A CRITICAL EVALUATION OF CHALLENGES FACED BY MANAGERS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 9 Words: 2717 Downloads: 10 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Management Essay Type Analytical essay Did you like this example? There are different levels of management in the three different sectors of the economy. There are non-managerial employees, first-line managers, middle managers and the top managers. Robbins et al ;( 2009). This essay will critically evaluate the challenges faced by managers in the public sector organisations. The essay will assess the roles of the manager in this sector and the difficulties managers encounter whilst carrying out their duties. The challenges posed by organisational structure and design with an example from the Northampton Borough Council, the issues due to the organisational culture, privatisation of some of the public sector services, the strategic management of the public sector and the complexities due to the constant changing environment in which these organisations operate, and the challenges to managers of the most recent comprehensive budget cuts, will be evaluated in this essay. The typical roles of a manager in any organisation is to organise, lead, plan and control the activities of the people and other resources within it towards achieving the objectives of that organisation; Naylor (2004). The role a manager plays is dependent on the level of management position although each level has its challenges. At the senior level, the managers role is much broader and in depth and it requires creativity and innovativeness; Robbins et al (2009). The senior manager is involved in decision making, strategic management planning and control, the manager, at this level of management is expected to have an understanding of all areas of the organisation to enable sensible handling of any given situation Hanagan;(2008). The role of the manager did not change in the 21st century rather the method of carrying out the above mentioned roles are different, for instance the manager has to organise work differently, communication is more sophisticated such as, the use of internet, mobile telephones and e-mail. In recent times, the manageme nt of change is considered as the most important skill of management due to the pace of change in the 21st century Hanagan, (2008).The rapid changes in technology, enormous improvements in communication, the increase in focus on global economy, and the environment are issues to the modern day manager. In addition to the above, the role of the manager in the public sector is challenged by the constant changes in legislation and political policies subject to government in power Hanagan (2008). An organisation is an arrangement which has been set up for a particular purpose. Robbins et al (2009). Different organisations belong to different sectors of the economy. There are three sectors; the public, the private and the third sector such as social enterprises. This three sectors have some common characteristics which are: they all have distinct purpose, each organisation is made up of people, and all create a structure within which the people could carry out their duties Robbins et a l(2009). Organisations are grouped as public sector depending on certain factors such as; how much the organisation competes with similar organisations, goods and services are charged indirectly and how much it allows itself to be influenced by demand and supply of goods and services. The less such organisations are influenced by the above factors the more the organisations are considered as public sector organisations Hanagan (2008). Instances of these organisations are; Local Government council, Libraries, the National Police Force, the Defence Ministry, Colleges and Universities. The common features of these organisations are; they are set up to fulfil specific purposes, they are service motivated, they are accountable to many stakeholders and the public, they carry out their duties for the good of the people and they are funded through the use of taxpayers money. Avery important challenge to a manager whether in the public sector or in the private sector is to be aware of the ir relevant stakeholders and operate the organisation in ways which will yield maximum returns to each stakeholder group Bloisi et al (2007). The public sector organisation has a centralised organisational structure whereby authority and decision making is made at the senior managerial level. Organisational structure is a connected arrangement of positions and work units through which the important tasks of an organisation are subdivided and categorised to form decision centres from where the strategic plans of the organisation are carried out Bloisi et al (2007). Most of these organisations have a Matrix design structure which enables double responsibility and reporting roles with particular projects. Bloisi et al (2007). The managers in the matrix organisation are challenged by the constant need to resolve conflicts due to differences in perspectives and priority Bloisi et al (2007). For instance, the organisational structure of the Northampton Borough Council has over five man agerial levels of management. According to Nicole Macdonald, a HR Manager Strategy with the council, one of the challenges they have is getting approval to carry out plans as quickly as possible. The council has about forty-seven councillors through whom decisions are made. These councillors represent different political fronts. Sometimes it is difficult to reach a consensus on certain issues and therefore arriving at a decision is elongated said, Cassie Triggs, a Democratic Chief Executive Services Manager at the Northampton Borough Council. The manager in the private sector will in relation to their organisational structure which is much flatter be able to arrive at a decision much quicker. Private sector organisational structures are designed to embrace the pace of changes in technology and also to survive. Flatter structure allows for incorporation of ideas from almost every employee in the organisation Bloisi et al (2007). The manager in the private sector will be challenge d by how to control an employee who is working from home and coming to the place of work only one day in a working week Naylor (2004). Included in the challenges encountered by managers in the public sector are challenges due to the cultural beliefs of the organisation. Organisational culture is the way we do things around here Robbins et al (2009). According to Meek (1988), organisational culture could be used as a means to find out how people behave in a complex setting Hanagan, (2008). Organisational culture can be something abstract or peoples perception and experience within an organised setting. According to Stacey, the culture of any group of people is that set of beliefs, customs, practices and ways of thinking that they have come to share with each other through being and working together. Hanagan (2008). According to Handy, there are four major types of organisational cultures; the power culture in which the power and authority is from one person in a central position, the role culture which is labelled as a bureaucracy where the role of the individual specialists are more important than position and power, the task culture is about the activity which is being carried out and lastly the person culture which focuses more on what individuals do in a particular setting Mullins (2005). The challenge of managing cultural change in a public sector organisation will depend on how strong the existing culture is and the weight of the proposed change Hanagan (2008).The difficulty is in bringing about the change. For instance the Further and Higher Education Act which made colleges and higher education in England to become Corporate Bodies Limited by Guarantee indicates that organisational culture can be overtaken by accountability to more prominent stakeholders as the organisation would want to survive Hanagan (2008). The challenge is even more where there is existence of subcultures within the organisation. For decades, Public organisations have been ma naged by people who have been raised into managerial positions through years of service to the organisation, for instance; football clubs were managed by ex-footballers, and schools were managed by former teachers, local government council by people who were promoted through long years of service Hanagan (2008). There are difficulties faced by managers moving from the private sector to the public sector. The manager from the private sector is more focused on profits and accounting to shareholders, decision making is simplified, there is much flexibility and autonomy, there is power and authority attached therefore, the challenge to the private sector manager moving into the public sector will be changing the profit making, quick decision making mindset, there is less power and authority, no flexibility and autonomy Hanagan (2008). These challenges are not without approaches with which the managers could use to minimise them. For instance, the managers could use the recruitment pr ocess to recruit people who will fit into the existing culture, by the method of questioning they are made aware of what is important in the organisation, the induction process, promotion policy, training and development Hanagan (2008). Following the challenges posed by organisational structure, design and culture, are the challenges which managers face with the move of the UK government in the 1980s to privatise some of the services of the public sector when they realised that the costs of providing services were becoming too much, costs were weighing much on National budgets and the motive to make public sector organisations to work more effectively and efficiently Hanagan (2008). The move gave rise to such contractual arrangements as the Public Private Partnership (PPP) and the London underground contractual arrangement which came from a simpler Private Finance Initiative (PFI) which was set up to establish contracts between the local authority controlled London Underground an d Tubelines and Metronet Hanagan (2008). Privatisation as defined by Bryan Hurl (1992), is the sale of government owned equity in nationalised industries or other commercial enterprises, to private investors with or without the loss of government control of the organisation. There are three methods which have been used by the government, these are; denationalisation which is the sale of public sector assets, deregulation which is removal of barriers to entry to a previously protected market to allow private enterprises to compete and franchising whereby the public sector provides the finance and the private sector provide the services Hurl (1992). One of the key principles of managing resources to deliver better services is by setting up strong partnerships which means that various departments of the public sector are relying on other public, private and third sector to deliver public services, these organisations, most of the time may have better expertise and better underst anding of the needs of the citizens Bourn (2003, p26). The increasing difficulty with which public services are delivered is a challenge. According to the National Audit Office, delivery of public services are no longer the duty of a single department for instance, different organisations are involved in provision of criminal justice such as the police, the crown prosecution service, the forensic Science service and the courts. Changes in economic conditions and unforeseen circumstances could place much demand for public services, for instance, the sudden rise in unemployment during the most recent inflationary period. The volume and value of benefits payment made by the job centre plus or the unexpected foot and mouth disease and its effect to the public requires a good resource management Bourn (2003 p18). Some of the services provided by the public sector organisations are; Defence by the Army, Public Health by the NHS, Direct service delivery agencies which handle payments of benefits, issuing of prescriptions and National insurance numbers, processing of student loans, access to heritage, museums and galleries, developing frameworks for other service providers such as regulation of educational standards, teacher training and social housing, promotion of business opportunities abroad, transport integration, purchasing information technology systems and professional services and others. The challenge to the manager is the ability to coordinate and monitor the different service chains involved in the delivery of public services and also the difficulty in ensuring that resources are channelled appropriately to the provision of the most required service Bourn (2003 p.20) . Strategic thinking, planning and continuous are important in every organisation Bloisi et al (2007). Strategic thinking means being able as a manager to device ways to balance both the human, technical and the limited resources of the organisation and the environmental forces Blois i et al (2007). The public sector manager has no power and authority, no autonomy and flexibility and therefore may not have as much influence in the decision making as their counterpart in the private sector Hanagan (2008). Strategic management is used in the public sector to find out schedules of activities in the sector which fit into the political agendas taking into consideration the politicians who might be looking for quick returns which they can point to as their successes and achievements Hanagan (2008). This means that the strategic planning has to be short term. There is lack of clarity in relation to what the manager is trying to achieve. There is the constant challenge to the manager in the public sector as to whether you are trying to fulfil your statutory obligation, please the politicians, follow the directions of the board or the people for whom the services were meant for. The manager in the public sector is challenged as he cannot change or alter the system. Th ere are too many stakeholders, interest groups to satisfy in the public sector therefore the manager in this sector has to device different kinds of ways to deliver information to the different groups in the public who believes they have a stake in the public sector, such methods are through, governing bodies, advisory committees, taskforces, public meetings and public announcements Hanagan (2008). The manager in the private sector uses strategic management to review actions, slow down processes and hence make changes where necessary, the manager in the private sector has a profit making mindset and therefore considers product viability, the private sector manager has power and authority, flexibility and autonomy and therefore decision making is quicker. The private sector manager is accountable to shareholders Bloisi et al (2007). The public sector is funded by the government and the managers are accountable to whichever ruling political party at any given time. According to the National Audit Office, before the 1998 public service agreements, different departments were funded annually with some exception such as the Department of Health, so there was uncertainty as to whether funding will be the same as the previous year or reduced or increased. This was a challenge to managers as there was no certainty with the flow of funds to make long term plans as the private sector with assurance of long term financing. The agreement was set out with the awareness of the aims, ideals and targets of the various departments Bourn (2003 p.20). Assessed so far are internal factors which challenge managers in the public sector however there are certain external factors which managers have to contend with as well. Some of these are; the speed of technology which has affected every process in organisations irrespective of sector, the force of competing interests who are not ordinary rivals to gain customers but those seeking for resources and those trying to make their points to be heard and the fluctuations in social behaviour which starts with movements in peoples expectations and values Bloisi et al (2007). Finally, managers are currently facing challenges due to the recent comprehensive budget cut. There is greater demand for services however there are fewer resources to meet demand. It is morally challenging to managers to prioritize who to help and who not to In conclusion, Suggested approaches from management science which could alleviate some of the challenges are; the systems approach and contingency approach. With systems approach, managers could discuss their departmental needs in terms of the general organisational requirement. The use of this approach requires open communication and the removal of barriers between the individual departments, also the approach shows management consideration of all the systems involved, synergy that is the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, open and closed systems, limits, movements of information, materials and feedback through which the manager could monitor and evaluate progress reports Hanagan (2008). The second recommended approach is the contingency approach. This approach says that different problems requires different ways of solving them it all depends on how much experience the manager has because what might work well in one situation may not work well in another situation Hanagan (2008). Application of this approach requires that the manager recognises several view points, one of which is the pragmatic view point. Pragmatic viewpoint says that no approach is generally acceptable which means that the manager has to check the motives for every action taken for instance, the services being delivered, the availability of equipment required and also the internal and external environment Hanagan (2008). Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "A CRITICAL EVALUATION OF CHALLENGES FACED BY MANAGERS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR" essay for you Create order

Directing And Implementing Research At Grand Valley State...

Directing and implementing research this summer has increased my understanding of the time and effort it takes to effectively accomplish a desired study. This study has given me first-hand experience into the field of research, while increasing my interest in connecting research to a part of my future career. In social work and psychology, research is constantly incorporated to evaluate social norms, effective treatment plans, and case studies. Each research study is conducted differently, but seems to follow a similar pattern of tasks and goals in order to complete a study effectively. I found myself learning the most about the research process during the submission of my IRB. Even though I have taken advanced research classes at Grand Valley State University, I have not been required to submit an IRB for our study due to the minimal harm we had for the participants. For this study, Dr. Youker and myself spent over a month developing our proposal for the IRB and found ourselves cons tantly critiquing the requirements needed to ensure that our participants were safe during our study. The IRB process created a great amount of stress in my research process due to the constant editing, but it gave me an understanding for why ethics are in place to keep participants safe. 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Lecture Notes on Modernism and other ‘isms’ Free Essays

Is a shorthand for the seemingly complex array of ideas and theories that surround art and design as a socially and culturally located practice. With many of these ideas it is difficult to find a starting point, and a lot of these terms have superseded one another or are in conflict in some way. There is no real chronology of these ideas, In fact, a linear approach to these Ideas Is probably misleading. We will write a custom essay sample on Lecture Notes on Modernism and other ‘isms’ or any similar topic only for you Order Now 2. These different ways of formatting knowledge are prevalent in visual culture and art and sign. They are what followers of the French philosopher Gilles Delude might describe as ‘reading machines’ or a tool kit for examining the world of Ideas, concepts that shape our lives. 3. They are ways of modeling the world as well as being lenses through which we view our surroundings, the ideas, habits, concepts and histories that make up a culture or society. Ways of thinking Like this provide critical positions from which we organism these seemingly chaotic or impractically complex surroundings. 4. The following list is by no means exhaustive but I hope that in some says what will become apparent are the different ways that people try to make sense of their subject (Graphic design or illustration), their discipline (art, art and design, applied art, visual communication, visual culture) and the wider world (society, political systems, culture, difference, power etc). 5. These Ideas can often provide insight, comfort and / or revelation to the adherents, but they can also impose dogma, inflexibility and / or a predictable response. Think of the different approaches almost as a set of tools that can be used to strip down the engine of history. 6. My respective on this, and one I think I share with everyone here, is the perspective of the practitioner. 7. Whether the concepts here are familiar or entirely new, what I ask all of you to do Is re-talk these Ideas Interns of how they might relate to each another and to your practice, your practical research and your written work for this module. 8. We will begin to consider race, gender, class, sexuality, in themselves, and as ways of as ways of reading or seeing cultural material. . As we go through the material that you are presented with, you should also try to think of an original idea o research for the essay that you will be writing for the end of the semester. These Ideas may also respond to some more fundamental questions that you may already have about things in general. 10. Modernism. Historical, grand narrative, about progress and humanism. We know modern art, but the first use of the word modern was used In the time of the Emperor Charlemagne In about DADA. 11. The enlightenment in the ICC is the beginning of what we would call ‘modern’ with science, the beginnings of industry, rationalism and a belief in progress taking over from a superstition and subsistence. Western values, from the equals-holocaust trope of the 300 (battle of Thermopile) seen as defense of West against East. 12. Michael Gave represents English kings model of linear history, Paolo Ferrier educational theorist against this banking model of education. 13. Narrative of the thread of history often still dominant in public discourse. 4. Challenge the idea that to know anything you need to know its entire history. Be wary of this, as it takes up a lot of issues, practices etc. Than to attempt a rambling second hand history that is largely in the public domain anyway, linear history, progress. 15. The ideas and principles of modernism are fundamental to the development of capitalism and the free market. 16. Modernist literature, high modernism, Joyce, Becket, Ezra Pound, Sentiment, De Still, Bauhaus, modern art. 17. Intellectuality – texts’ refer to one another. Some would argue that this period of modernism was the high water mark of Western culture, and that we are already going down hill fast. 18. Cultural reproduction. Social and cultural basis for all of the definitions of what we consider to be of value or what can be classified as art. What we do here at college is a form of cultural reproduction, mom things are taught, some aren’t. Some things you learn (by choice) some you don’t. We all do this to some extent. 19. It is important to understand these habits and to challenge or break them. Habits in making, thinking and acting can be unnecessarily restrictive 20. Orientation – a kind of patronizing beatifications of the East, or the non – West by the West. Edward Said, post – colonialism. Slavery and Liverpool. The image of slavery, architecture, visual evidence in buildings, street names etc. Liverpool wealth comes in a large part from the slave trade. Liverpool and Bristol. Can this still be seen? 1 . The West genuinely feels that it is the most advanced, civilized, free and valid form of social organization, Like the Romans, Mayans, Egypt, Mesopotamia etc. All civilizations collapse for similar reasons (see Collapse of Complex Civilizations, Law of Entropy) 22. Colonialism, Socialism and Fascism all products of modernism, as is radical Salamis Noon Gray, Straw Dogs, Heresies) in spite of the tendency to compare non-western ideologies to the past, medieval attitudes towards crime and punishment in Saudi Arabia for example, tribal conflicts in Africa or peasant communities of China. 3. Representation of Africa as behind Western Europe in terms of development (Edward Said). 24. Socialism – Meta-narrative of class [power. A socialist view on art and design might be that it supports the power elite (the owners of the ‘means of production’, the already wealthy), the forces that subjugate the working classes, by presenting them (the wealthy) in the best possible light. (think about this next time you visit a major art gallery). 25. The means of production, publishing and media companies, art institutions etc. Are all owned or were established by the wealthy, and it is their interests that these institutions serve (see Media Lens). 26. Consumerism is one of the mechanisms that dazzle the ordinary folk into coexisting with the mechanism of their oppression (read Ragged Trousers Philanthropists by Robert Treeless, Germinal by Andre Guide, any George Orwell). 27. Capitalism – Corporate ownership of media and publishing. 28. Normative. Progress, idea of the self-made man, level playing field, Work hard and you will be successful’. National lottery or ‘idiot tax’ is something that cashes in on the success of this image. 29. Racism – examples in earning, canons in education, National Galleries. Anglo-centric curriculum acts as propaganda for status quo. 0. Children’s books golliwogs and teddy bears. Also animal characters and difference, what do they represent? Are there any patterns there? 31 . Anthropomorphism – Children’s books, animal characters. Assumption of gender in animal characters. (Anomalousness) Animal Farm (Orwell). Function and reality, the farm, Sue C EO, the bastion. Fur trade and fashion, image and advertising (Theodore Adorn, Peter Singer) 33. Anarchism – Media Lens, Chomsky and propaganda model (Manufacturing consent, E. Herman and N. Chomsky) outlines how western mass media works as propaganda. John Pilfer – obvious propaganda of totalitarianism (USSR, N. Korea) compare to softer more inclusive (more deceptive? ) propaganda of corporate media. 34. Feminism Images of gender, (Butler, Original, Drink), Magazines. Lads mass, women’s magazines. Andrea Drink, ironically vilified for her appearance but wrote extensively on the image of sexuality and patriarchal power and the relationship between Sexuality, queer theory and hetero normative. I challenge you all to get your head round these ideas and to seriously hint about visual culture and its affects in this arena. 35. Feminism is an inspiring way of looking at images, artifacts and design. These critical positions are critical of what they describe as the heterosexuality that dominates popular media and political discourse. Egg. Top Gear, football, marketing (big pen for her http:// www. Amazon. Co. UK/Bloc-For-Her-Medium-Ballpoint/EDP/BUFFETING). 36. The differentiation of gender roles in print media being an obvious example, but there are examples abundant in the visual language of science, heritage, leisure, commerce, and everything really. 37. Politics – Overtly political – Kendal, Chitchats, Kale Lass, Sue CEO, Joe Image. Covertly political – Marketing, publishing, advertising, product design, packaging (tacit support of Western consumerism, status quo) Apple, Span, suicides. 38. The discreet politics of art and design, consumerism, globalization and the visual cultural economy. Art turning left (Tate). 39. Semiotics – A theory of reading, not sure whether it is a theory of making. Look at Visible signs by David crow, Reading images, for examples. 40. The visual turn – the move to visuals from text based communication (or the triumph of reading? . If images are seen as texts then ‘reading’ still dominant. 1 . Multiplicity (objects can be encountered in a number of ways at the same time). 42. Intellectuality (texts refer to other texts, images exist within a world of images, styles of representation, critical interpretive communities (that maker can also be a member of etc) ever more so in digital communication. As a kind of coda to this presentation I would like to al so talk about the upcoming talk on What’s New? And briefly mention a couple of things. Structuralism / post structuralism and Post-Modernism – context – We will look at territoriality. Alto-modernism, after the structures and narratives of modernism. Hybrid, cultural, social and material mixing and matching. Common points of reference. Hipster cool, political disenfranchisement or disengagement with class ridden power structures or class identity. Postposition, DC culture, tropes and mimes. Franà §ois Laurelled – Non philosophy – Idea of looking critically or creatively at a discipline from the outside. Non – anything, (this references well known critique of Faculty by Deride, where D argues that Ifs history of Madness is always going to be room the point of view of the not mad. Really, what F was doing was imaging madness from an oblique and UN referenced perspective). Could this inform our practice? What would non-design, non-illustration look like. Illustration that doesn’t illustrate? Design that hasn’t been designed? What would it be to make work that doesn’t do what it is told. Or that doesn’t do what it is supposed to? This speculative thinking will be picked up in lecture 4. I have tried to talk you through some of these different that can be asked within these frameworks. The aim, though you are of course alcove to pick up on any of the questions that arise from this talk, is for you to be able to think differently about both your practical work, and your wider cultural landscape. The main thing to remember here is that these are ideas that should inspire you to develop your work along a path that you were previously unaware of, to go off in a new direction or trajectory, one that isn’t for everyone but is Just for you. At the moment, your work might not fit in with your ideas on society, politics, culture or whatever. But we are all products of this cultural m ©Lange and so is everything you sake. At the moment, it may be the best idea to strike out in a different critical direction (for the essay) and think about practical research on a module by module basis, keeping some of these ideas in the back of your mind, allowing the cross fertilization of thinking when appropriate. It is not necessary to rush headlong (in terror) into post-modernism. Next week we will be looking at the work of the photographers Adam Broodmare and Oliver Chain. I will send you a link to one of their books and an accompanying text. Your homework is to study this material. How to cite Lecture Notes on Modernism and other ‘isms’, Papers