Why Public Financial Management Matters

Public administration and management (PAM) scholars have long recognized that financial resources are the lifeblood of public organizations. Less appreciated is how the study of public financial management (PFM) can inform the theory, research, and practice of PAM broadly. In this article, we argue that PFM research brings a variety of conceptual, analytical, and empirical insights to bear on some of public administration and management's timeless questions. To illustrate this claim, we synthesize findings from a variety of research across the PFM subfield.