BUREAUCRATIC REFORM AND IMPROVING THE PERFORMANCE OF CIVIL APPARATUS: A STATE ADMINISTRATION THEORY PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

Bureaucratic reform in Indonesia aims to improve governance, civil service professionalism, and the quality of public services. However, various studies show that its implementation still faces various obstacles, such as a low performance culture, weak implementation of meritocracy, and a lack of innovation within the civil service. This study uses a descriptive qualitative method through literature analysis of several scientific articles published between 2020 and 2025, accompanied by supporting sources in the form of relevant websites, to assess the effectiveness of bureaucratic reform from the perspective of public administration theory. The results show that the reform focuses more on structural changes than behavioral transformation, so that the improvement in civil servant performance has not been optimal. Three main findings include the lack of internalization of a performance culture, the inconsistency of the merit system, and the lack of a strong orientation towards service innovation. This study confirms that the success of bureaucratic reform depends on the development of a professional, objective, and innovative work culture. These findings provide a basis for the need for reforms oriented towards changing the behavior of the civil service and can be used as a reference for further research related to the implementation of reforms in various government agencies.