Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to study the links between contextual changes, contract arrangements and resultant problems when changes in outsourcing regulatory requirements are applied to complex pre-hospital services previously characterized by relational contracting....

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss why public sector reforms hybridize during implementation processes, consequences on accountability relations and practitioners’ and policymakers’ reactions to these changes. Design/methodology/approach – The paper considers experiences...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss the dilemma that exists between the aims of public sector reforms and the ways organisations adjust to the management control reforms. Design/methodology/approach – To study the research purpose, empirical data were collected from Norwegian...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into the process of the accounting system change as a part of a larger reform initiative taking place in Norway. The research context is the national network of hospital enterprises. Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses an...

Purpose – This paper seeks to explore the legitimacy of budgets as management control processes in hospitals after comprehensive reforms were implemented in the Norwegian hospital sector in 2002. Design/methodology/approach – The paper employs qualitative interviews with top level clinical...