Branding in Governance and Public Management

Politicians and public managers utilize branding to communicate with the public as well as to position themselves within the ever-present media now so central to political and administrative life. They must further contend with stakeholders holding contradictory opinions about the nature of a problem, the desirable solutions , and the values at stake. Branding is used as a strategy to manage perceptions, motivate stakeholders, communicate clear messages in the media, and position policies and projects. Brands have a unique ability to simplify such messages and motivate different actors to invest their energy in governance processes.

Public administration scholars so far have however paid little attention to branding. This book provides a systematic analysis of branding as phenomenon in governance. It deals with the nature of public branding, its relation to existing theories in public administration, the way branding is used as a managerial strategy in governance processes, and the risks and limitations of branding. Branding in Public Governance and Management highlights the growing importance of public banding as a public management strategy to influence political events, decision-making processes and outcomes in governance processes.

Jasper Eshuis is assistant professor at the Department of Public Administration at Erasmus University Rotterdam. Next to his research on public marketing and public branding, he conducts research on co-production in governance processes, especially in the field of spatial development and urban regeneration. He has published in journals such as Administration and Society and the Journal of Environmental Policy and Planning.

Erik Hans Klijn is professor at the Department of Public Administration at Erasmus University Rotterdam and visiting professor at the School of Government and Society at the University of Birmingham. His research and teaching activities focus on complex decision-making and management in networks, institutional design and Public Private Partnerships mainly in the area of infrastructure and urban restructuring. He published extensively in international journals like JPART, Administration and Society, Public Administration, PAR, and PMR.