Public sector change in Australia: Are managers' ideals being realized?

Public sector organizations traditionally have been associated with the internal process (bureaucratic) model of organizational culture. Public choice and management theory have suggested that public sector managers can learn from the experience of private sector management, and need to change from the Internal process model of organizational culture. Due to these Influences an managers, the current research proposes that managers' perceptions of Ideal organizational culture would no longer reflect the Internal process model. Public sector managers' perceptions of the current culture, as well as their perceptions of the Ideal culture, were measured. A mail-out survey was conducted In the Queensland (a state of Australia) public sector. Responses to a competing values culture Inventory were received from 222 managers. Results Indicated that a reliance on the Internal process model persists, while managers had a desire for cultural models other than the Internal process model, as hypothesized.

Transformational leadership, corporate cultism and the spirituality paradigm: An unholy trinity in the workplace?

Leadership is a perennially popular topic in the academic and practitioner literature on management. In particular, the past twenty years have witnessed an explosive growth of interest in what has been termed 'transformational leadership' (henceforth, TL). The theory is closely linked to the growth in what has been defined as corporate culturism - an emphasis on the importance of cohereat cultures, as a means of securing competitive advantage. This article outlines the central components of TL theory, and subjects the concept to a critical analysis. In particular, similarities are identified between the components concerned and the characteristics of leadership practice in organizations generally defined as cults. This connection has been previously unremarked in the literature. These similarities are comprehensively reviewed. Trends towards what can be defined as corporate cultism in modem management practice are also discussed. We conclude that TL models are overly concerned with the achievement of corporate cohesion to the detriment of internal dissent Such dissent is a vital ingredient of effective decision-making. It is suggested that more inclusive and participatory models of the leadership process are required.

Emotion in the workplace: The new challenge for managers

Emotions in workplace settings and emotional intelligence are hot topics in management today. Leading business journals such as Fortune and Harvard Business Review have featured articles on emotional intelligence. But there is more to emotions in the workplace than just emotional intelligence. The aim of this article is to acquaint managers with intriguing new research that examines both emotional intelligence and the broader issue of emotion, which has been shown to play a powerful role in workplace settings. We show that this research has a strong potential for practical application in organizations within many broad human-resource functions such as selection, performance management, and training, as well as implications for more narrow domains like customer service. We conclude that the study of emotions in organizational settings has provided new and important insights into the way in which people in organizations behave, and we offer advice for managers to enable them to develop and to maintain a positive emotional climate in their organizations.

The role of affect and affective congruence in perceptions of leaders: an experimental study

Based on the idea that emotional exchanges determine symbolic meanings in interpersonal exchanges, we hypothesized that displays of positive and congruent affect determine members' ratings of leaders in a simulated performance appraisal context. To test the hypotheses, 537 participants viewed videotapes of four male and female leaders giving positive and negative feedback, and with facial expressions of affect that were either congruent or incongruent with the verbal message that they were delivering. Results supported hypotheses that positive and message-congruent leader affect results in more positive member ratings of the leader, assessed using a seven-item measure of members' perceptions of the leader's negotiating latitude. The least positive ratings of negotiating latitude were given when positive feedback was delivered with negative facial affect. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.

Taxonomic theory and the ICF: Foundations for a unified disability athletics classification

Development of a unified classification system to replace four of the systems currently used in disability athletics (i.e., track and field) has been widely advocated. The definition and purpose of classification, underpinned by taxonomic principles and collectively endorsed by relevant disability sport organizations, have not been developed but are required for successful implementation of a unified system. It is posited that the International classification of functioning. disability, and health (ICF), published by the World Health Organization (2001), and current disability athletics systems are, fundamentally, classifications of the functioning and disability associated with health conditions and are highly interrelated. A rationale for basing a unified disability athletics system on ICF is established. Following taxonomic analysis of the current systems, the definition and purpose of a unified disability athletics classification are proposed and discussed. The proposed taxonomic framework and definitions have implications for other disability sport classification systems.

Managing Organisational Writing to Enhance Corporate Credibility

Many employees neither trained as career writers nor defining themselves as writers spend a major part of their time writing because, undeniably, writing is a central activity in organizations. To produce the high quality required to create and maintain credibility, organizations need to have professionals who can efficiently produce documents with substance, structure and style. This paper discusses issues relating to the management of corporate writing and editing, and presents practices and processes that managers can implement in their organizations to produce flawless documents, thereby avoiding the credibility crises that occur when writing is not taken seriously.

Surgical programme at Royal Alexandra Hospital, Sydney, for Papua New Guinea children with congenital heart disease, 1978-1994

Objective : To report the history of the Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children (RAHC) Papua New Guinea (PNG) cardiac surgical programme and describe the selection, preoperative clinical features and postoperative outcome of children with congenital heart disease managed by the programme. Methods : Details for each of the PNG cardiac patients admitted to RAHC following selection by visiting cardiologists between 1978 and 1994 were entered into a database, and analysed and interpreted. Results : A congenital heart defect was confirmed in 165 of the 170 children selected. The male to female ratio was 1:1 and the mean age on admission to RAHC was 5.5 years. Almost all of the children for whom data were available (98%) had a weight for age and 41% had a height for age less than the 3rd centile. One-sixth had delayed milestones. A large number were tachypnoeic, in heart failure, or had pulmonary hypertension on admission. Ventricular septal defect and tetralogy of Fallot were the commonest defects, and lesions such as aortic stenosis, coarctation of the aorta and transposition of the great arteries were absent or rare. Thirty-one (19%) of the children selected initially did not receive surgery because of pulmonary hypertension, or because the lesions did not fall within the programme guidelines for operation. One hundred and twenty-nine children had corrective and four had palliative procedures. Half of the operated children had postoperative complications. Eight children died, all following open-heart procedures, giving a case fatality rate of 6%. Preoperative tachypnoea, hepatomegaly, cardiac failure and pulmonary hypertension were strongly associated with poor outcome. Conclusions : The programme was an arduous exercise for all organizations concerned, but achieved comparatively good short-term outcomes. The experience gained should assist in planning for similar programmes.

Outcome variables for osteoarthritis clinical trials: the OMERACT-OARSI set of responder criteria

Improvement in analysis and reporting results of osteoarthritis (OA) clinical trials has been recently obtained because of harmonization and standardization of the selection of outcome variables (OMERACT 3 and OARSI). Moreover, OARSI has recently proposed the OARSI responder criteria. This composite index permits presentation of results of symptom modifying clinical trials in OA based on individual patient responses (responder yes/no). The 2 organizations (OMERACT and OARSI) established. a task force aimed at evaluating: (1) the variability of observed placebo and active treatment effects using the OARSI responder criteria; and (2) the possibility of proposing a simplified set of criteria. The conclusions of the task force were presented and discussed during the OMERACT 6 conference, where a simplified set of responder criteria (OMERACT-OARSI set of criteria) was proposed.

A renova????o das organiza????es: gerenciando transi????es na for??a de trabalho

Este relat??rio oferece solu????es pr??ticas e elementos cruciais para a gest??o de transi????es na for??a de trabalho extra??dos de experi??ncias de organiza????es p??blicas importantes e de outras jurisdi????es. Os estudos de casos apresentados s??o abrangentes e permitem que qualquer minist??rio ou ??rg??o identifique aplica????es adequadas para as situa????es que est??o enfrentando- desde o Minist??rio das Estat??sticas do Canad?? (StatisticsCanada), que tem mantido esquema de planejamento de sucess??es e de desenvolviemento de carreiras h?? muito tempo, ?? Secretaria de Transportes do Canad?? (Canadian Transportation Agency), que, embora seja pequena e enfrente restri????es or??ament??rias, tem enfocado o planejamento de recursos humanos como objetivo priorit??rio

Conhecimento organizacional em escolas de governo: um estudo comparado

Como reflexo de uma tend??ncia que tem ganhado import??ncia crescente nas organiza????es p??blicas, privadas e n??o governamentais do Brasil e do mundo, a tem??tica gest??o do conhecimento motivou a realiza????o desta pesquisa, cujo foco imediato ?? fornecer subs??dios para auxiliar organiza????es p??blicas como escolas de governo em seus processos de desenvolvimento de conhecimento organizacional. Este conhecimento ?? criado mediante a intera????o dos conhecimentos t??cito e expl??cito. A intera????o entre eles pode ser verificada por meio de quatro convers??es, as quais formam um ciclo do conhecimento organizacional: a socializa????o, a externaliza????o, a combina????o e a internaliza????o. O estudo em quest??o visa apresentar um conjunto de crit??rios representantes do ciclo de desenvolvimento do conhecimento organizacional e, mediante an??lise comparada entre sete escolas de governo internacionais e uma nacional, a Funda????o Escola Nacional de Administra????o P??blica (Enap), elaborar o desenho de uma estrutura organizacional que maximize o desenvolvimento do conhecimento organizacional em escolas de governo.

Escolas de governo do cone sul: estudo institucional do INAP (Argentina) e da ENAP (Brasil)

Este estudo analisa o desenvolvimento institucional das experi??ncias de duas escolas de governo - o Instituto Nacional de Administra????o P??blica (INAP), da Argentina, e a Escola Nacional de Administra????o P??blica (ENAP), do Brasil -, que implantaram nos anos oitenta, respectivamente, Programas de Forma????o de Administradores Governamentais e de Especialistas em Pol??ticas P??blicas e Gest??o Governamental. Para tal, ?? utilizado o marco te??rico que se baseia na teoria de institution building e, especialmente, o modelo conceituai de Esman, acrescido de fatores peculiares aos pa??ses estudados. A Ecole Nationale d'Administration (ENA), da Fran??a, modelo de cria????o dessas escolas, ?? analisada como paradigma. Com base no marco te??rico e no modelo franc??s, a an??lise comparativa propicia inferir que tanto o INAP como a ENAP, nos contextos em que foram criados, n??o se institucionalizaram. Al??m do mais, o estudo possibilita identificar e priorizar, como respons??veis por esse insucesso, alguns fatores internos e externos ??s escolas, como a car??ncia de lideran??a, de doutrina, de programa, de recursos e de v??nculos com outras organiza????es e fatores de natureza pol??tico-administrativa e cultural, como clientelismo, corporativismo e descontinuidade administrativa

Comprometimento no trabalho de gestores p??blicos em uma autarquia estadual no Brasil

O objetivo deste artigo ?? compreender a percep????o dos gestores, que atuam com o planejamento estrat??gico de uma organiza????o p??blica, sobre o construto de comprometimento no trabalho, bem como a influ??ncia dessa percep????o em suas pr??ticas cotidianas de gest??o. Para tanto, realizou-se, inicialmente, pesquisa bibliogr??fica focando quest??es relacionadas ao sentido e natureza do construto, bem como sobre os estudos realizados sobre o tema do comprometimento no contexto da administra????o p??blica. Em seguida, foram coletados dados com gestores mediante entrevista com roteiro semiestruturado, os quais foram analisados por meio da t??cnica de an??lise de conte??do. As evid??ncias indicam que os gestores associam o v??nculo ao trabalho a quest??es atitudinais e de inten????es comportamentais e que suas pr??ticas cotidianas s??o influenciadas pela percep????o de comprometimento dos indiv??duos, admitindo que as decis??es tomadas, motivadas por essa percep????o, podem trazer consequ??ncias negativas tanto para a organiza????o quanto para o indiv??duo.

O modelo organiza????es sociais: li????es e oportunidades de melhoria

As Organiza????es Sociais (OS) s??o organiza????es sem fins lucrativos, ???qualificadas??? para absorver atividades executadas por organiza????es p??blicas, nos termos e condi????es estabelecidas em contratos de gest??o firmados entre organiza????es e o governo. Este artigo relata os principais resultados do semin??rio ???O modelo OS: li????es e oportunidades de melhorias???, realizado em outubro de 2001, do qual participaram gestores e t??cnicos da Secretaria de Gest??o (SEGES), de OS, de ??rg??os supervisores dessas organiza????es, de ??rg??os intervenientes, e especialistas em gest??o p??blica. Com rela????o ??s OS analisadas, pode-se perceber que: a) h?? controv??rsias e ambig??idades quanto ?? sua natureza jur??dica e quanto ao processo de avalia????o dessas organiza????es; b) a gest??o de recursos humanos ?? afetada pela exist??ncia de grupos submetidos a distintos regimes de trabalho, isto ??, Estatuto dos Funcion??rios P??blicos e Consolida????o das Leis do Trabalho; c) a gest??o de recursos financeiros ?? marcada pela irregularidade no fluxo dos referidos recursos; e d) o controle dos bens p??blicos ocorre de forma fr??gil e o processo de compra est?? sendo realizado sem problemas. Com base nessas considera????es, o documento prop??e algumas sugest??es de aperfei??oamento do modelo OS.

Terceiro setor e pol??ticas p??blicas

Te??ricos apontam um estreitamento nas rela????es das entidades do terceiro setor com o Estado. Esta aproxima????o, numa perspectiva internacional, est?? inserida no que se convencionou chamar crise do Estado provedor e, portanto, na busca por modelos alternativos de implementa????o de pol??ticas sociais. No ??mbito nacional, a expans??o do terceiro setor ??, em parte, fruto da redemocratiza????o do pa??s, com a prolifera????o e o amadurecimento de iniciativas da sociedade civil. Este trabalho pretende contribuir para a reflex??o sobre o contexto onde surgem e se desenvolvem essas rela????es. Parece-nos que lan??ar luz sobre a id??ia de parceria pode colaborar na compreens??o das potencialidades e limites desse modelo de coopera????o intersetorial.

Levantamento te??rico sobre as causas dos insucessos das tentativas de reforma administrativa

O presente artigo tem como objetivo identificar e analisar os principais motivos apontados na literatura pertinente como causadores dos sucessivos e reiterados fracassos das tentativas de reforma da administra????o p??blica brasileira. As referidas tentativas foram empreendidas em 1938, quando da cria????o do Departamento Administrativo do Servi??o P??blico (DASP), durante a ditadura do Estado Novo; em 1963, quando Ernani do Amaral Peixoto foi designado ministro extraordin??rio para a Reforma Administrativa; em 1967, quando da edi????o do Decreto-Lei n?? 200, de 25/2/1967 e, tamb??m, em 1986, 1990 e 1995, nos Governos Sarney, Collor e Cardoso, respectivamente. Todas elas visavam, basicamente, a implantar a meritocracia na administra????o p??blica brasileira. Segundo os autores consultados, essas tentativas foram malsucedidas devido aos seguintes fatores: a quest??o da depend??ncia da trajet??ria, as caracter??sticas das organiza????es que dificultam a ocorr??ncia de altera????es institucionais, os elementos de natureza sociol??gica, o fato de a reforma administrativa ser bem p??blico sujeito a problemas de a????o coletiva e, finalmente, as peculiaridades do sistema pol??tico brasileiro.