The Public Manager articles from September 2008

The Public Manager archives from September 2008

The manager's musings.
September 22, 2008... Overboard As Sanford Borins states in his recently edited book Innovations in Government: Research, Recognition, and Replication (Brookings Institution Press, Washington, DC, March 2008), during the past two decades, "the public sector has...

Why do change efforts fail? What can leaders do about it? A recent study of large-scale transformations in public and nonprofit organizations show how leader can make change efforts work.
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A recent study, published by the Center for Creative Leadership, reported that between 66 and 75 percent of all public and private change initiatives fail--a depressing statistic for those who seek to change an...

A new generation of change solutions for public bureaucracies: government agency managers can meet mission requirements in service to citizens while working through institutional constraints.
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Americans today are facing a crisis in confidence--if not in fact--in the way many of our government institutions function and perform. Skepticism abounds about the effectiveness of federal, state, and local...

Creating a "Super" agency in San Diego County: innovative redesign of health and human services has led to improved community services and positions the agency well for the ever-changing future.(Health and Human Services Agency )(Organization overview)
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Ten years ago, six different departments in the County of San Diego government did not communicate well with each other, much less collaborate; often pursued different agendas; and rarely shared resources. These...

Transforming the Military Health System: a recent survey of public and private organizations reveals practices that DoD can use to better standardize its medical materiel.(Organization overview)
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] This article describes the current and possible future processes the Military Health System (MHS) uses to identify, assess, and select the medical-surgical products used to treat patients in peacetime and wartime. It...

Transforming government through collaborative innovation: government agencies can play four different roles in network-based problem solving.
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The performance of the next administration and, more broadly, the American government in the twenty-first century will be shaped by how well it adopts collaborative innovation and problem-solving approaches to...

Introduction and overview.(Forum: Managing the Federal Brain Drain)(Coalition for Effective Change )
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] This collection of articles from the Coalition for Effective Change (CEC) shares the coalition members' thoughts on how to manage with the increasing number of federal employees retiring; causing the so-called "brain...

Civil service changes for a better future.(Forum: Managing the Federal Brain Drain)
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In 1978, the last comprehensive civil service reform of the federal government provided structure for a generally uniform, somewhat monolithic government. A General Schedule (GS)-13 at the Department of Agriculture...

Administrative law judges--giving process its due.(Forum: Managing the Federal Brain Drain)
September 22, 2008... When federal agencies like the Social Security Administration (SSA), National Labor Relations Board, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and others decide cases in their areas of expertise, the public wants to know that the decisions...

Will the retirement Tsunami leave government high and dry?(Forum: Managing the Federal Brain Drain)
September 22, 2008... The question, my good Watson," Sherlock Holmes might muse, "is not whether the federal workforce is facing a 'brain drain' in the exodus of retiring public servants but what to do about it. "The answer rests with a host of parties--in political...

Federal retirement crisis: danger or opportunity?(Forum: Managing the Federal Brain Drain)
September 22, 2008... Much is being written about the impending retirement of the baby-boom generation from public service. While there is little debate about the demographics of the federal workforce and the proportion that will be eligible for voluntary retirement...

What is lost, and so what?(Forum: Managing the Federal Brain Drain)
September 22, 2008... With the retirement of the first baby boomer, the so-called retirement "tsunami" has begun to hit the federal government. No matter whose figures you use, the baby boomers are beginning to retire in increasing numbers, and many senior members...

The PERI data exchange: a government bench marking tool: by incorporating benchmarking metrics into their strategic plans, public-sector organizations can increase statistical validity, offer better documentation, and reduce costs.
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Public Entity Risk Institute (PERI) has developed a unique data warehouse of detailed information about public entity liability and workers' compensation claims and exposures. This program, called the Data...

Six communication secrets of top-performing organizations: through better communication, government executives and human capital professionals engage employees to improve organizational performance.
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] What communication best practices set top-performing organizations apart from lower-performing ones? Given the continuing focus in government on improving employee productivity and accelerating federal agency...

The National CPM program: expansion of a model certification program in Texas and across the United States holds promise for public-sector work-forces around the world.
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Certified Public Manager (CPM) program in the United States is a nationally recognized professional development program. It is designed for federal, state, and local government managers, but the skills,...

The talent factor: know-how is the true competitive advantage, and managing talent is taking on new dimensions centered on learning and development.
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] People--their knowledge, skills, and attitudes--are at the top of the mind of most senior executives because they know that in the knowledge economy, employee capability is the key to success. No longer are systems,...

The appeal of public service: have we overlooked a simple way to attract a new generation of public servants?(Image of Public Service)
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In his inaugural address on January 20, 1961, President John E Kennedy passionately called on the country to "ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." His call was answered by...

A celebration of public service: ASPA's National Capital Area Chapter celebrates the accomplishments of citizens who dedicate their lives to making our country a better place.
September 22, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] These are difficult and uncertain times for America. Challenged by a variety of international and domestic issues, we sometimes lose sight of the principles and people that make our nation great. The annual awards...

A road map for improving federal human capital practices.
September 22, 2008... Susan Krup Grunin, PhD, Kerry Joels, EdD, and Myra Howze Shiplett, Strategic Human Capital Management: A Practical Guide Washington, DC: 2008) In recent years, much has been written about the importance of effectively designing and...

The value of smart power in a time of transition.
September 22, 2008... Joseph S. Nye Jr., The Powers to Lead (Oxford University Press, 2008) The latest in Joe Nye's series of books about leadership and power, The Powers to Lead, builds upon his earlier writing concerning the paradox of power and the...

Genocide and the ethics of public management.
September 22, 2008... Ambassador Robert Krueger and Kathleen Tobin Krueger, From Bloodshed to Hope in Burundi. Our Embassy Years during Genocide (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2007) I met Ambassador Krueger and his wife and coauthor, Kathleen, at the...

Recount, the movie.(The Uncivil Servant)
September 22, 2008... It is probably true that seminal events in our formative years stay with us for life. Ask anyone who was over five years old when JFK or MLK was assassinated. Or ask Hillary about FIX And for most today, that event is the presidential election...