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Books > Business & Economics > Industry & industrial studies > Civil service & public sector
This text aims to review the issues raised by the state provision of social benefits in cash and in kind and to examine the principles on which their provision may be deemed to rest. The contributors examine the purpose of this area of public activity of 60% of public expenditure in Britain. What are these elaborate social services meant to achieve? By what criteria are they to be judged? By what authority have the objectives been adopted and the criteria applied? The answers to questions such as these will obviously reflect both differences in basic value judgements and differences in appraising the facts of any social situation. The editors compile many viewpoints on the topic.
This book provides practical insights into improving the effectiveness of labour negotiations in the public sector. It outlines the common conceptions, goals, needs, and obligations the different parties involved in public sector labour negotiations bring with them to negotiations. It also offers useful guidelines for all participants in negotiations - showing, for example, how management can assess the added cost of a proposed employee contract, how unions can most effectively prepare a case for arbitration, and how employees can best handle strikes should negotiations break down.
Over the last ten years public private partnerships have become ever more popular worldwide, expanding the body of experience among construction professionals, government agencies, and industry. In these economically challenging times, PPP has emerged as a crucial framework for providing infrastructure, and also to boost construction industry activity, while shielding the taxpayer from some of the cost. Understanding the lessons learnt is essential to ensuring the success of future projects, and this timely book will prepare the reader to do just that. Starting by defining PPP itself, part one is designed to help the novice to get to grips with the basics of this topic. Part two tackles the practicalities of PPPs, including successful implementation, managing the risks involved, and how to assess the suitability of a project for the PPP route. Part three presents detailed case studies from Asia, Africa, and Australia to illustrate how PPPs should be managed, how problems emerge, and how PPPs can differ across the world. Drawing on extensive internationally conducted research, from both industry and academia, the authors have written the essential PPP guide. Taking into consideration the perspectives of those in the public sector and the private sector, as well as built environment professionals, it is essential reading for anyone preparing to work on public private partnerships in construction.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the entire world experienced a health, humanitarian, and economic crisis with no record in the present century, leading to the paralysis of activities by voluntary or mandatory quarantines. There is great uncertainty about how long the crisis will last and how recovery will be achieved, because of this paralysis and the contraction of demand, auguring a slow recovery. Research in Administrative Sciences under COVID-19 examines the context surrounding organizations in the face of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Detailing various aspects related to companies and their competitiveness in the face of the global health crisis, chapters cover topics on intellectual capital, burnout (professional exhaustion), stress and technostress, as well as pandemic effects on the human capital of organizations. Developing upon the issues of Corporate Social Responsibility, E-commerce in times of COVID-19 and Design Thinking as a strategy for the economic reactivation of start-ups in Mexico, this volume is the result of research efforts carried out by 23 outstanding researchers from 12 Mexican and Latin American higher education institutions.
Well-traveled throughout China and well-published on its political, cultural, and business aspects, the editors of this unusual new book and their contributing authors give a systematic analysis of public sector management--as it is now and as it is emerging--in a country of massive size, now in retreat from a centrally planned economy. Many features of the new reforms parallel the movement toward new public management in the West. Functions have been transferred away from China's public sector, including the government, and into the private sector, and many of the managerial tools common in the private sector have been introduced into the public sector. The book thus analyzes the logic, mechanisms, and designs of new public management in China. It examines context-bound issues, in the light of the legacies of massive state intervention, the transition away from centralized planning, the structure of the Leninist party-state, and Chinese bureaucratic culture. Finally it discusses and illustrates events in a variety of policy areas, and in doing so, draws upon unique interviews and field studies developed personally by each contributor. The result is an important insight into China and how its public sector operates, one that will have special value for professionals in international development, finance, banking, government, economics, politics, and for their academic colleagues as well.
The government's "Privatization of Services Bill" requires all local authorities to prove their competitiveness in the private sector. This book has been written for those people at the sharp end of grounds maintenance, those who are performing a balancing act between making a profit and maintaining standards. This book deals exclusively with contract grounds maintenance. It is a detailed step-by-step guide to the process of setting up a contract grounds maintenance section. Giving up-to-date information on tendering, specification writing, administration and all aspects of preparing for, arranging and servicing the contracts. Those members of Direct Labour Organizations who have found themeselves having to tender for their own work, should find this handbook valuable. It is a source of advice and information for parks and recreation managers, leisure managers, landscape architects, quantity surveyors and estate managers and to all local authority staff who are wrestling with the complexities of compulsory competitive tendering. It should also be particulary helpful to students of amenity horticulture and landscape management. This book should be of interest to every local authorit
First published in 1989. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
With Strategic Networks: The Art of Japanese Interfirm Cooperation, you will examine the structure and dynamics of Japanese business networks and discover successful Japanese business practices and opportunities. For professors of business and Japanese studies, as well as managers of firms throughout the world, this book analyzes new and innovative networks through case examples from the Japanese automobile, chemical, and electronics industries. Strategic Networks offers you insight into the management of these company partnerships and how they work to increase the competitiveness of businesses and allow firms within the network to share important knowledge.Unknown to many, several of the management concepts that made Japanese companies successful in the 1980s, such as total quality control (TQC) and continuing improvement processes (CIP), were only a part of the formula for a successful business. This book discusses types of Japanese strategic networks, another element of Japan's thriving business structure of today, how they are influenced by Japanese cultural values and state interventions, and why all of the businesses involved are benefiting from these networks.Evaluating the theoretical foundation of these business relationships and intercompany cooperation, Strategic Networks offers you up-to-date information on the structures of Japanese firms by: examining Karl Popper's ideas on critical rationalism and how Japanese companies follow his theories of problem solving, questioning, and developing knowledge explaining the system, growth, and game theories in order to completely understand a network and all of its facets exploring the ability to work with and navigate strategic networks when they are managed without strict plans or with unforeseen circumstances recognizing how networks enable the activation of interpreneurs to develop future visions, innovations, and responsible leadership for the networkComplete with illustrations to emphasize important points along with insight into networks in the twenty-first century, Strategic Networks offers information and research that will help you understand how Japanese networks operate and how Japanese firms are conducting business differently. As a result, you will learn how the changing values in Japanese society influence company structures and procedures and come to understand the unique workings and effective structures of strategic networks.
Civil Service Systems in Anglo-American Countries presents a comprehensive overview of the important issues in modern bureaucracies, combined with a comparative analysis of the civil service systems and administrative traditions of five Anglo-American nations: Australia, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand and the United States.In each chapter, expert contributors undertake a systematic analysis of each country's civil service from three broad perspectives: external relations, internal constituent features and patterns of change. By employing a comparative framework in conjunction with empirical research, they are able to emphasise the specific nature, characteristics and development of each civil service system. They also highlight the historical developments and reforms associated with the Anglo-American model, which are often highly distinctive compared with other OECD nations. The book concludes with a systematic comparison of each civil service system, attempting to find parallels and variations between them. Scholars and students of public administration, political science and international affairs will value this unique comparative study of the civil service traditions of Anglo-American countries.
First published in 1987. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
First published in 1986. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
This book reviews the evolution of organization theory literature and explains other theories of organization and the implicit wisdom of the instructor's favorite theory. It helps the reader to understand the relevance of organization theory to the problems of administering public organizations.
The application of complexity theory to management and the social sciences has been a key development in theory and practice over the last decade. This approach questions the possibility of finding universal methods of practice, and proposes a pragmatic and humanistic management style that evolves out of a reflective method. The focus is on practitioners observing patterns of similarity and being adaptable in decision-making. Bringing complexity theory into management reveals the importance of organizational culture and effective communication because people, their values and their objectives are at the heart of this method. Information technology provides a framework for complex communication and knowledge use, but it cannot replace highly developed professional negotiations and cooperation. This book argues that the complexity of the public service world limits the usefulness of classical and rational scientific management approaches such as New Public Management. Excessive marketization threatens a collaborative approach and overly rigid approaches to performance management and strategic management can be dysfunctional. Managing Complexity in the Public Services 2nd Edition advances a method of management practice that copes with the stark realities of the complex and unpredictable public policy world. It develops pragmatic management practices from action research that will be valuable to both academics and practitioners. The result is a new value-based practice for the post-crisis public service world.
Innovation is seen as an interactive process that involves many actors within and across organizational boundaries. In public sector services, innovation is a frequent, often holistic, and multi-layered process that involves many actors and many services at the same time. However, most of the existing literature on innovation in public sector services is based on the economics of innovation, which is heavily influenced by investigations of the private sector. Innovation in the Public Sector develops a more context-sensitive and rich approach in order to explore the different logics of innovation that prevail here. Rather than presenting a general theory of innovation, the book specifies how innovation and value creation are interconnected with social and institutional elements. Analytical constructs, including dynamic capability, absorptive capacity, and practice-based approaches, are reviewed and anchored in the organizational context of public sector services. Such a perspective on innovation can help us develop new understandings of the process and history of innovation, contributing to processual organizational analysis in a broader sense, and further developing present theories of organizational change.
Over the last ten years public private partnerships have become ever more popular worldwide, expanding the body of experience among construction professionals, government agencies, and industry. In these economically challenging times, PPP has emerged as a crucial framework for providing infrastructure, and also to boost construction industry activity, while shielding the taxpayer from some of the cost. Understanding the lessons learnt is essential to ensuring the success of future projects, and this timely book will prepare the reader to do just that. Starting by defining PPP itself, part one is designed to help the novice to get to grips with the basics of this topic. Part two tackles the practicalities of PPPs, including successful implementation, managing the risks involved, and how to assess the suitability of a project for the PPP route. Part three presents detailed case studies from Asia, Africa, and Australia to illustrate how PPPs should be managed, how problems emerge, and how PPPs can differ across the world. Drawing on extensive internationally conducted research, from both industry and academia, the authors have written the essential PPP guide. Taking into consideration the perspectives of those in the public sector and the private sector, as well as built environment professionals, it is essential reading for anyone preparing to work on public private partnerships in construction.
Grappling with ethical issues is a daily challenge for those working in organizations that deliver public services. Such services are delivered through an often bewildering range of agencies and amidst this constant change, there are fears that a public service ethos, a tradition of working in the public interest, becomes blurred. Using extensive vignettes and case studies, Ethics and Management in the Public Sector illuminates the practical decisions made by public officials. The book takes a universal approach to ethics reflecting the world-wide impact of public service reforms and also includes discussions on how these reforms impact traditional vales and principles of public services. This easy-to-use textbook is a definitive guide for postgraduate students of public sector ethics, as well as students of public management and administration more generally.
Replete with practical advice for anyone considering a career in federal, state, or local government, "Caught between the Dog and the Fireplug, or How to Survive Public Service" conveys what life is really like in a public service job. The book is written as a series of lively, entertaining letters of advice from a sympathetic uncle to a niece or nephew embarking on a government career. Kenneth Ashworth draws on more than forty years of public sector experience to provide advice on the daily challenges that future public servants can expect to face: working with politicians, bureaucracy, and the press; dealing with unpleasant and difficult people; leading supervisors as well as subordinates; and maintaining high ethical standards. Ashworth relates anecdotes from his jobs in Texas, California, and Washington, D.C., that illustrate with humor and wit fundamental concepts of public administration. Be prepared, says Ashworth, to encounter all sorts of unexpected situations, from the hostile to the bizarre, from the intimidating to the outrageous. He shows that in the confrontational world of public policymaking and program implementation, a successful career demands disciplined, informed thought, intellectual and personal growth, and broad reading. He demonstrates how, despite the inevitable inefficiencies of a democratic society, those working to shape policy in large organizations can nonetheless effect significant change-and even have fun along the way. The book will interest students and teachers of public administration, public affairs, policy development, leadership, or higher education administration. Ashworth's advice will also appeal to anyone who has ever been caught in a tight spot while working in government service.
The Police Misconduct Complaint Investigations Manual provides a timely and unique, step-by-step approach to conducting or reviewing police misconduct investigations, whether a complaint involves a lower-level allegation of discourtesy or more serious concerns such as excessive force or criminal behavior. Utilizing real-life examples and updated case law to illustrate points, it provides best practices for investigating police action resulting in misconduct complaints. The Manual's comprehensive approach includes detailed procedures and policy considerations from intake through case closure, and discusses data tracking, reporting on trends, selecting and training investigative staff, civilian oversight, and a host of special issues that can arise with police misconduct complaints. The Manual is suitable for both sworn personnel and civilians handling or reviewing investigations and whether working internally for a police department or externally in oversight or another capacity. The guidance provides detailed examples of witness interview questions and types of evidence to collect, with discussion on making difficult credibility determinations and approaches to analyzing the information gathered to arrive at a recommended finding. Review questions are found at the end of most chapters, for use in academic or investigative training environments. Police officers engaged in the often complex and challenging work of public safety deserve and expect objective, thorough, and timely handling of complaints. Complainants and other stakeholders seek accountability and transparency when an officer behaves in a way that raises questions about their professionalism. The Complaint Investigations Manual provides instruction on handling misconduct complaints in a manner that will ensure the goals of law enforcement and stakeholders are met. The authors intentionally use a broad approach to make the Manual relevant and easy to use by law enforcement personnel, civilians in oversight or other capacities who work on police misconduct matters, and the criminal justice academic community. It is a critical primer for internal affairs investigators, police managers, law enforcement leaders, auditing professionals, civilian oversight practitioners, government representatives, community advocates, criminal and social justice students, and all others in pursuit of fair, thorough, and timely investigations of police misconduct complaints.
Examining how public and nonprofit managers improve productivity in their organizations, Evan M. Berman lays out a wide range of tools and strategies to promote employee motivation, client orientation, cost-effective service delivery, effective partnering, harmonious workplace relations, and the use of information technology. Productivity in Public and Nonprofit Organizations presents a positive view of the possibility of improvement through many hands-on examples of change. It offers specific advice on overcoming vital challenges that managers often encounter when they seek to improve their organizations and units. In a clear and effective writing style, Berman argues that managers must combine technology and analysis with psychology and foresight in human relations. This book further includes survey data about the use of productivity improvement strategies in a wide range of public and nonprofit organizations. Productivity in Public and Nonprofit Organizations will be of great interest to professionals and students in the fields of public administration, management, and organization studies.
"Decentralise authority and let managers manage" has been an almost universal message in UK public services over the last 15 years. But does it really work? This study attempts to show that behind the ministerial rhetoric the experiences of NHS trusts, grant maintained schools and housing associations were in practice distinctly mixed. The text offers a theoretical analysis of the origins and results of decentralized public management in the UK.
Networks contain complex patterns of dependency and require multiple levels of analysis to explain their formation, structure, and outcomes. In this Element, the authors develop the Multilevel Network Framework. The framework serves as (i) a conceptual tool to think more deeply about network dynamics, (ii) a research tool to assist in connecting data, theory, and empirical models, and (iii) a diagnostic tool to analyze and categorize bodies of research. The authors then systematically review the network literature in public administration, management, and policy. They apply the Multilevel Network Framework to categorize the literature; identify significant gaps; examine micro, macro and cross-level relations; and examine relevant mechanisms and theories. Overall this Element helps readers to (i) understand and classify network research, (ii) use appropriate theoretical frameworks to examine network-related problems, (iii) understand how networks emerge and produce effects at different levels of analysis, and (iv) select appropriate empirical models.
This edited collection examines corruption in the public sector, assessing case studies from across the globe in order to provide an international perspective on this worldwide issue. Case studies include an examination of how corruption has been minimized in Singapore and Hong Kong; an assessment of corruption in India under Modi, who was elected on a promise to reduce corruption; a study of corruption in Bangladesh, and an evaluation of attempts to curb corruption in South Africa. This collection also includes a comparative study of corruption in Brazil and Chile, and a global perspective on the development of ethical privacy policies in e-government. The original case studies included in this book are brought together in an effort to identify common themes that impinge upon the fight against corruption, despite the particular nuances of individual nations. The contributions included in this edited collection also cover themes that are not often studied, including corruption in government procurement, the nascent issue of the 'right to privacy' stemming from e-governance, and the proclivity of governments to hide behind Official Secrets Acts to withhold information - ostensibly guaranteed under the 'right to information' which is vital in the fight against corruption. Providing a broad overview on public sector corruption, including local and national perspectives, this edited collection is essential reading for scholars of both public policy and corruption worldwide.
This straightforward and practical guide outlines a strategic approach to public involvement in government decision making. Prepares public managers for the difficult task of involving citizens more fully in the affairs of government while maintaining effectiveness and efficiency. Written in easy-to-understand terms, Public Participation in Public Decisions presents the Effective Decision Model of Public Involvement that managers will find to be an invaluable asset when making decisions about when and how to involve the public.
Rising and changing citizen expectations, dire fiscal constraints, unfulfilled political aspirations, high professional ambitions, and a growing number of stubborn societal problems have generated an increasing demand for innovation of public policies and services. Drawing on the latest research, this book examines how current systems of public governance can be transformed in order to enhance public innovation. It scrutinizes the need for new roles and public sector reforms, and analyzes how the gradual transition towards New Public Governance can stimulate the exploration and exploitation of new and bold ideas in the public sector. It argues that the key to public innovation lies in combining and balancing elements from Classic Public Administration, New Public Management and New Public Governance, and theorizes how it can be enhanced by multi-actor collaboration for the benefit of public officials, private stakeholders, citizens, and society at large. |
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