One of the main present problem of the municipalities is decision about legal forms for provision of public services. In this thesis I'm analysing posibilities of selected legal forms and defining the main factors which influence the decision of the munucipality. In conclusion I'm aplying individual factors to the real example of Sezimovo Ústí and I'm presenting general recomandation for the municipalities.

Thesis advisor: Arthur Lewbel / In my dissertation I studied the political economy of economic development as well as the the urban wage premium, all using data from Brazil. In the first chapter, which is joint work with Carlos Varjao, we analyze the effect that increased political opposition in the city council has on corruption and public service provision at the local level. In the second chapter I study the sources of the high wage premium observed in cities, including firm sorting, firm and occupational matching, and compensating wage differentials. Finally, in the third chapter I study what happens to the provision of public education when a school teacher is elected to the city council (which actually occurs quite frequently). More detailed summaries of each chapter follow below. Chapter 1: In 'Political Opposition, Legislative Oversight, and the Performance of the Executive Branch', we study the effect that increased political opposition has on corruption and other measures of the mayor's performance in Brazil. The separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches is a cornerstone of democracy. This system of checks and balances, however, can be circumvented by partisan loyalties if legislators strategically avoid exerting oversight when their own party controls the executive branch. It is thus an empirical question whether the separation of powers prevents the abuse of power in practice. We answer this question by measuring the extent to which members of political opposition parties in a city council effectively check the mayor's performance in Brazil. We employ a regression discontinuity design to estimate the causal effect of an additional politically opposed legislator, and we find that political opposition increases oversight action and decreases corruption, with the effect fully concentrated on mayors facing reelection pressure. We trace the impact of oversight, via a reduction in healthcare spending irregularities, all the way to impacts on healthcare service delivery and health outcomes. Chapter 2: In 'Decomposing the Urban Wage Premium in Brazil: Firms, Matching, and Compensating Wage Differentials' I study the sources of the high wage premium observed in cities. In this chapter I used detailed employer-employee matched data from Brazil to understand 3 important elements of the urban wage premium: (1) the role of firms sorting into cities, (2) the role of firm and occupational matching in creating agglomeration economies, and (3) the role of compensating wage differentials. I first exploit identification from multi-city firms to show that positive selection of high-wage firms into larger cities accounts for 44% of what is often considered `agglomeration economies'. Then I show that improved firm and occupational matching together account for 87% of agglomeration effects. I then turn my attention to compensating wage differentials--- a possible explanation for the high-wage firms in cities. I estimate revealed-preference valuation of jobs, and show that jobs in cities in fact have better non-wage characteristics, and so high urban wages cannot be due to compensating wage differentials. This evidence together suggests that in Brazil, cities exist because they provide thick labor markets where high-wage firms and high-wage workers can go to find productive matches. Chapter 3: In 'Teachers in Politics: Teacher-Politicians, Gender, and the Representation of Public Education' I study what happens to public education in a city when a school teacher is elected to the city council, and I find that it depends on the gender of the teacher. Using a regression discontinuity design that exploits close elections, I find that when a female teacher is elected to the city council, the city hires both more teachers and more qualified teachers, and pays them more. Having a female teacher on the city council also increases the likelihood that the city's schools have necessary teaching resources, books, and financing, and possibly increases student test scores. No significant effect is found for male teachers elected to the city council. This difference may be due to different political career concerns for men versus women, a simple amplification of existing gender policy preference differences, or some mixture of the two. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2021. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Economics.

Investigates several facets of the implementation of just-in-time (JIT) using a two-tiered empirical approach that included a field study and a mailed survey. The 277 respondents to the survey included 130 manufacturing organizations, 61 service organizations and 86 public sector organizations in the USA. Five hypotheses were tested. The results indicate that while all the organization types had enacted procedural and operational modifications in support of their JIT implementations, there were some differences in the impact that these modifications had in reducing problems during the implementation and on the eventual outcome of the project. Suggests areas where benchmarking can be utilized by the various organization types to alleviate potential problems in the JIT implementation process and to improve their chances of success.

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Yes / Purpose - This paper is part of a process of ongoing longitudinal cases studies that investigate how Operations Strategy and Lean concepts can be applied within a Healthcare organisation and the degree to which both Lean and Operations Strategy are understood by senior-level NHS personnel. Further interviews and data analysis will examine actual performance of Lean capabilities within the NHS. Design/methodology/approach - For this explanatory multiple-case study project we collected Data through semi-structured interviews with executives in the NHS to understand how operations strategies are developed in the NHS and implemented in NHS hospitals. The Unit of Analysis is the hospital. Multiple (22) interviews took place over 12 months with senior-level personnel responsible for implementing change via Operations Strategy goals, and incorporating Lean initiatives. In addition, to triangulate data, we examined healthcare reports and strategy policy documents from each case hospital. This forms stage 1 of a longitudinal study which will examine the actual performance of Lean within the NHS hospitals across a range of operations parameters and explore links between such capabilities and the role and importance of operations strategy in more detail. Findings - Our Findings lead to the conclusion that operations strategies were not fully developed within the hospitals. In addition, our ongoing data capture shows that ‘Best practice’ was not being disseminated across the NHS, for either patient experience or organisational effectiveness and the role of operations strategy was not fully clear other than as a rather vague ‘umbrella’ term. Despite Lean’s attraction for Healthcare at a micro level, significant operational and cultural hurdles must be overcome for the full strategic benefits of Lean to be realised. A much more holistic approach in providing a full service for the whole of the patient journey is needed. Research limitations/implications (if applicable) - Our sample provides an initial snapshot. A larger number of hospitals and/or further longitudinal research will be needed to deepen understanding of embedding strategic change to improve overall performance. Practical implications (if applicable) - Tackling cultural performance and operational issues at a macro level could help Healthcare providers reconcile the perceived conflicting goals of improving patient care (i.e. service delivery) whilst simultaneously reducing costs. The role of explicit operations strategies could be pivotal in designing and implementing such change. Originality/value - This research builds on and extends the work of Toussaint and Berry (2013), Seddon and O’Donovan (2010) and Carlborg and Kowalkowski (2013). We highlight how some of the apparent contradictions in the requirements of the various stakeholders create operational and strategic tensions. We highlight the multifaceted nature of design and delivery of a multi-touchpoint service within the complexity of a large healthcare provider.

One of the most important issues in the study of Urban-Service Distribution is the choice of the unit of analysis. Because of the ready availability of various data at the level of residence units, census tracts have been the spatial units most commonly selected. In some cases, municipally defined service districts have also been selected, and they are, in fact, only the aggregates of several neighboring census tracts. The problem encountered in the current study is the fact that Census-based Neighborhoods such as census tracts and the aggregations of census tracts frequently do not correspond with commonly recognized neighborhoods experienced informally in daily life, and they do not match local residents' perceptions of their neighborhoods as social areas. The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Resident-perceived Neighborhood Boundaries (as the alternative unit of analysis to conventionally-used Census-based Neighborhood Units) on the accessibility to public parks based on equity consideration and its relationship to park utilization. The study also addressed whether the neighborhood boundaries perceived by the actual residents may exhibit more actual neighborhood construct than Census-based Neighborhood Units when the relationship between park accessibility and utilization is considered. First, the results indicate that when Resident-perceived Neighborhood Boundaries are adopted, there is no significant change, either in accessibility measures or in the equity of public park distribution among neighborhoods of different social strata. Second, there was no significant relationship between parks accessibility and utilization, which means that even though a park may be closest to a household, it is not always true that the household will choose to use that park. Third, it was confirmed that the relationship between park accessibility and utilization was significantly affected by some utilization factors. That is, travel distances to the parks were significantly affected by different types of utilization factors and, according to the classification of park type, the affecting utilization factors were different. Lastly, as the spatial unit of analysis, Resident-perceived Neighborhood Boundaries do not significantly enhance the strength of the relationship between public services accessibility and utilization compared to using Census-based Neighborhood Units.

Este trabalho analisa as relações existentes entre a autonomia das agências reguladoras, seus sistemas de controle e a qualidade dos serviços prestados pelas concessionárias de distribuição de energia elétrica, após a implantação das agências reguladoras federal e estaduais, no Brasil. A proposta é contribuir para o entendimento do sistema regulatório instaurado no setor de distribuição de energia elétrica brasileiro, sobretudo, analisando indicadores, cujas variações possam explicar os resultados da atuação das agências reguladoras na busca da qualidade dos serviços públicos concedidos. O presente trabalho procura contextualizar a reforma do Estado e a reestruturação do setor de distribuição de energia elétrica brasileiro. Discute, ainda, a adoção de novos paradigmas que norteiam a busca da eficiência dos serviços públicos. O estudo de caso, apresentado neste trabalho, tem a população composta pelas agências reguladoras estaduais de seis estados brasileiros (Bahia, Ceará, Pará, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul e São Paulo), ligadas à Agência Nacional de Energia Elétrica (ANEEL) por convênio firmado entre 1998 e 2000, e suas respectivas concessionárias de distribuição de energia elétrica. Os dados coletados referem-se aos anos entre 1995 e 2000, pois refletem a situação da qualidade dos serviços antes da criação e após a implantação das agências reguladoras federal e estaduais. Os principais resultados evidenciam a existência de uma correlação entre alguns indicadores das variáveis independentes e dependente, ou seja, à medida que as agências incrementam suas atividades operacionais de controle, os indicadores de qualidade na prestação de serviços variam positivamente. O estudo de caso apresentado foi interpretado utilizando-se modelos de análise organizacional e institucional, para elucidar os motivos pelos quais a qualidade dos serviços das concessionárias dependeu da autonomia financeira das agências reguladoras e dos seus tipos de sistemas de controle. Embora as agências estaduais tenham apresentado diferentes formas de atuação, de controle e de organização, percebeu-se que aquelas que possuem sistemas de controle mais descentralizados, conquistaram melhores resultados na qualidade dos serviços prestados pelas concessionárias. A eficiência do sistema regulatório da distribuição do setor elétrico é traduzida pelo cumprimento dos contratos estabelecidos entre reguladores e regulados, pela qualidade dos serviços prestados pelos reguladores e pelo atendimento dos agentes regulados às determinações e recomendações propostas pelas agências. / This work analyzed the relationship among the regulatory agency's autonomy and systems of control related to the quality of services rendered by electric energy distribution utility companies after the implementation of Brazil’s federal and states’ regulatory agencies. It is intended to contribute to the understanding of the regulatory system started in Brazilian’s electric energy distribution sector in 1998. Furthermore, it attempted to analyse indicators and their variations that could explain the results of the regulatories agencies performance that guided the services rendered by the utilities companies towards efficiency. This thesis was focused on Brazilian’s state reform and restructuring of electric energy distribution sector. It also discussed about an adoption of new paradigms towards efficiency in the public services. The case study presented in this work was constituted by regulatory agencies of six Brazilian’s states (Bahia, Ceará, Pará, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul and São Paulo) concorded to the National Agency of Electric Energy (ANEEL), from 1998 to 2000, and their respective electric energy utility companies. The data gathered between 1995 and 2000 reflected the service quality before and after the creation and implementation of federal and states’ regulatories agencies. The main results revealed the existence of a correlation between the indicators of the variables independents and dependent. Once the agencies developed their activities of operational control, the indicators of quality service varied positively. The case study was analyzed using organizational and institutional analysis models. This made it possible to elucidate the reasons which the quality of the services depended on the financial autonomy of the regulatory agencies and their types of the control systems. Even though the state’s agencies got different performances into their methods of control and organization, it was noticed that the ones with their control systems more decentralized obtained better results regarding the quality of the services rendered by the utility companies. The efficiency of the distribution regulatory system of the electric sector is translated by the execution of contracts established between rule makers and utility companies, by the quality of the rule makers, and also by the utility companies to attend of the determinations and recommendations proposed by agencies.

Este trabalho analisa as relações existentes entre a autonomia das agências reguladoras, seus sistemas de controle e a qualidade dos serviços prestados pelas concessionárias de distribuição de energia elétrica, após a implantação das agências reguladoras federal e estaduais, no Brasil. A proposta é contribuir para o entendimento do sistema regulatório instaurado no setor de distribuição de energia elétrica brasileiro, sobretudo, analisando indicadores, cujas variações possam explicar os resultados da atuação das agências reguladoras na busca da qualidade dos serviços públicos concedidos. O presente trabalho procura contextualizar a reforma do Estado e a reestruturação do setor de distribuição de energia elétrica brasileiro. Discute, ainda, a adoção de novos paradigmas que norteiam a busca da eficiência dos serviços públicos. O estudo de caso, apresentado neste trabalho, tem a população composta pelas agências reguladoras estaduais de seis estados brasileiros (Bahia, Ceará, Pará, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul e São Paulo), ligadas à Agência Nacional de Energia Elétrica (ANEEL) por convênio firmado entre 1998 e 2000, e suas respectivas concessionárias de distribuição de energia elétrica. Os dados coletados referem-se aos anos entre 1995 e 2000, pois refletem a situação da qualidade dos serviços antes da criação e após a implantação das agências reguladoras federal e estaduais. Os principais resultados evidenciam a existência de uma correlação entre alguns indicadores das variáveis independentes e dependente, ou seja, à medida que as agências incrementam suas atividades operacionais de controle, os indicadores de qualidade na prestação de serviços variam positivamente. O estudo de caso apresentado foi interpretado utilizando-se modelos de análise organizacional e institucional, para elucidar os motivos pelos quais a qualidade dos serviços das concessionárias dependeu da autonomia financeira das agências reguladoras e dos seus tipos de sistemas de controle. Embora as agências estaduais tenham apresentado diferentes formas de atuação, de controle e de organização, percebeu-se que aquelas que possuem sistemas de controle mais descentralizados, conquistaram melhores resultados na qualidade dos serviços prestados pelas concessionárias. A eficiência do sistema regulatório da distribuição do setor elétrico é traduzida pelo cumprimento dos contratos estabelecidos entre reguladores e regulados, pela qualidade dos serviços prestados pelos reguladores e pelo atendimento dos agentes regulados às determinações e recomendações propostas pelas agências. / This work analyzed the relationship among the regulatory agency's autonomy and systems of control related to the quality of services rendered by electric energy distribution utility companies after the implementation of Brazil’s federal and states’ regulatory agencies. It is intended to contribute to the understanding of the regulatory system started in Brazilian’s electric energy distribution sector in 1998. Furthermore, it attempted to analyse indicators and their variations that could explain the results of the regulatories agencies performance that guided the services rendered by the utilities companies towards efficiency. This thesis was focused on Brazilian’s state reform and restructuring of electric energy distribution sector. It also discussed about an adoption of new paradigms towards efficiency in the public services. The case study presented in this work was constituted by regulatory agencies of six Brazilian’s states (Bahia, Ceará, Pará, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul and São Paulo) concorded to the National Agency of Electric Energy (ANEEL), from 1998 to 2000, and their respective electric energy utility companies. The data gathered between 1995 and 2000 reflected the service quality before and after the creation and implementation of federal and states’ regulatories agencies. The main results revealed the existence of a correlation between the indicators of the variables independents and dependent. Once the agencies developed their activities of operational control, the indicators of quality service varied positively. The case study was analyzed using organizational and institutional analysis models. This made it possible to elucidate the reasons which the quality of the services depended on the financial autonomy of the regulatory agencies and their types of the control systems. Even though the state’s agencies got different performances into their methods of control and organization, it was noticed that the ones with their control systems more decentralized obtained better results regarding the quality of the services rendered by the utility companies. The efficiency of the distribution regulatory system of the electric sector is translated by the execution of contracts established between rule makers and utility companies, by the quality of the rule makers, and also by the utility companies to attend of the determinations and recommendations proposed by agencies.

Este trabalho analisa as relações existentes entre a autonomia das agências reguladoras, seus sistemas de controle e a qualidade dos serviços prestados pelas concessionárias de distribuição de energia elétrica, após a implantação das agências reguladoras federal e estaduais, no Brasil. A proposta é contribuir para o entendimento do sistema regulatório instaurado no setor de distribuição de energia elétrica brasileiro, sobretudo, analisando indicadores, cujas variações possam explicar os resultados da atuação das agências reguladoras na busca da qualidade dos serviços públicos concedidos. O presente trabalho procura contextualizar a reforma do Estado e a reestruturação do setor de distribuição de energia elétrica brasileiro. Discute, ainda, a adoção de novos paradigmas que norteiam a busca da eficiência dos serviços públicos. O estudo de caso, apresentado neste trabalho, tem a população composta pelas agências reguladoras estaduais de seis estados brasileiros (Bahia, Ceará, Pará, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul e São Paulo), ligadas à Agência Nacional de Energia Elétrica (ANEEL) por convênio firmado entre 1998 e 2000, e suas respectivas concessionárias de distribuição de energia elétrica. Os dados coletados referem-se aos anos entre 1995 e 2000, pois refletem a situação da qualidade dos serviços antes da criação e após a implantação das agências reguladoras federal e estaduais. Os principais resultados evidenciam a existência de uma correlação entre alguns indicadores das variáveis independentes e dependente, ou seja, à medida que as agências incrementam suas atividades operacionais de controle, os indicadores de qualidade na prestação de serviços variam positivamente. O estudo de caso apresentado foi interpretado utilizando-se modelos de análise organizacional e institucional, para elucidar os motivos pelos quais a qualidade dos serviços das concessionárias dependeu da autonomia financeira das agências reguladoras e dos seus tipos de sistemas de controle. Embora as agências estaduais tenham apresentado diferentes formas de atuação, de controle e de organização, percebeu-se que aquelas que possuem sistemas de controle mais descentralizados, conquistaram melhores resultados na qualidade dos serviços prestados pelas concessionárias. A eficiência do sistema regulatório da distribuição do setor elétrico é traduzida pelo cumprimento dos contratos estabelecidos entre reguladores e regulados, pela qualidade dos serviços prestados pelos reguladores e pelo atendimento dos agentes regulados às determinações e recomendações propostas pelas agências. / This work analyzed the relationship among the regulatory agency's autonomy and systems of control related to the quality of services rendered by electric energy distribution utility companies after the implementation of Brazil’s federal and states’ regulatory agencies. It is intended to contribute to the understanding of the regulatory system started in Brazilian’s electric energy distribution sector in 1998. Furthermore, it attempted to analyse indicators and their variations that could explain the results of the regulatories agencies performance that guided the services rendered by the utilities companies towards efficiency. This thesis was focused on Brazilian’s state reform and restructuring of electric energy distribution sector. It also discussed about an adoption of new paradigms towards efficiency in the public services. The case study presented in this work was constituted by regulatory agencies of six Brazilian’s states (Bahia, Ceará, Pará, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul and São Paulo) concorded to the National Agency of Electric Energy (ANEEL), from 1998 to 2000, and their respective electric energy utility companies. The data gathered between 1995 and 2000 reflected the service quality before and after the creation and implementation of federal and states’ regulatories agencies. The main results revealed the existence of a correlation between the indicators of the variables independents and dependent. Once the agencies developed their activities of operational control, the indicators of quality service varied positively. The case study was analyzed using organizational and institutional analysis models. This made it possible to elucidate the reasons which the quality of the services depended on the financial autonomy of the regulatory agencies and their types of the control systems. Even though the state’s agencies got different performances into their methods of control and organization, it was noticed that the ones with their control systems more decentralized obtained better results regarding the quality of the services rendered by the utility companies. The efficiency of the distribution regulatory system of the electric sector is translated by the execution of contracts established between rule makers and utility companies, by the quality of the rule makers, and also by the utility companies to attend of the determinations and recommendations proposed by agencies.

This study explores public health and education provision in Niamey, the capital of Niger, by merging the ethnographic study of public services with an anthropological analysis of the state and of local politics. Based on anthropological fieldwork carried out in a group of neighbourhoods in the periphery of Niamey, the study highlights the political dimensions of public service provision in a local arena where international development interventions and national plans meet local realities and where a wide range of actors and institutions, dis-courses, meanings, and practices are mobilized in the offering of and the regulation of access to public services. It focuses on the political, economic, and socio-cultural aspects of public service provision, too often hidden behind contemporary buzzwords of development such as community participation and decentralization that dominate global debates about education and healthcare in developing countries. The study brings forth the strategies of urban resi-dents in dealing with daily challenges in the consolidation of service provision and in educa-tion and health-seeking trajectories. It shows that access to a satisfactory treatment of illness or a successful school career is premised on the ability to navigate on the medical and educa-tion markets, which are made up of a plurality of providers and of official and unofficial costs and transactions. Further, these public services engage different actors such as commu-nity committees, traditional chiefs, local associations, the municipality and elected municipal councillors, emergent leaders, NGOs, and international development aid. The study demon-strates that despite the uncertainty of state support in health and education provision and a widespread dissatisfaction with these public services, the image of the state as service pro-vider is reproduced on a day by day basis through local efforts at securing public services.