paradigmatic shift involved in the 'informatization' of the Canadian public service in its efforts to modernize in light of the new social, political, economic and technological demands of the present age. It points to the rise of Christopher Hood's two administrative 'megatrends'--the new public management (NPM), and automation in information processing--in the Canadian context. Consistent with the work of John Taylor, this thesis advocates the fusing of these two distinct trends into a single force for reform in modern public management: 'informatization', or the strategic use of information and communication technologies to facilitate organitational change. It argues that while an informatization approach to public administration may serve to catalyze recent NPM-type renewal efforts, there are many barriers inherent in existing administrative structures and processes and in bureaucratic culture that will impede the shift to a 'post-bureaucratic' paradigm of public administration. |
