PADM 610 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY Expository Essay Policy Implementation 2025.docx

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Expository Essay: Policy Implementation

Miguel Hunt

Liberty University

PADM 610: Management of Public Sector Organizations

Dr. Michael Hall

August 3, 2025

Introduction

Most studies of policy impacts or effects a priori assume that because a policy is “on-the-books,”

adopted, or takes effect (e.g., a tax change), it is implemented (or enforced) in practice as

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intended or designed. These studies typically examine the impacts or effects of public policies

without considering details of the content of the policy, how the policy was implemented after it

was adopted or enacted, or strategies that facilitate or inhibit policy implementation (Chriqui et

al., 2023). Many times, new policies that are implemented may not come out as intended, and

because of this, a gap between policymakers and the public occurs.

more often the product of responses to particular circumstances or problems rather than the

result of deliberate actions. They frequently result from ad hoc decisions made at many levels,

at different times, by officials and others who consider only some parts of the overall problem

(Milakovich & Gordon, 2022). Often, implemented policies do not fully resolve the defined

problems, as multiple factors and stakeholders are involved in policy creation. As a result, major

issues are addressed, but some minor concerns may be overlooked.

Four broad contributors to policy failure can be identified: overly optimistic expectations;

implementation in dispersed governance; inadequate collaborative policymaking; and the

vagaries of the political cycle (Hudson et al., 2019). The weakness of collaborative policymaking

and the failure to establish a common ground for public problem-solving through a constructive

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accountable for the outcomes of their policy initiatives – in the event of failure, the likelihood is

that they will have moved on or moved out. One consequence of this is that they are too easily

attracted to the prospect of short-term results (Hudson et al., 2019). Accountability is another

issue that can hinder policy implementation. Policy makers may implement a policy that fails,

and the societal problems will remain or become worse.

depends on the engagement of both the public and employers. Additionally, it is essential to

establish an appropriate plan and process to effectively achieve policy objectives.

strategy initiatives, it provides the business with appropriate employee capabilities in terms of

skills, adaptability, and morale required to effectively execute the organization strategy (Bahati

Nkone et al., 2024). Identifying the problem and creating a policy is only the first part, but

implementing the policy may be the most important part. In order to accomplish this, the right

people are needed to implement the policy. Investing in bureaucratic capacity-building is

essential to improve implementation outcomes. This includes providing training programs,

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Organizations should create a strategy implementation promoting culture – culture of

timeliness, innovation, ethics, and team spirit for effective implementation of the strategy.

These aspects of culture need to be reinforced and strengthened to ensure implementation of

strategies is smooth and quick enough (Bahati Nkone et al., 2024). Culture is a very important

aspect when creating a strategy to implement policies. Providing a culture of not just learning,

but also one that is ethical and holds those creating such policies accountable, can be the most

strategic way to public policy. To navigate political pressures, building consensus among

stakeholders is crucial. This involves engaging with political leaders, interest groups, and the

public to create a shared understanding of the policy’s importance and benefits. Transparent

communication, negotiation, and compromise can help garner support and minimize political

obstacles (Public Administration Institute, 2023). Including all those involved and affected by a

new policy will allow administrators to be more transparent and possibly improve policies so

that unforeseen issues do not arise.

While there are some similarities between the public and private sectors, there are

various differences that separate the two. Public management takes place in a political context

that is fundamentally different from that of private organizations (Boye et al., 2022). Publicness

is expected to influence the organizational conditions managers face, their behavior, and

essentially control private organizations. In contrast, political stakeholders, who often represent

conflicting partisan interests, primarily control public organizations (Boye et al., 2022). This is

major because the private sector is not held accountable by society, and only answers to a small

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number of people. The public sector must answer and be accountable to not only stakeholders

but all of society, and anything done in the public sector can negatively impact a large number

of people.

The primary goal of private organizations is profit maximization. In public organizations,

efficiency is just one goal among others, such as quality of services and equality. Public

organizations, in many cases, produce collective goods and services that are difficult to trade on

a market, hard to measure, and therefore not always taken up by private firms. In this sense,

public organizations are characterized by having multiple bottom lines, which creates a

vagueness in goals. The public goals are further complicated by the political goal-setting process

(Boye et al., 2022). Politics is a major factor in public organizations. Politics makes things more

difficult for public policy, as there are many regulations and parties that are involved. The

not believe the other strategies could be used. Public organizations are governed by specific

public values, which are the ideals to be followed in the public sector when producing services

and regulating citizens and firms (Boye et al., 2022). Public sector values attract managers and

employees with matching ideals. Additionally, once attracted to the organization, employees

and leaders embark on a process of socialization toward sharing organizational values (Boye et

al., 2022). The values between the public and private sectors vary substantially. The private

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and because of this, strategies for policy implementation may differ greatly from those of the

private sector.

as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful

giver (Corinthians 9:7,

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Bahati Nkone, Dr. Chacha Matoka, & Dr. Charles Ngirwa. (2024). EFFECTIVE STRATEGY

IMPLEMENTATION: A LITERATURE REVIEW OF SUCCESS FACTORS IN

PUBLIC SECTOR. International Journal of Business Management and Economic

Review, 07(05), 170–189. https://doi.org/10.35409/ijbmer.2024.3617

Boye, S., Risbjerg Nørgaard, R., Tangsgaard, E. R., Andreassen Winsløw, M., &

ØstergaardNielsen, M. R. (2022). Public and private management: now, is there a

difference? A systematic review. International Public Management Journal, 27(2), 1–34.

https://doi.org/10.1080/10967494.2022.2109787

Chriqui, J. F., Asada, Y., Smith, N., Kroll Desrosiers, A., & Lemon, S. C. (2023). Advancing the ‐

science of policy implementation: A call to action for the implementation science field.

Hudson, B., Hunter, D., & Peckham, S. (2019). Policy Failure and the policy-implementation gap:

Can Policy Support Programs help? Policy Design and Practice, 2(1), 1–14.

Tandfonline. https://doi.org/10.1080/25741292.2018.1540378

Milakovich, M. E., & Gordon, G. J. (2022). Public Administration in America. Cengage

Learning.

Public Administration Institute. (2023). Implementing Public Policies: Strategies and

Challenges. PubAdmin Institute.

https://pubadmin.institute/public-policy-and-analysis/implementing-public-

policiesstrategies-challenges