1. Why do governmental agencies communicate?
Magnus Fredriksson, PhD
magnus.fredriksson@jmg.gu.se

2. Public sector organizations in Sweden
• Have the largest budgets for communication compared to
other types of organizations
• Are the largest buyer of services from PR-consultants and
advertising firms
• A majority of communicators work in the public sector

3. Traditionally two aims of communication
• Inform about central and current aspects of the society, how
it works and how it is organized, the rights and
responsibilities of the citizens, provide specific information
related to extraordinary events or situations
• To influence, promote but also reduce certain types of
behavior and activities

4. Historical context
• The first governmental agency in Sweden was etsablished
1539 (National Chamber of Commerce)
• A central position is society
• Administration and control central tasks
• Fully financed by taxes

5. Governmental agencies in Sweden (I)
• 252 agencies including:
o Defence
o Police,
o Social security, taxes, employment
o County Administrative Boards (21)
o Universities (24)
o Museums
o Evaluation
o Ombudsman

6. Governmental agencies in Sweden (II)
• 232 600 employees (5 % of the total workforce)
• 0 – 25 342 employees
• Five largest agencies:
1. Swedish police (25 342)
2. Swedish Armed Forces (19 557)
3. Swedish Social Insurance Agency (11 461)
4. Swedish Employmeent Agency (10 208)
5. Swedish Tax Agency (9 584)

7. Governance of
governmental agenicies in Sweden
• The Government establish the objectives to be achieved by
the agency, the budget and how the money is to be
distributed between the agency's different assignments.
• The minister has no right to intervene directly in the day-to-
day operations of government agencies. Such 'ministerial
control' is prohibited.
• Suspected cases of unlawful ministerial interference are
dealt with by the parliamentary Committee on the
Constitution.

8. Trasformations for the last 30 years
• Changed relationships between the public sector, the state,
markets and citizens (New public management)
• Changed political, economical and social conditions
• New principles for coordination, evaluation and control
o Orientation towards goals and results
o Control via evaluation rather than regulation
o Marketization (some governmental agencies are self-
funded, some others function on quasi-markets)

9. Other transformations
• Extend interactions with new stakeholders (media,
customers, competitors and others)
• New ways for defining and forming the regulative and
normative conditions
• Contradicting and inconsistent requirements and
expectations steaming from different logics

10. Institutional logics
• Taken for granted assumptions, values, and beliefs
• Provide meaning to what we do
• Organize time and space
• Governs individuals and organizations
• Create expectations

11. Six logics
• Market
• Civic
• Industrial
• Fame
• Tradition
• Creativity

12. Renown Civic Market Industrial Tradition Creativity
Assess-ment Popularity, Equality, Competitiv- Compe-tence, Trust, esteem Passion,
recognition, collective eness, price, reliability, singularity
fame welfare costs efficiency
Relevant Apprecia-tion Officiallity Money Statistics Insignias Uniqueness
proofs
Actors “Celebrities” Citizens Consumer, Professional, Authorities Geniuses
customer, experts
producers
Timeframe Trends Continuing Short-term, Long-term, History Revo-lutionary,
flexibility predictability visionary

13. What logic(s) govern the use of communication
in Swedish governmental agencies?

14. Our study
• Content analysis
• Including all Swedish governmental agencies with steering
documents for communication
• Corporate identity manual, policies and strategies for
communication, media work, branding, social
media, marketing etc.
• Number of organisations: 179
• Number of documents: 357
• Seen as an expression of granted assumptions, values, and

16. Four logics governing communication
in governmental agenicies
• Renown (85 %)
• Industrial (82 %)
• Civic (65 %)
• Market (22 %)

17. Renown Civic Market Industrial
Principles Attention, visibility, Laws, democracy, Exchange, profits Predictability, control,
public opinion transparency, distribution of
accessibility responsibilities
Aims of communication Express identity, create Enlightenment, service, Positioning, persuade Co-ordination, efficiency
distinctive image,
formation of public
opinion
Concep-tualizations of The public Citizens, journalists, Customers, competitors Employees, specified
stakeholders politicians groups, target groups
Concep-tualizations of Branding, corporate Public information, Marketing Strategic
communication identity statements communication,
integrated
communication
Ideal communication Distinctive, expressive, Open, true, Persuasive enticing, Effective, planed,
monophonic understandable, official seductive evaluated,, professional
Role of communicator Conductor Distributor, teacher Salesperson, seducer Expert, co-ordinator

18. Number of logics governing communication
in governmental agenicies
• One (16)
• Two (28)
• Three (43)
• Four (13)

19. Three most common conflicts
• Industrial – Renown
• Industrial – Civic
• Renown – Market

20. Industrial vs Renown
• Our work has to be • We must be prepared to
professional, thoroughly accept new trends and take
prepared and rest on a chance when it comes
evidence based practices.
• Visibility or popularity has no • We must be visible and gain
value in itself if it doesn’t attention from the public
contribute to the overall goal
of the organization

21. Industrial vs Civic
• The aim of communication is • We must uphold the
- first and foremost - democratic processes and
something used to uphold support collective interests.
and organize the activities of
the organization.
• We have to be efficient and • First and foremost we have
reach our goals to take the public interest
into account

22. Renown vs. Market
• Reputation and trust can’t be • The brand is an obstacle if
reduced to customers. we want to make a good
deal
• We have to express our • We have to seduce our
identity and what we stand customers and tell them
for what they want to hear

23. Concequences for communicators?
• Have to use different arguments to get support from different
groups of colleagues or stakeholders
• Are evaluated by different standards
• Have to transform their results to other ”currencies”
• Avoids evaluations and focus on production and process

24. Conclusions
• Communication in governmental agencies is governed by
several different logics
• Communication is supposed to fulfil a number of different
and contradictive goals
• Creates inconsistencies
• Limits the room for maneuverers