Public Administration for Planners: Leadership and Responsibility in Theory and Practice

✍ Scribed by Stephen Kehs

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2022
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 274
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

This book offers an introduction to public administration by a veteran practitioner, written for planners, as well as students seeking a public administration career and individuals simply wanting to learn more about responsible government.

The narrative provides an overview of public administration theory and the importance of leadership in today’s contentious political environment. The book contains five parts including an introduction, parts on management, the public sector and government programs, and some impressions on why this subject is so critically important in our society today. Typical administrative responsibilities are addressed as well as issues not typically covered in books on public administration, along with observations about sound public administration. Each part also contains practical exercises, discussion questions and references to other texts and academic resources.

Because public administration is fundamentally about relationships with people and communities, the book provides lessons that can be applied easily to one’s personal life and experiences. It is a timely narrative on public administration today that will be valuable reading for planners and planning students looking to better understand public administration and policy.

✦ Table of Contents

Cover
Half Title
Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of Contents
Preface
Part 1 Introducing Public Administration
Chapter 1 An Overview of the Book
Introduction
Why is Public Administration so Important?
One State, Deep State, Red State, Blue State
Why a Planner’s Perspective?
About this Book
Parts and Chapters
Chapter 2 The Origins of Public Administration
The Evolution of Public Administration
Geography and the Silk Road
The Impact of History on Public Administration
The Importance of Civic Engagement
The Bolshevik Revolution
The Rise of Fascism
Civic Engagement in the United States
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Notes
Additional Readings
Chapter 3 The Constitution, Our Founding Fathers and Our System of Government
An Historical Overview
The Constitution
The Federal System of Government
Levels and Branches of Government
The Evolution of the Executive Branch
Presidents and Executive Power
Abraham Lincoln
Franklin Roosevelt
Lyndon Johnson
Barack Obama
Franklin Pierce
William Howard Taft
Richard Nixon
Ronald Reagan
The Legislative Branch
The Supreme Court, Case Law and the Evolution of Constitutional Authority
Marbury v. Madison
The Dred Scott Decision
Plessey v. Ferguson and Brown v. School Board
The Miranda Case
Roe v. Wade
U.S. v. Nixon
The Bakke Case and Affirmative Action
National Federation of Business v. Sebelius
Obergefell v. Hodges
Kelo v. the City of New London
The Beauty of the Constitution and How It Distinguishes the U.S. from Other Countries
Summary
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Notes
Additional Readings
Chapter 4 The Civil Service and Civic Responsibility
Introduction
The Professional Civil Service System
Your Role as an Administrator and Citizen
Why Is This Important?
A Hypothetical Public Administration Case Study
The Chattingham Falls Child Abuse Scandal
The Story Goes Public
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Notes
Additional Readings
Part 2 Management and Public Administration
Chapter 5 Organizational and Management Structure
Understanding Organization and Structure
Organizing Public Agencies
Benefits and Weaknesses
Ensuring a Sound Management Structure
Organizational Dynamics
Linking Dynamics and Management
Marooned on the Moon Classroom Discussion
The Hawthorne Electric Plant Experiment
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Notes
Additional Readings
Marooned on the Moon Answer Sheet
Scoring Summary
Chapter 6 Some Day-to-Day Management Responsibilities
Introduction
Some Typical Responsibilities of Public Administrators
Hiring
Ensuring Discipline
Good Discipline Requires a Strong Administrative Context
The Personnel Manual
Implementing the Personnel Manual
Management by Walking Around
Firings, Termination and Layoffs
Termination
Layoffs
Budgeting
Types of Budgets
The Line-Item Budget
Zero Based Budgeting
Performance Budgeting
Negotiating
The Bus Stop Dilemma
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Note
Additional Readings
One Solution to the Bus Stop Dilemma
Chapter 7 Promoting a Safe and Healthy Work Environment
Introduction
Proactive Intervention and Problem Avoidance
Ethics and Ethical Behavior in the Workplace
Defining Ethics
A Few Hypothetical Ethical Scenarios
The Secretive Public Works Director
The Right-to-Life Governor
The Trolley Car Driver’s Dilemma
The Lovelorn Girlfriend
Conditional Ethics and Morality
Establishing and Promoting Ethical Behavior in the Workplace
How Do I Know Something Is Wrong?
The Hostile Work Environment
Workplace Harassment
Sexual Harassment
Examples of Sexual Harassment Case Law
Setting Standards
Dealing with Unique Staff Crises
Dealing Effectively with Different Types of People
Establishing Protocols
Managing the Office Archetypes
Bridging the Generation Gap
Employee Evaluations: What Works?
Assigning Tasks: Delegation Guidance
The Eisenhower Matrix
The Decision Matrix
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Notes
Additional Readings
Chapter 8 Empowering and Enhancing Your Agency
Introduction
Planning and Visioning
Increasing Agency Productivity
Motivating Employees
Managers Need to Know and Understand Their Employees
Exploring Questions of Structure and Style
The Dangers of Micromanagement
Communicating with Staff
Listening to Staff
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Notes
Additional Readings
Part 3 The Public Aspects of Public Administration
Chapter 9 Management and Politics
Introduction
So, You’re Not a Politician?
The Public Administrator’s Decision Profiles
Promoting the Relevancy of Your Agency
Don’t Pigeon Hole Your Agency!
Build a Constituency
Networking
Value and Invest in the Political Process
Strive for Excellence
Tension between Political Interests and Professional Administration
Counting the Votes – The 2020 Presidential Election
Conflicts of Interest
Hypothetical Scenarios for Discussion
The Automobile Company Dilemma
Treasure in the Treasury
The Generous Vendor
Birds or Birdbrains
Model Guidelines
The Concept of Privatization
Communicating Your Message to the Outside World
Perception Is Often Reality – The Popcorn Dilemma
Defining Relationships with the Media
Impacting Hard-to-Reach Populations
Manage Your Ego – Eisenhower and Cronkite
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Notes
Additional Readings
Chapter 10 Public Controversy and Professional Responsibility
Introduction
Dealing with Public Controversy
The Issue of Editorial Anonymity
Public Administrators, Leakers and Whistle Blowers
Leaks and Leakers
The Whistle Blower
Communication in the Age of “Fake News”
Fake News and the Power of Hate
The Dangers of Familiarity
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Note
Additional Readings
Chapter 11 Public Meetings and Consensus Building
Introduction
Effective Public Meetings
Tools for Effective Public Meetings
The Power of Consensus and How to Get There
How to Find Common Ground
Public Meeting Scenarios
In Dealing with the Vocal Minority, Focus Also on the Majority
Canceling the Holiday Party?
A Transit Mask Incident
A Message to Planners and All Public Administrators
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Additional Readings
Part 4 Government Programs
Chapter 12 Understanding and Navigating Program Bureaucracy
Program Evolution and Development
The Federal, State and Local Government Scene Today
The Evolution of Public Programs
The Role of Government Programs
Providing Responsible Program Access
In Public Administration, Doing the Right Thing Is Often Not Enough
Pitfalls
Everyone Has an Agenda
Freedom of Information and OPRA Requests
Avoiding “Group Think”
Religion and Public Administration
The Dangers of Political Correctness
The “Ricochet Effect”
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Notes
Additional Readings
Chapter 13 Ensuring Good Program Administration
Introduction
The Wisdom in Diversity
Grants and Grants Management
Federal and State Governmental Grants
Finding a Grant Program
Issuance of Grant Guidelines
Follow the Grant Guidelines Precisely
Ensure Grant Eligibility
Don’t Chase Grants Simply for the Money
Organize the Grant Application Professionally
Ensure Good Authorship
Letters of Support
Allow Time for Review
Consider Action to Follow Up
Foundation Grants
Corporate Grants
Implementing the Grant
Effective Program Administration
Building the Team
Program Evaluation: How to Measure Success
Demonstrating Relevance and Importance in Your Programs
Not All Programs Deserve to Survive
Fostering Programmatic Change
Keep the Experts in Perspective
Manage the Crisis
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Additional Readings
Part 5 In Conclusion
Chapter 14 Why It Matters
Why it Matters
The Consequences of Failure
Leave the World More than a Dead Body
An Ode to Halley’s Comet
Issues and Questions for Further Discussion
Index