Management of Public Organizations

Paper Summary:

Public administrators must balance the needs of the public with the available resources and take a long-term approach to many of the decisions facing them. Throughout this process, the public administrator must choose from alternatives (sometimes from many alternatives), each of which may well serve the public's interests, but only a few of which are in the public's best interest. The paper shows that the decision making, or problem solving, process can be broken down into six phases, some of which overlap in some situations. It discusses all six of these phases: recognizing the need for a decision; identifying the objectives; identifying alternatives; evaluating alternatives; selecting the best alternative; and implementing the decision.

From the Paper:

"Brainstorming and cause-and-effect diagrams can be used to help isolate problems. Through these methods, individuals involved in the problem solving process can determine what the underlying cause of the problem is rather than just approach the problem from the symptom standpoint. These techniques, particularly brainstorming, can also be used to generate alternative solutions later on in the decision making process. Unfortunately, these techniques can be difficult to use when working with the public interest. Staff members can use brainstorming during private sessions, and then present the ideas generated at those sessions during public hearings. Ideally, key public representatives can be included in the decision making process to help identify and separate the public interest from the public best interest using these techniques."

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