PUB-7020 v2 Public Management Theory week 7 assignment
Week7
Public Organization Effectiveness
Public organizations are widely viewed as cumbersome, inefficient, and ineffective. Public
organizations with bureaucratic structures suffer from perceived and reat “red tape” *
processes that are awkward, slow, and include unnecessary steps.’Citizens attempting to
access services experience delays, duplication of steps, outdated information systems,
slow and confusing communication, and sometimes employee apathy and indifference.
Overall, the public is skeptical of the ability of many government organizations to
effectively deliver needed services. The public is not engaged with these organizations
and is often critical of “government” overall because of their experiences with these
public organizations. Public administrators are often viewed as ineffective as well.
At the same time, public organizations are vitally important to the functioning of society
by providing services that would not otherwise be available. An important public service is
the welfare program that provides critical services, funding, and support to individuals and
families below the Federal Poverty Level {FPL). The Medicaid program which is a state-run
and partially funded healthcare program for those below 7AO% of FPL is partially
supported by the Federal government. This program illustrates an important feature of the
U.S. government system where powers are divided between state and federal
government.
lncreasingly, the public is pushing for more efficient government organizations, increased
responsiveness to citizen needs, and more citizen engagement. Efficiency is the ability of
;
:,
a public organization to perform its activities and duties correctly without waste and
unnecessary steps. The question is can government improve efficiency and what is the
effect of that improvement? Wen (2A2il examined the relationship between government
efficiency and innovation and concluded that government organizations can improve and
that improvement can lead to innovation within government organizations.
Effectiveness is also an issue in government organizations. The effectiveness speaks to
the ability of the public organization to perform its duties and achieve expected results.
Effectiveness looks at the outcome of a specific action or function and asks does it
produce the desired result? The term is often associated with cost, outcomes of programs
such as health care, and activities such as the procurement process. Patrucco QArc)
examines the effectiveness of procurement processes in local government and concludes
that appropriate controls and diagnostic systems must be put in place to ensure
procurement will meet its goals.
Since government organizations, especially those that are Weberian bureaucracies, focus
on rules and processes rather than outcomes and results, the effect is often rigidity and
unresponsiveness. Leaders and employees are unable to see a broader vision than the
everyday processes and have difficulty understanding the need for process improvements
and change. The internal focus restricts the ability of leaders and employees to see citizen
and client needs. As a result, these organizations are slow to change, unresponsive to
clients, and unaware of the impact of their behavior on their effectiveness and efficiency.
Traditional government agencies have difficult times responding to widespread crises
either on a regional or national level. Several natural disasters related to hurricanes and
floods have left government organizations such as FEMA struggling to cope with the
scope of the catastrophe. Hurricane Katrina was a good example of a situation that
caused the traditionally organized and focused FEMA significant problems in trying to
address the situation.
Another example of a catastrophic event that left traditional bureaucracies struggling to
provide needed services is the COVID-19 pandemic. This national emergency affected
organizations at all levels of government from the Federal government to state
governments, to local governments. Since most Weberian bureaucracies operate as “silos”
without connections to or significant communications with other organizations, all levels
of government organizations were struggling alone and sometimes with conflicting
activities. Some government organizations at the state and local level were not able to
effectively perform their functions, suffering some level of “meltdown”. Observers of the
federal responses saw miscommunications and organizations either overlapping functions
with other organizations or not filling needed gaps.The result in these situations was
often conflict and criticism among agencies at all levels, serious frustration on the part of
people needing support and services, and anger on the part of the public. Mixed
messages continue to disrupt some services and tear people apart.
Based on what we’ve learned about NPM and CPM theories that encourage bureaucratic
restructuring and partnership relationships, it would be easy to think that is the overall
solution. Although those new government models are compelling, there are still
compelling arguments for the traditional Weberian bureaucratic model.
One thing to remember is that many private sector organizations are also Weberian
bureaucracies. Those organizations have “learned” to refocus their attention on outcomes
and have implemented processes such as Total Quality Management to improve their
efficiency and effectiveness. Government organizations are now beginning to understand
that they can adapt these theories and processes to government organizations with
succeSs.
Conducting a SWOT Analysis
Organizational analysis is the first step in identifying what is needed to improve
effectiveness and efficiency. The analysis, which often includes a SWOT (Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis, identifies both what is going well and
what issues need to be addressed. Armed with the results of organizational analysis, the
organization can develop an approach to improving efficiency and effectiveness within
whatever organizational structure the organization has. The key is to develop
improvement strategies that fit the organization’s structure and purpose.
References
wen, J., WEN, Deng, P., Zhang, Q., & Chang, c.P. (2021). Is Higher Government Efficiency
Bringing About Higher lnnovation? Tbchnological &. Econornic Development of
Econo my, 2n3j, 626 * 655 –
patrucco, A. S., Luzzini, D., & Ronchi, S. t2016). Evaluating the Effectiveness of Public
procurement Performance Management Systems in Local Governments. local
Govern m e nt Stud i es, 445\, 7 39 -V 67.
Weekly Resources and Assignments
Review the resources from the Course Resources link, located in the top navigation bar, to
prepare for this week’s assignments. The resources rnay include textbook reading
assignments, journal articles, websites, links to tools or software, videos, handouts,
rubrics, etc. * #ffiffi. “.)
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Week 7 – Signature Assignment: Review a Public I
Organization with lmprovement Recommendations
Assignment
$ Oue July 31 at 1t:59 PM
This signature assignment asks you to integrate information about the various theories
presented in this course as a comprehensive analysis and reorganization proposal for a
public state organization with recommendations for changes and improvements”
ln times of crisis, public organizations and their leaders experience numerous pressures.
Disasters, emergencies, and pandemics interrupt normal business functions by either
reducing access to needed resources or adding volume to the organization’s operations.
Communications may be interrupted, people needing seruices may increase exponentially,
and outdated systerns such as IT systems may not be able to handle increased demands
on the organization. Those situations coupled with the tendency of many public
organizations to move slowly and change slowly put the organizations at risk in
unexpected situations. Both state and federal agencies are affected by chaotic and
u nexpected situations.
You are a new leader in a public organization. Your first major assignment is ts reorganize
the organization to facilitate its efforts to develop systems and processes that are flexible
enough to handle both normal day-to-day activity levels and significantly increased levels.
Select one of the following public organizations, or identify an equivalent organization of
your choice:
. State Unemployment department in your area
. State Department of Motor Vehicles in your area
. County Public Health Department in your area
Develop a package including an organizational evaluation with recommendations that
includes a comprehensive analysis and proposal for changes to the organization and will:
1) optimize organizational structure
2) enhance leadership effectiveness
3) improve decision making within the organization
4) improve quatity and efficiency of the organization’s processes, and
5) improve user satisfaction. Remember to address both normal circumstances as well as
unexpected situations.
The organizational evaluation and reorganization package must include a written
document, presentation slides for a presentation to leadership, and a one-page executive
briefing paper for a handout.
Length: The evaluation and reorganization document must be B-10 pages, tA-!4
presentation slides are also needed, and a one-page executive briefing handout is also
needed to complete the analysis and presentation package.
References: lnclude a minimum of 8 scholarly references.
The completed assignment should address all the assignment requirements, exhibit
evidence of concept knowledge, and demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the content
presented in the course. The writing should integrate scholarly resources, reflect
academic expectations, and current APA standards, and adhere to the Northcentral
University’s Academic lntegrity Policy.
When applicable, conduct a Turnitin pre-check and then upload your completed
assignment and click the Submit ta Dropbox button.