About
Åge Johnsen is Professor of Public Policy at the Department of Public Management, Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences. He has previously worked as Researcher at Agder Research in Kristiansand, Research Fellow at the Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration in Bergen, Senior Research Fellow at The University of Edinburgh, and Associate Professor at Oslo University College. His research interests are public policy and public administration, in particular public management reforms, strategic planning, performance management (management by objectives and performance measurement, change management, trust-based management, and performance audit and evaluation in the public sector.
He currently lectures in the following courses:
BAL3000 Digital transformation, organisational change and change management
MSL4000 Governance – forms and reforms
MSLV4400 Strategy in the public sector
Fields of study
Academic disciplines
Business Public and private administration Political science and organisational theory
Subject areas
Public administration Evaluation School management Administration reforms Leadership Strategy Management by objectives and result Intergovernmental relations Organizational theory Public sector accounting Control and audit Municipal amalgamation Contracting out Public sector management control Performance audit Strategic leadership Military Administration Innovation in public management Change management Målstyring Performance measurement Trust-based management Strategic planning
Research groups
Research projects
-
Improving trust-based management in Nordic urban governance and management education
This project explores how ongoing management reforms are conceptualised and put into practice in two Nordic cities.
Publications and research
Scientific publications
Johnsen, Åge ; Helge, Svare (2024). Tillitsreformer og tillitsbasert styring og ledelse. ISBN: 978-82-450-4906-0. 280 p. Fagbokforlaget.
Johnsen, Åge (2024). Trust-based management in the City of Oslo: implementing a new managerial super standard?. Lapsley, Irvine; Miller, Peter (Ed.). The Resilience of New Public Management. Oxford University Press.
Askim, Jostein; Johnsen, Åge (2023). Performance management and accountability: the role of intergovernmental information systems. Teles, Filipe (Ed.). Handbook on Local and Regional Governance. p. 437-452. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Svare, Helge
;
Johnsen, Åge
;
Wittrock, Christian
(2023).
Does trust-based management reform enhance employee-driven innovation? Evidence from a Scandinavian capital.
Nordic Journal of Innovation in the Public Sector.
Vol. 2.
https://doi.org/10.18261/njips.2.1.4
Johnsen, Åge
(2022).
Strategic planning in turbulent times: Still useful?.
Public Policy and Administration.
https://doi.org/10.1177/09520767221080668
Johnsen, Åge
;
Svare, Helge
;
Wittrock, Christian
(2022).
Tillitsbasert styring og ledelse i offentlig sektor i Norge: Mye hørt men lite sett?.
28 p.
Nordisk Administrativt Tidsskrift.
Vol. 99.
https://doi.org/10.7577/nat.4876
Johnsen, Åge
;
Reid, Stephen Affleck
(2021).
Linking Strategic Planning and Performance Management in Government Agencies and Impacts on Organizational Performance.
Holzer, Marc; Ballard, Andrew (Ed.).
The Public Productivity and Performance Handbook. p. 150-179.
Routledge.
https://www.routledge.com/The-Public-Productivity-
Johnsen, Åge
(2021).
Organizing municipal audit: contracting out and audit costs in Norway.
International Journal of Public Sector Management.
Vol. 34.
https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPSM-07-2020-0181
Askim, Jostein;
Døving, Erik
;
Johnsen, Åge
(2021).
Evaluation in Norway: A 25-Year Assessment.
22 p.
Scandinavian Journal of Public Administration (SPJA).
Vol. 25.
https://doi.org/10.58235/sjpa.v25i3-4.7087
Johnsen, Åge
(2021).
Strategies for change in municipal structural reforms.
Pinheiro, Romulo; Trondal, Jarle (Ed.).
Organizing and Governing Governmental Institutions. p. 379-398.
Fagbokforlaget.
https://www.fagbokforlaget.no/Organising-and-Gover
