The thumbprint of a hybrid organization: A multidimensional model for analysing public/private hybrid organizations

Hybridity has become a widely-used concept in public management theory and practice. Yet, there is limited insight in what constitutes a hybrid organization. This article argues that it is not enough to say an organization is hybrid; you need to say how an organization is hybrid, as organizations can mix the characteristics of state and market on several dimensions and with differing intensities. They all have, as it were, a distinctive hybrid thumbprint, which can influence an organization’s performance and hence the quality of its service provision. Therefore, a model is presented to visualize this unique thumbprint.