Gregory Streib

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR Concepts, Models, and Processes

Lffective public administration in the age of results-oriented management requires public agencies to develop a capacity for strategic management, the central management process that integrates all major activities and functions and directs them toward advancing an organizations strategic agenda. Strategic management is concerned with strengthening the long-term viability and effectiveness of public sector organizations in terms of both substantive policy and management capacity. It integrates all other management processes to provide a systematic, coherent, and effective approach to establishing, attaining, monitoring, and updating an agencys strategic objectives. Strategic management is integrative in nature in the sense of (a) focusing attention across functional divisions and throughout various organizational levels on common goals, themes, and issues; (b) tying internal management processes and program initiatives to desired outcomes in the external environment; and (c) linking operational? tactical, day-to-day decisions to longer run strategic objectives. Particularly given the dynamic political and institutional environment within which many public agencies operate, an effective strategic management capability is essential for maintaining or strengthening the fit between the organization and its external stakeholders and managing for results within a clearly defined context of mission, mandates, values, and . . vlslon. Strategic management has been addressed in the public administration literature (Koteen, 1989; Nutt & Backoff, 1992; Rabin, Miller, & Hildreth, 1989; Steiss, 1985) but by no means as extensively as has its most critical component, strategic planning, or other management approaches such as total quality management. However, a more recent article by Mlnzant and Vlnzant (1996a) goes a long way toward refocusing appropriate attention on the role of strategic management in the public sector and discussing implementation issues and strategies in an instructive manner. The purpose of the present article is to raise awareness of the central importance of strategic management in government, define the critical elements in a holistic model of strategic management, discuss the strategic management process, and

E-Democracy, E-Commerce, and E-Research: Examining the Electronic Ties Between Citizens and Governments

Few doubt that the Internet is changing citizen interactions with government. To assess those changes, the authors analyze data from a telephone survey on how Georgia residents connect with government via the Internet. They find that citizens visit government Web sites for many reasons, which can be divided into three categories: e-democracy, e-commerce, and e-research. E-democracy is the least common activity, and it alone resembles traditional political behavior by being more prevalent among respondents interested in politics and government. The authors discuss the implications of these findings for future citizen engagement with e-governance and for the role of government in facilitating that engagement.

Assessing the Validity, Legitimacy, and Functionality of Performance Measurement Systems in Municipal Governments

There is now great interest in the use of performance measurement and there have been a number of studies that focused on municipal governments. The findings to date tend to be descriptive. This analysis seeks to add to this discussion by comparing real world conditions with the criteria outlined in a prescriptive model. The authors look at the validity, legitimacy, and functionality of municipal performance measures. The data on the use of performance measures come from a detailed survey that was mailed to all municipalities with populations larger than 25,000. The analysis identifies weaknesses in all of the areas that were examined, though there are a number of municipal governments that have developed very sophisticated performance measurement systems. The authors also offer some thoughts on what can be done to enhance municipal performance measures.

Public Administration Research from a Practitioner Perspective

Recent research has questioned both the rigor and theoretical development of public administration research. The proposed solutions have generally endorsed a more academically oriented research agenda. Authors have discussed practitioner needs, but the focus has been on the appropriateness of different research methods rather than the types of knowledge needed. We seek to contribute to this ongoing debate by comparing the knowledge needs identified by members of the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) with 15 years of research in Public Administration Review . We found much published research matching the needs of ICMA members, but it focused on a relatively narrow range of topics. We recommend incorporating a concern for relevance into efforts to improve public administration research. This will help to ensure that we build a knowledge base that makes a substantial contribution to practice.

Professional Skill and Support for Democratic Principles The Case of Local Government Department Heads in Northern Illinois

This study examines the impact of professional skill on citizen participation and respect for political leadership among local government department heads in Northern Illinois. Data were collected by a mailed survey modeled after a number of similar research efforts. The findings indicate that although the respondents displayed some reservations about invasive citizen participation and the irrationality of the political process, such viewpoints were not a function of increased professional skill. In fact, within certain departments, professional skill education, and the presence of a professional municipal administrator were shown to increase concern for citizen participation and respect for political leadership. The findings suggest that within the local government environment, processes associated with professionalization and municipal reform may bring benefits beyond increased management skill.

Strategic Planning in U.S. Cities: Patterns of Use, Perceptions of Effectiveness, and an Assessment of Strategic Capacity

For this study of the use of strategic planning in American cities, data were collected by a survey of all American cities with populations between 25,000 and one million. Key issues covered were strategic planning applications, perceptions of effectiveness, strategic capacity, and methods of monitoring and evaluation. The findings show that a large number of cities use strategic planning with a high level of satisfaction; however, questions are raised about the true level of strategic capacity.

Specialty Health Care Services in Municipal Government

This article examines the use of specialty health care services in municipal governments. Findings are provided by a comprehensive national survey. The focus is on describing the use of specialty services and exploring their impact upon satisfaction and the overall cost of coverage. The data show some interesting variations in the use of these services. They also suggest some important relationships with satisfaction and cost. For example, the overall cost of indemnity programs appears closely linked to the number of specialty services. Also, individual services such as dental care and eye care were associated with more expensive indemnity programs.

The Changing Responsibilities of County Governments: Data from a National Survey of County Leaders

}This article reports findings from a national survey of county administrators, executives, and commission chairs from counties with an executive or an administrator that indicate counties are battling to meet rising administrative and policy demands with inadequate authority. An examination of 23 different policy areas revealed that modern counties confront some of our societys most vexing problems, most of which are primarily of an urban character. A multivariate analysis indicated that population changes associated with increased urbanization influenced respondent attitudes concerning some policy issues. Also, the South was identified as the region where county government is under the greatest stress. It is suggested that researchers should approach the use of county demographic data with caution.

Service Challenges and Governance Issues Confronting American Counties in the 21st Century: An Overview

The American county?long consid ered to be the bedrock of local gov ernment in the United States?has grown in importance since the middle of the 20th century. Between 1962 and 2002, the county government share of county and municipal revenues grew from 39.3 to 47.3 percent, and expenditures grew from 33.7 to 46.5 percent. As a consequence of this substantial growth in county financial activity, there has been a con comitant and stunning increase in the types and level of county government services. Re latedly, the county workforce has increased dramatically, more than tripling in size from around 700,000 full-time equivalent employ ees in 1962 to 2.3 million in 2002. In 2002, county employees accounted for 48.6 per cent of the county and municipal workforce compared with 35.7 percent in 1962. Today, counties employ almost as many people as do municipalities. Coincident with this growth, American counties face a number of challenges as ser vice-delivery agents and instruments of gov ernance in the early 21st century. Viewed from a global perspective, perhaps the most daunting challenge is whether or not coun ties can meet the myriad and far-flung expec tations that accompany the service roles coun ties are expected to play. A growing number of county governments must simultaneously function as traditional, local, and regional governments (see Benton 2002a). As tradi tional governments, counties serve as ad ministrative or political arms of their state governments and thus perform a number of state functions (many of them mandated) and services to all county residents.1 When counties function as local governments, they provide municipal-type services to residents of unincorporated areas.2 In addition, densely populated counties often serve as regional governments when they provide urban-type services to residents of both unincorporated and incorporated areas.3 This enlargement of the service role and prominence of counties and the wholly new approach to daily operations that is required means that county governments must deal with several governance issues. Indeed, these issues are part and parcel of the very essence of counties as they strive to provide tradi tional as well as municipaland urban-type services and meet the heightened expecta tions of democratic governance. As function ing full-service governments, three questions in particular are salient. First, what is the most suitable form of county government in terms of responsiveness to escalating service expectations and ability to negotiate with

Strengthening Public Administration Research: Identifying Boundaries and Horizons

Since the early days of the field, public administration research has been a work in progress. Many authors have struggled to find the proper role of research in the field. Interest in the topic intensified over the last couple of decades, as a perception developed that the quality and usefulness of work had fallen decidedly behind other academic disciplines. While a rich literature has developed debating the merits of public administration research, the resulting product does not provide a clear direction for reform-minded researchers to follow. In this article, we seek to organize this material in ways that will make it more useful. Our analysis identifies hard and soft barriers preventing progress and examines three dilemmas facing public administration researchers: theoretical versus conceptual research, academically sophisticated methods versus widely accessible methods, and an academic versus a practitioner focus. Through our discussion of these dilemmas, we seek to clarify the issues facing researchers and help them make more informed choices.