Understanding of Governance

Sound governance is to improve the management effectiveness and eliminate risks.

Governance, from a philosophical perspective, delves into the abstract concepts and arguments inherent in collective thought, addressing how public power should be utilized or limited to ensure the survival and enhancement of human life. It is both theoretical and practical, exploring what ought to be rather than merely describing facts. 

Philosophical Approaches to Governance

-Philosophical Basis: Rooted in ideals of equality, freedom, and participation.

-Key Features: Citizen engagement, protection of rights, and accountability of leaders.

-Challenges: Balancing majority rule with minority rights and ensuring informed participation.

Core Philosophical Considerations:

The Purpose of Governance: The philosophy sets standards and defines constructive purposes for the use of public power, addressing the urgent question of how power should be used in the context of modern technology and potential global impact.

Perennial Questions: It grapples with fundamental questions concerning the aims of governance, the grounds for citizen obligation, individual rights, the basis of sovereignty, the relationship between executive and legislative power, and the essence of political liberty and social justice.

Law as Governance: Philosophical reflection on law dates back to ancient time, with sustained inquiry into its nature and the central questions it seeks to answer.

Modern Governance:

-Shifting Role of the State: Governance describes changes in the state's role following public-sector reforms, emphasizing markets, quasi-markets, and networks in delivering public services.

-Diffuse Power: It recognizes that order can be secured through diffuse forms of power and authority, even without direct governmental intervention.

-Accountability and Social Justice: The rise of non-state actors in delivering public services raises concerns about democratic accountability and the mechanisms to enforce it, as well as the need to rethink social inclusion and justice.

Governance Theories:

-Rational Choice Theory: This theory explains social outcomes by analyzing individual behavior, assuming people choose actions aligned with their preferences. It has influenced neoliberal attitudes toward governance, critiquing the concept of public interest and government.

-Systems Theory: Governance is viewed as a self-organizing system emerging from the interactions of interdependent actors and institutions, highlighting the limits of state control and emphasizing the facilitation of socio-economic interactions.

-Deontological Ethics: Deontological ethics emphasizes the relationship between duty and the morality of human actions, suggesting actions are morally good because of their inherent characteristics, not their consequences.

Sound governance is to improve the management effectiveness and eliminate risks. Technically, the governance structure is independent of the management structure, but the governance process/mechanism can be embedded into the business process seamlessly.