Books and Monographs
The Theory and Practice of Local Government Reform
Brian Dollery and Lorenzo Robotti, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, UK, December 2008, 328pp
This book explores the entire spectrum of local government reform and focuses specifically on the question of structural reform in local government. It presents new theoretical models in an area largely lacking in analytical foundations and assesses the validity of these models against recent structural developments.
Local Government Reform. A Comparative Analysis of Advanced Anglo-American Countries
Brian E. Dollery, Joseph Garcea and Edward C. LeSage Jr., Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, UK, July 2008, 267pp
This is the only book that provides a comparative analysis of local government reforms in six developed Anglo-American countries: Australia, New Zealand, Britain, Ireland, the United States and Canada. The authors provide important insights on the factors that have driven local government reforms and the effects of those reforms. The emphasis on these English-speaking common law democracies facilitates an analysis of the essential features of local government reform programs and the common factors driving them.
Reform and Leadership in the Public Sector. A Political Economy Approach
Joe L. Wallis, Brian E. Dollery and Linda McLoughlin, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, UK, May 2007, 208pp
The authors provide a fresh and accessible multi-disciplinary perspective on public management reform in this study. The work includes a broad survey of the paradigms and patterns that have shaped and differentiated the reform process in different countries.
The book focuses on two themes not usually considered together. First, the scope and limits of the role economists have played in reform processes, not simply in terms of providing analytical models but in the actual leadership required to advance reform coherently. Secondly, the authors examine the importance of developing leadership at all levels of the public sector to take advantage of the opportunities reforms have generated, and to create new sources of public value. In bringing these themes together they uniquely show how the family of economic theories (public choice, agency theory and new institutional economics) can be adapted to explain why there might be a demand for developing public sector leadership that reflects an ‘appreciative’ managerial style as opposed to the hard-edged contractualism often associated with public management reform.
Australian Local Government Economics
Brian Dollery, Lin Crase and Andrew Johnson, UNSW PRESS, Sydney, February 2006, 336pp
The increasing complexities of Australian local government place onerous demands on municipal managers and oblige them to continually upgrade their skills. This book examines the economic environment of contemporary local governance.
The Political Economy of the Voluntary Sector: A Reappraisal of the Comparative Institutional Advantage of Voluntary Organizations
Brian Dollery and Joe Wallis, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, December 2003, 208pp
This book provides a superb review of the literature on nonprofit organizations and extends the boundaries of our knowledge in a substantial and novel way. In particular, Dollery and Wallis provide a seminal analysis of public policy alternatives on the voluntary sector. The book represents a "must read" for all scholars, practitioners, students and policymakers interested in nonprofit organizations.
Reshaping Australian Local Government: Finance, Governance and Reform
Brian Dollery, Neil Marshall and Andrew Worthington (eds), UNSW PRESS, Sydney, July 2003, 288pp
Examines many of the epic changes that have taken place in Australian local government during the past decade, including the debate on amalgamations, the nature of intergovernmental transfers, democratic processes, developments in management and leadership, financial reform, local government failure, and virtual local governance in Australia.
The Political Economy of Local Government: Market Failure, Reform and Leadership
Brian Dollery and Joe Wallis, Studies in Fiscal Federalism and State – Local Finance series, edited by Wallace E. Oates, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, July 2001, 264pp
A study of local government policy formulation, drawing on developments in economics - such as new institutional economics - and advances in the theories of social capital and leadership. The authors also examine rival minimalist and activist approaches to local government reform.
Market Failure, Government Failure, Leadership and Public Policy
Joe Wallis and Brian Dollery, Macmillan Press Ltd, London, July 1999, 232pp
A global wave of reform is fundamentally reshaping the role of the state in national economies. This book provides a fresh and accessible perspective on the political economy of this megatrend. It traces the theoretical roots of the reforms to developments in public economics which emphasize problems of government rather than market failure. It then breaks new ground in developing an economic theory of leadership to explain how policy leadership networks can strive to influence the direction of reform processes.
Australian Local Government: Reform and Renewal
Brian Dollery and Neil Marshall (eds), Macmillan, Melbourne, May 1997, 343pp
This book discusses most critical and topical issues affecting local government. The book as a whole, and each chapter within it, takes a national perspective. Though the major focus of different chapters may be on one or two States, developments across Australia are also examined. Authors provide a brief historical context of their topic, a description of the scope and substance of the reforms, and an evaluation of the impact that the changes have had. The collection is comprehensive in scope and covers the related areas of management, politics and policy. The book is designed to appeal to practitioners as well as academics and students.
Monographs
Dollery, B. E., Marshall, N. A., Johnson, A. and Witherby, A. Regional Capacity Building: How Effective is REROC? Wagga Wagga, Riverina Eastern Regional Organization of Councils, 2004, v + 63.
Kimber, M., Dollery, B. E., Marshall, N. A. and Witherby, A. Australian Local Government: An Annotated Bibliography, 1988-1998, Sydney, NSW Department of Local Government and University of Western Sydney, 1999, 104.
Witherby, A., Dollery, B. E., Marshall, N. A. and Auster, M. Local Government: One Industry, Many Perspectives, Sydney, Australian Institute of Urban Studies (NSW), 1999, 103.
Witherby, A., Dollery, B. E., Marshall, N. A. and Auster, M. Is Bigger Better? Towards a Model Process for Local Government Structural Reform, Sydney, Australian Institute of Urban Studies, 1999, 65.