Objective/Context:

The internal capability of state agencies is a necessary condition and predicts their strategic capacity to achieve long-term industrial development goals. The paper characterizes the Ministry of Industry of Argentine (2009-2015) in order to see the extent to which its hierarchization was reflected in the variation of its capabilities, which are corroborated in two fundamental dimensions: a) public spending, and b) the availability of personnel and their quality.

Methodology:

The research is qualitative. Official documents (budget laws, financial management reports, and reports from public administration personnel) were examined, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 officials of different hierarchies within the organization, and the Bureaucratic Flexibility Index was applied to account for the behavior of the variables associated with the analysed dimensions.

Conclusions:

Evidences suggests a hierarchization process with a hollowing out of the state agency that is expressed by the low level of spending and the fact it has the smaller and more flexible staff structure (high level of staff mobility) of the national public administration.

Originality:

The paper provides robust variables and empirical references that inform central attributes of state structures in peripheral contexts. In particular, it tests the usefulness of the Bureaucratic Flexibility Index that captures the degree of staff retention and the accumulation of expertise of the agencies. The Index can be replicated in comparative studies in other national and sub-national contexts.