ABSTRACT
As chapter one outlines, the establishment of ‘Next Steps’ agencies is an idea that has been widely diffused and some form of the agency concept operates in many anglophone and non-anglophone countries. Yet, despite the popularity and simplicity of the agency idea, the implementation and operation of the agency concept appears to differ markedly both within and across countries. This raises theoretical questions about how new governance arrangements are transmitted and introduced. It is also of empirical interest for those in the public sector charged with understanding and implementing changes of this nature.
