Homework answers / question archive / Course Description: The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the theoretical and practical underpinnings associated with managing public sector organizations

Course Description: The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the theoretical and practical underpinnings associated with managing public sector organizations

Business

Share With

---

Course Description:

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the theoretical and practical underpinnings associated with managing public sector organizations. Public organizations differ from private and nonprofit organizations because of their relationship to the state, its constitutional heritage and commitment to the rule of law, its democratic institutions, and its citizenry. The separation of powers system of American government has a profound impact on how public organizations serve the state and work to advance its constitutional tradition. Public agencies and civil servants are responsible to the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government – an observation that has led several scholars within the Constitutional School of American Public Administration to argue that U.S. public servants serve “three masters.” This environment can create tension within and among public organizations, particularly in terms of balancing democratic values like responsibility, responsiveness, and representativeness with economic values like economy, efficiency, and effectiveness. Although a large portion of the literature you will read for this course could be applied to private and/or nonprofit organizations, we will primarily focus on how it relates to public sector agencies.

Public organizations provide a wide range of essential services at all levels of government, including, but not limited to justice, foreign affairs, national defense and homeland security, financial management and commerce, education, human resources management, labor, health, human services, housing and urban development, energy and public infrastructure, the environment, and transportation. It is, therefore, essential for students of public administration to understand how organizations function and are structured. More specifically, a comprehensive understanding of the literature that comprises the study of complex public organizations, organization behavior and change, and organization theory provides us with a greater knowledge base to evaluate the successes and failures of organizations. In addition, it enhances our understanding for finding ways to improve or enhance organizations in implementing their mission(s) successfully, in executing policy expectations that advance the goals of the organization, and in developing mechanisms that assist managers understand the difficulties affecting behavioral dynamics at all levels of an organization.

For this course, the state will serve as the unit of analysis, and we will be examining how democratic-constitutional norms and values shape the public organizations and institutions that govern the administrative state.

Course Goals & Learning Outcomes:

By the end of this seminar, students will be able to achieve the following student learning outcomes:

· To be able to lead and manage in public governance (SLO A).

· To analyze, synthesize, think critically, solve problems, and make decisions (SLO B).

Additionally, students will be able to underscore the following goals:

· Develop a historical and institutional understanding for the major theories and themes

associated with the study and practice of organizations.

· Identify how public managers apply various organization theories in practical terms.

· Recognize the distinguishing characteristics of public sector organizations.

· Improve writing quality, analytical thinking, and oral presentation skills.

Required Texts:

Rainey, Hal G. (2014, 5th ed.). Understanding and Managing Public Organizations. San Francisco Jossey-Bass. (From this point on will be referred to as HGR).

Riccucci, Norma M. 2002. Managing Diversity in Public Sector Workforces. Boulder, CO: Westview.

Shafritz, Jay M., J. Steven Ott, and Yong Suk Jang. (2011, 7th ed.). Classics of Organization Theory. Belmont, CA: Thomson-Wadsworth. (From this point on will be referred to as S&O).

Snyder, Timothy. 2017. On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century. New York: Tim Duggan Books.

Selected Journal Articles, Book Chapters, and Supreme Court cases highlighted throughout the syllabus.

Course Requirements & Expectations:

Academic Journal Submissions

Students will be required to keep a detailed written journal for the entirety of this course. The professor will collect journals at two points during the semester: First, on Class 7, October 14th and second, on Class 15, December 9th. At the time of collection, students will turn in a hard copy of their journals to the professor.

After students read the assigned readings and we discuss them in class, students will write a minimum of four, typed, double spaced pages reacting to the material(s) presented. If you would prefer to write your entries before the start of class, you may do so, and add anything additional if needed after our class time together. Students should think about what ideas struck them as most useful, theoretically and practically; what stood out as a novel concept(s); what ideas or perspectives you disagree with; connections with other materials you have engaged in the SPAA curriculum. Each entry should reflect your reaction to each assigned reading and how it relates to broad themes associated with this course. Students are to comment on each assigned reading per week. Students may also rely on the course lectures and conversations to elaborate on any entry they choose.

Course Calendar

Class 8 Power & Politics

October 21 S&O:

Chapter 6: Power and Politics in Organization Theory,

Sections 28, 30, 32, 33

Kaufman, Herbert. 1969. Administrative Decentralization and

Political Power. Public Administration Review. 29:1, pp. 3-15.

Cooper, Phillip J. 2011. The Duty to Take Care: President

Obama, Public Administration, and the Capacity to Govern.

Public Administration Review. 71:1, pp. 7-18.

Newbold, Stephanie. 2017. Jeopardizing the Rule of Law: The Impact of Sequestration on the Administration of Justice. American Review of Public Administration. 47:3, 279-299.

Class 9 How the Supreme Court Shapes the Management of

October 28 Public Organizations

Riccucci:

Chapter 1: Workforce Diversity & the 21st Century

Chapter 2: Affirmative Action & EEO

Chapter 3: Initial Steps in Preparing for Diversity…

Chapter 4: Race, Ethnicity, & Diversity Management

Grutter v. Bollinger, 539 U.S. 306 (2003)

Gratz v. Bollinger, 539 U.S. 244 (2003)

Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin et al., 579 U.S. _____ (2016)

(Court cases are available electronically at www.findlaw.com or

www.supremecourt.gov )

Class 10 Changing Constitutional Law Changes How Public

November 4 Organizations are Managed: The Fight for

Same Sex Rights & Marriage Equality

Riccucci:

Chapter 8: Diversity and Sexual Orientation

Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 538 (2003)

United States v. Windsor, 570 U.S. _____ (2013)

Hollingsworth et al. v. Perry, et al., 570 U.S. ______ (2013)

(Court cases are available electronically at www.findlaw.com or

www.supremecourt.gov )

Class 11 Timothy Snyder: On Tyranny

November 11 Discussion of Entire Book

PAGE

2