Discover the latest insights in organization theory from a comprehensive and masterful volume
Understanding and Managing Public Organizations, 6th Edition provides readers with an authoritative reference for scholars, masters, and doctoral students in public management and public affairs programs in the United States and other nations.
The 6th Edition of Understanding and Managing Public Organizations presents the latest research and insights from organization and management theory and their application to public organizations and the people in them. The book expands coverage from previous editions about organizational goals, performance and effectiveness, strategy, decision-making, structure and design, organizational change, operating environments, individuals and groups, motivation and work-related attitudes, leadership, teamwork, and more.
Authors and professors Hal Rainey, Sergio Fernandez, and Deanna Malatesta provide new and expanded coverage of such topics as
- The context and distinctive character of public and nonprofit organizations, including expanded coverage of “publicness” and of the legal context including “state action”
- Performance management, measurement, organizational effectiveness, and managing for high performance
- Representative bureaucracy, workforce diversity, and performance
- Communication and information technology
- Employee engagement and empowerment, intrinsic motivation, self-determination theory, public service motivation, and positive organizational behavior—resilience, self-efficacy, optimism, and hope
- Recent developments in theory and thought on leadership, including authentic leadership, shared leadership, servant leadership, and integrated leadership
- Design and process topics including red tape and green tape, administrative burdens, and organizational routines
- Theoretical perspectives such as behavioral theory of decision making, resource dependence theory, and others, and their implications for public and nonprofit organizations
- Advances in theory and practice about rapid developments in collaborative governance, organizational networks, partnerships, and contracting
- Since the book is used in courses for students in numerous public affairs programs, this new edition updates the Instructor’s Guide, with new and revised PowerPoint slides, cases, exercises, and discussion and examination questions
- These materials, with the topics in the chapters, are designed to address the learning outcomes required by NASPAA accreditation requirements
Belonging on the shelf of scholars and students in public affairs, as well as anyone interested in public management or organization theory, this new edition of Understanding and Managing Public Organizations provides an advanced and comprehensive enhancement to a widely used and compelling series of previous editions.
Hal G. Rainey is the Alumni Foundation Distinguished Professor in the Department of Public Administration and Policy, School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Georgia, where he teaches public administration and organization theory and behavior. Throughout his distinguished career, Dr. Rainey has received numerous honors and awards, including the Charles Levine Award for Excellence in Public Administration and the prestigious John Gaus Award from the American Political Science Association. His pioneering book, Understanding and Managing Public Organizations, has sold close to 40,000 units across five editions with $1.2M revenue.
Sergio Fernandez is an expert in the fields of public management and organization theory, with a focus on employee empowerment, representative bureaucracy in the U.S. and South Africa, organizational change and innovation, public sector leadership, and government outsourcing. Fernandez's articles have appeared in numerous journals, including Public Administration Review and Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory. In 2019, Fernandez became one of the editors of Africa Today (Indiana University Press).
Deanna Malatesta is Associate Professor of Public Administration and Management at the O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University-Bloomington. Professor Malatesta’s research focuses on contracting, governance, and cross-sector collaboration. Her publications on these topics have appeared in the field's top national and international journals, including Public Administration Review and the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory. For the past 20 years, Professor Malatesta has consulted with numerous state and local governments on public policy and management challenges. She has served as an Associate Editor for the International Journal of Public Sector Management since 2015.
Figures and Tables
Preface and Acknowledgments
The Authors
PART ONE: THE DYNAMIC CONTEXT OF PUBLIC ORGANIZATIONS
Chapter One: The Challenge of Effective Public Organization and Management
Chapter Two: Understanding the Study of Organizations: A Historical Overview
Chapter Three: What Makes Public Organizations Distinct
Chapter Four: Analyzing the Environment of Public Organizations
Chapter Five: The Impact of Political Power and Public Policy
PART TWO: KEY DIMENSIONS OF ORGANIZING AND MANAGING
Chapter Six: Organizational Goals, Effectiveness, and Performance
Chapter Seven: Formulating and Achieving Purpose: Power, Decision Making, and Strategy
Chapter Eight: Organizational Structure, Design, Technology, Information Technology, and Social Media
Chapter Nine: Understanding People in Public Organizations: Motivation and Motivation Theory
Chapter Ten: Understanding People in Public Organizations: Values, Incentives, and Work-Related Attitudes
Chapter Eleven: Leadership, Managerial Roles, and Organizational Culture
Chapter Twelve: Teamwork: Understanding Communication and Conflict in Groups
PART THREE: STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING AND IMPROVING PUBLIC ORGANIZATIONS
Chapter Thirteen: Managing Organizational Change and Development
Chapter Fourteen: Advancing Public Management Through Collaboration
References
Additional Reference Materials
Name Index
Subject Index
Other versions by this Author
