LIST OF PANELS

Executive politicians, senior civil servants and political advisors are the policy protagonists at the top of executive government. Despite their central policy making role, there is a striking lack of systematic and comparative research about their profiles, the organizational settings in which their work takes place, the actual policy work they do and finally the implications of the way they are linked in the organization of executive government. Existing research focusses on single cases, uses a multitude of theories, concepts and methods, all of which stymies significant progress in comparative research. In particular, the interlinkages and relations between the three actors at the top are under-studied and systematic knowledge on their interdependencies is needed to get a more concise understanding of sources of variations of executive organization and the implications thereof for policy-making, accountability and legitimacy of governance arrangements. The workshop welcomes papers that study the interlinkages of the different actors at the top, or that methodologically or theoretically consolidate research on the nature and role of particular actors vis-à-vis other actors, or that explore recent trends and developments, their causes and consequences.

Executive politicians, senior civil servants and political advisors are the policy protagonists at the top of executive government. Despite their central policy making role, there is a striking lack of systematic and comparative research about their profiles, the organizational settings in which their work takes place, the actual policy work they do, and finally the implications of the way they are linked in the organization of executive government. A crucial lacuna here is that past research has largely ignored the way these actors work together to produce policy outcomes. In view of this, the workshop welcomes papers:
1.      that address the institutionalization and organization at the top of executive organizations across a range of cases and relying on various methods. Understanding various forms and degrees of institutionalization of the third element (political advisors) vis-à-vis the other actors at the executive top is a particular point of interest to the workshop.
2.     on socio-demographic profiles and careers of politicians, bureaucrats and ministerial advisors (prosopographic research). How are advisors and public servants appointed? What is their career path? To whom are they loyal? Is there a revolving door phenomenon in their ranks, and how detrimental is it for public service professionalism?
3.     on the distinct roles of politicians, bureaucrats, and political advisors in the executive and on how they interact in the policymaking process. Conceptual and empirical papers on the way policy relevant evidence, media anticipation, political consequences are considered and mediated by different actors are particularly welcome.
4.     on controversial behavior by bureaucrats, advisors and executive politicians in their mutual interactions, and on the way this behavior is regulated by codes of conduct and accountability rules. The workshop welcomes papers that analyze controversies and rules across a range of contexts and from various methodological perspectives.