Value propositions and facilitating promises of value—The case of the Swedish Public Employment Service

Abstract

Through a case study, this article illustrates the value creation process of how value propositions are created and developed at the Swedish Public Employment Service from the theoretical stance of public service logic and ecosystem thinking. Previous research has devoted scant attention to value propositions as promises of value, i.e., before the user creates value-in-use. This case study contributes to the literature on public administration and management, and more precisely on the growing research of PSL, by analyzing how public service organizations interact with their service users to facilitate value creation based on promises of value throughout the value process. In this paper, the value process is understood as three interlocking spheres: the provider sphere, user sphere, and joint sphere.