Knowledge for results and the efficiency of public agencies in Colombia

Abstract

This study examines the impact of an intervention focused on lean thinking and knowledge sharing. The intervention involves the transfer of information from efficient private organizations to public agencies to improve bureaucratic procedures. Specifically, we analyze the effectiveness of the Knowledge for Results (K4R) program in improving the efficiency of public agencies in Colombia. Our research provides two examples that demonstrate the positive impact of this particular form of lean thinking on operational efficiency. The first example shows that K4R reduces the time required by local ombudsman offices to process petitions from citizens. The second example shows that K4R reduces the time that oncology patients spend in emergency clinics before they can check out from hospitalization. These improvements are quantitatively significant, resulting in efficiency gains ranging from 25 to 40 percent compared with pre-program levels.