Working Across Boundaries: Value, Innovation and Partnership

The notion of working across boundaries continues to occupy scholars and practitioners of policy, administration and management. In recent times much attention has been placed on notions of inter-organisational, inter-jurisdictional, and inter-sectoral modes of operation and how these can be utilised to deliver on governmental goals. Indeed Kelman has argued that the topics of collaboration across government agencies ('connect the dots') and between government, private and non-government organisations (networks or collaborative governance) are the 'most-discussed questions involving the performance of public institutions and achievement of public purposes' (2007:45). The main purpose of the paper is to set the scene for the panel, raising critical questions to which contributors can return throughout the discussions, and which can focus us on developments in theory and practice post-conference.