The Right Privatization

‘Sergio Lazzarini has written a brilliant and bold book on the social benefits of collaboration between governments and business. The topic is privatization, a throw-back to the loud debates of two and three decades ago that were left unresolved but again in the center of today’s political fulcrum. The title is wily as is the argument, right privatization, right, left or right, wrong? The book is stimulating and refreshing, because it surprises, at a time when the world needs surprises and new thinking.’ Bruce Kogut, Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. Professor of Leadership and Ethics, Columbia Business School‘Lazzarini takes readers on an exciting journey into the controversial world of privatizations. Are privatizations efficient and useful? Shouldn’t we talk instead of public-private collaborations? Taking stock on the academic literature, the author embraces the complexity of the topic, suggesting that there is no ‘one’ best option but several alternatives for which capable governments are necessary.’ Stéphane Saussier, Panthéon-Sorbonne University‘Debates about who should provide public services, the state or the private sector, tend to generate more heat than light. This welcome volume treats the topic with the depth of analysis and the wealth of evidence such a complex question deserves. Clearly written and admirably free from ideology, this book identifies the conditions under which privatization achieves public goals better than state provision.’ Saul Estrin, London School of Economics and Political Science‘If you want to avoid the ideological minefields of privatization, read this brilliant yet lucid treatise by Lazzarini about how best to combine the public and private sectors to maximize the public interest.’ Ravi Ramamurti, Northeastern University

Sergio G. Lazzarini is the Chafi Haddad Professor of Management at Insper in Brazil, and the founder and director of Insper Metricis, a center dedicated to the study of impact management and measurement. His research has received several prizes including the Glueck Best Paper Award of the Strategic Management Division of the Academy of Management (2003), Best Presentation Prize of the Strategic Management Society Special Conference in Rio (2011), Best Paper Award of the Strategy Division (Cooperative Strategy Track) of the Academy of Management (2020), and the Jabuti Prize for the book Capitalism of Ties (2010). He has been a consultant to several firms and organizations such as OECD, IDB, and the World Bank.