Kay 235: Introduction to Management
Lecture 1
Subject: The development of public administration, and its relationship with
management
Reading: Greene, Chapter 2
Introduction Beginnings of Public Administration (PA)
Woodrow Wilson `Study of Administration` article (1887)
Politics & Administration Dichotomy/Separation PA is similar to Business Administration (BA)
PA is: Managing the affairs of the state Implement a variety of policies
What do governments do In general: Education, Health, Justice, Internal &
External Security More specifically: Establishing speed limits and
enforcing them
How to define PA? It is a social science
Studies social phenomena and human behavior
It is a multidisciplinary field Includes political science, management & law Some says PA has an `identity crisis`
It is both an academic discipline, and a practice/profession. The two are closely linked.
The issues that PA deals with What does government do? How to understand complexities in
public organizations? What is the environment in which
public organizations function? How they function? What they do? Why they do it?
SOME BACKGROUND Thomas Hobbes 17th C.
Leviathan Adam Smith, 18th C.
The Wealth of Nations Invisible hand
Alexis De Tocqueville, 19th C. Democracy in America Power of associations
Degree of Government Involvement in Economy Limited
Involvement Adam Smith,
Wealth of Nations Invisible hand The aggregate of
people’s self interests make up of the public interest
Larger Involvement Hobbes Reasons
Externalities Monopolies Imperfect Information
Examples: Roosevelt, Wilson, FDR
Some Actions Break up monopolies
Primary Objective of PA Multiple criteria/objectives
Effectiveness Achieving stated objectives
Efficiency Achieving objectives with minimum resources (time,
money, personnel…) Responsiveness
To the needs of the society Social Equity
All these things and more… Objective: Better society through better government
PA as a practice/profession PA programs train future public
administrators Training includes courses in:
Management Organizational theory and behavior Personnel administration Budgeting & financial management Administrative History and Law
PA offers new courses as it responds to changes
E-government Ethics
History of PA
PA and bureaucracy is many centuries old, but the PA discipline is new: US PA begins with Wilson`s 1887
article, `The Study of Administration` PA is born out of political science
Still, there is a productive tension between the two.
Development Stages of PA
1. CLASSICAL PERIOD (1900-1940) Politics & administration
dichotomy/separation A generic view of administration
No real difference between PA & BA Universal principles of scientific
management BA techniques may be applied to PA
Stages of PA-21. THE CLASSICAL PERIOD (1900-1940) A mechanistic view of the people and the world
It is thought that money is the primary motivation A strong reaction against corruption in
government Cleaning up government from partisan politics and
favoritism Bringing competence to government by applying
scientific methods Primary Goal
Establishing competent and neutral professional administration
Politics & Administration Dichotomy
Politics Formulating government policies by democratic
processes such as election and the parliamentary processes
Administration Execution of these policies
Powers of government Legislature: Parliaments (Politics) Executive: Central and local government
(Administration) Judiciary: Courts (Both formulate and execute
policies (Both politics and administration)
Politics & Administration Dichotomy
Woodrow Wilson believed that Administration executes the law There is little difference between PA & BA
Government could and should be more businesslike in its operations
Mixing politics & administration is both ineffective & inefficient
Government employees should be selected for their merit
They should be free from political influences and pressures
Scientific Management
Founder: Frederick W. Taylor Universal principles of management There is a `one best way` of
implementing policies. PA was focusing on upper management Taylor focused on lower management
Assembly line workers How to make production/workers more
efficient
Scientific Management
Taylor believed that There was always a `one best way` of
doing things Time and motion studies for workers
Money was thought to be the main motivator
A very mechanistic view of the world
Hawthorne Studies
Conducted by Elton Mayo Beginning in 1927 Examined the relationship between
workers, work environments & productivity His research started the `Human Relations
Movement` Importance of informal groups Beginning of the `behavioralist
movement`
Other Contributors Max Weber
Defined the bureaucratic form of organization
Also known for authority types Traditional, charismatic and legal-rational
Mary Parker Follett Offered a management philosophy based on
Individual motivation and group problem solving Participatory management
Other Contributors Gulick and Urwick
Papers on the Science of Administration (1937)
Famous acronym: POSDCORB Planning Organizing Staffing Directing Coordinating Reporting Budgeting
End of the Classical Period
The rise of the administrative state in 1930s Emerged in response to the problems
of The Great Depression of late 1920s And the World War II
Stages of PA: Stage 2
2. BEHAVIORIST PERIOD (1940-1970) Affected by both political science and
management Disputed the scientific principles
Advocated the study of behavior Application of economics on
bureaucracy Anthony Downs: Forerunner of the public
choice theory
Other Contributors Chester Barnard
The Functions of the Executive (1938) Organization as cooperative systems Managers balance the needs of the individual & the
organization with effective communication Herbert Simon
Administrative Behavior Classic management principles are contradictory Simon argued that there are limits for human
organizations to handle and process information Rational decision-making within limits
Bounded rationality, satisficing People give `good enough` decisions, rather than
pursuing the best course of action
Behavioralism: Multidisciplinary
Behavioralists studied individual behaviors rather than institutions E.g. participatory decision-making
Multidisciplinary character: Systems theory, taken from biology Public Choice Theory, from economics
Self-interested bureaucrats, instead of pursuing the public interest
Comparative PA: In other countries
PA as management
Similar curricula Organizational theory Human resource management Information systems Budgeting
Oriented towards a generic management theory
PA & BA: Similar or Different?
The focus is on similarities & differences Government, private and non-profit
comparisons (Greene, page 58) Graham Allison Article (Next week)
Just a few arguments (More details next week) Short term focus in PA
Budget process and political pressures Limited term leadership
Relatively quick turnover of appointed PA leaders
Some Contributions to PA by Management Scholars
Theory X and Y Douglas McGregor
Process of Motivation Victor Vroom
Managerial Grid Robert Blake and Jane Mouton
Stages of PA: Stage 33. THE NEW PA (1968-1980s) A radical change in the PA discipline
Very normative and activist period Rejected the rationality of the behaviorist
school Foci
Organizational humanism Participatory bureaucracy Representative bureaucracy Bureaucracy should address social
inequalities Concerned more with equity than efficiency
Stages of PA: Stage 4
4. THE REFOUNDING PERIOD (1980--) Challenges to mainstream PA (New
Public Management) Main challenges
Public choice theory Bureaucrats are motivated by self-interest
Privatization Reinventing government movement
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