POL 651 University of Miami Productivity in the Public and Nonprofit Sectors Quiz Note: Each answer should be 7 or 8 paragraphs (but not more than 10) appr
POL 651 University of Miami Productivity in the Public and Nonprofit Sectors Quiz Note: Each answer should be 7 or 8 paragraphs (but not more than 10) approximately 500-750 words per question. Your statements should be supported by appropriate references to the Learning Materials and other sources, listed in APA format. At the end of each answer, include a References section that lists full APA-style citations of all sources you referenced. The References are not included in the target word count.
References:
Bowman, James S., West, Jonathan P., & Beck, Marcia A. (2009). Achieving competencies in public service: The professional edge (2nd ed.). Routledge.
Berman, E. M. (2006). Performance and productivity in public and nonprofit organizations (2nd ed.). Routledge.
Liff, Stewart (2014). 98 opportunities to improve management in government. Management Concepts Press.
(See attachment Prof.
West
POL 651 Online
Productivity in the Public and Nonprofit Sectors
Study Questions for Final Exam
1. What is the meaning of the term productivity? What are some impulses and impediments to
productivity? Why is measurement of productivity more difficult in the public than in the private sector?
Why is an open system model helpful in understanding productivity? How is quality of service relevant
to productivity? (Source: lecture/PowerPoint).
2. Discuss (a) and (b): (a) How do the perspectives of the economist, the industrial engineer, and the
practicing manager differ on matters related to productivity? What goals and means do administrators
who desire to improve their organizations identify? (b) Discuss the elements considered in our
conceptual overview of productivity giving special attention to an explanation of resource inputs,
internal outputs, external outputs, effectiveness outputs, and catalysts. Provide examples where possible.
(Source: lecture/ PowerPoint).
3. Discuss the three books used in this courseBerman, Productivity in Public & Nonprofit
Organizations; Bowman, et al., Achieving Competencies in Public Service: The Professional Edge; and
Liff, 98 Opportunities to Improve Management in Government (e.g., What are the primary insights you
gained from these books? What are the strengths and weaknesses of each? What contributed most to
your understanding of productivity in the public and nonprofit sectors and why? Which contributed least
to your understanding and why? How does each reinforce central themes in the course?).
4. Discuss Liffs advice, analysis and recommendations (using examples) for supervisors regarding (a)
dealing with people day to day, (b) managing performance, and (c) of geeks and shrinks.
5. Discuss Liffs advice, analysis and recommendations (using examples) for managers regarding (a)
developing the right people systems and problems, (b) improving your performance, and (c) optimizing
your resources.
6. Discuss Liffs advice, analysis and recommendations (using examples) for leaders regarding (a)
developing supervisors and managers, (b) dealing with unions, and (c) dealing with politics.
7. Discuss Liffs advice, analysis and recommendations for all (using examples) regarding improving your
employees viewpoints.
8. Numerous strategies and tools to improve productivity have been considered in this class. Identify and
discuss what you believe to be the three most promising tools to address problems in each of these three
categories: (a) people problems, (b) process problems, and (c) product problems. (Source: Berman,
Bowman, Liff, lecture/ PowerPoint, discussion).
9. Discuss productivity through people (e.g., What are key issues related to employee motivation,
feedback, empowerment, training, work teams, personal responsibility, and other work-related
behaviors?) (Source: Berman, Liff, Bowman, lecture/ PowerPoint).
10. Discuss productivity through (a) broad-based strategic planning, and (b) partnering and alignment (e.g.,
What are various approaches to strategic change? What are the characteristics and strategic challenges
associate with their use? What are the relative merits of partnerships, privatization, and restructuring
strategies?). (Source: Berman, discussion, cases).
11. Discuss the technical aspects of productivity improvement (e.g., What are key measurement issues?
What are strategies for increasing efficiency and effectiveness? What is the quality paradigm and how
does it help? What is IT and how does it help? What other industrial engineering approaches are
useful?). (Source: Berman, handouts, lecture/ PowerPoint, cases).
12. Discuss key issues involved in diagnosing productivity problems and in achieving success (e.g., How do
you assess internal and external challenges? How do you move from diagnosis to improvement? What
are key sources of resistance? How do you deal with resistance?). (Source: Berman, lecture/Powerpoint,
discussion).
13. Discuss the strategies for coping with difficult people (e.g., What are examples of difficult behavior?
What are some strategies and tactics for coping or dealing with them?). (Source: readings).
14. Analyze the challenges facing the public service using the three points on the professional triangle (i.e.,
technical, ethical, and leadership) as the framework for your discussion. Tie in the main points you
learned from the ideas in Achieving Competencies in Public Service: The Professional Edge.
15. Select ONE competency represented by a point on the professional triangle (i.e., technical, ethical, or
leadership), and analyze (a) the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with this
competency, and (b) the best ways to develop such competencies. (Source: Bowman, et al., Liff,
Berman, study questions).
16. Develop at least one paragraph in response to each of the following sentence stems related to any ONE
of the three textbooks used in the course: (a) I disagree with . . . (b) I wonder about . . . (c) I was
surprised by . . . (d) I relearned that . . . (e) I did not understand . . . (Source: books, your ideas).
PRODUCTIVITY
IMPROVEMENT 1
Dr. J. West
Lecture 1
POL 651
Definitions of Productivity
?
Berman – the effective and efficient use of
resources to achieve outcomes
? Bowman, West & Beck the
effective and efficient use of
resources
? Liffthe amount of work an
organization produces relative to all of its paid
human resources
? Common – a ratio of quantity or quality of results
(output) to the resources (input) invested to
achieve them
Efficiency & Effectiveness
Efficiency use of organizational resources to
carry out governmental programs/functions at
minimal cost
? Effectiveness – extent to which government
programs achieve their objectives
?
May include: quality of services, relationships
between outputs and goals, compliance with
performance standards, equity in service provision,
etc.
(i.e., responsiveness, timeliness, accessibility,
availability, participation, satisfaction)
Formula P=O/I
P=productivity
O=output
I=input
Example:
FY 2016
10,000 widgets
(output)
700 man years of labor
(input)
P ratio= 14.3
FY 2015
11,000 widgets (output)
900 man years (input)
P ratio= 12.2
Productivity
?
Productivity is a technical measure of the
relationship between inputs and outputs.
It does not tell us whether the goals set for
the program or the outputs achieved are
wise and proper ones.
? Productivity, then is only a means to
attaining an end and can be no more
useful than the end itself.
Open Systems Advantages
Every organization
can be referred to as
a subsystem of a
larger system.
2) Organization as a
total system can be
described by
referring to the
subsystem that
comprises it.
1)
View individual
employees as subsystems
that are part of a higher
order subsystem.
4) Study how employees
and groups of employees
relate to each other and to
express those
relationships in terms of :
input,
process,
output
feedback
3)
Relationships
?
Systems approach
makes it possible to
identify three paired
relationships:
?
PI means that at
least one set of
relationships has
improved with
no deterioration of
the other two.
? input and process (I – P)
? process and output (P – O)
? input and output (I – O)
Relationships
?
I & P (either direction)
? The process remains the same and
improved results or
? same results when process is improved
to accommodate the particular
characteristics of the input.
?P&O
? A more desirable relationship between
the process and the output may occur
through a change in the process.
?I&O
? The desired relationship is achieved as
a result of a change in the I, P, or both.
Strategic Factors:
Elements that allow the organization to take advantage of an
opportunity because it has a particular strength
?
Strategic management
Efforts to identify areas of
organizational
strength/weakness
Scanning of environment for
opportunities and threats outside
the organization
Selection of necessary actions
for taking advantage of the
opportunities and avoiding the
threats.
Output
Tricky?
?
Our ability to define output
is a key to understanding P.
? Output has both tangible
and intangible results.
Physical properties
(quantity of units
produced)
Intangible
characteristics (client
satisfaction, value to the
community, and other
feelings we have
about the results of
government services)
Problems
?Emotional outputs can
be gauged, but they do
not seem to fit the
notion of productivity
and they present
problems of
psychological
measurement. i.e.
validity and reliability.
?We are uncomfortable
with less tangible
characteristics of
output since we dont
know when to apply
them.
Three Perspectives
Economists
Main Issues: national
growth, competitiveness
on the world market,
rising wages and
deteriorating real
income.
They emphasize: getting
more from present
resources
They define productivity
as the ratio of outputs to
inputs with some
consideration for output
quality.
Three Perspectives
Industrial Engineers
Focus on: organizational
throughput.
Have concern for: workflow,
equipment, measurement, and
control.
Express need for: increased
efficiency through the
manipulation, measurement, and
control of the throughput process.
Their definition: same as
economist.
Three Perspectives
Administrators
Have a managerial
orientation.
They feel the need to:
improve the overall
performance of the
organization and give their
attention to the specific
problems at hand.
Productivity definition: an
ambiguous, shifting concept
centered on the overall
performance or functioning
of the organization.
Katzell and Yankelovich Survey
?
Surveyed managers and union leaders in the
private sector.
? Found that most managers do not employ a
precise definition. By Productivity most
managers mean:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Efficiency and effectiveness of the operation (88%)
Disruption, shrinkage, sabotage, etc. (73%)
Rates of absenteeism and turnover, and output (70%)
Measures of client or customer satisfaction (64%)
Employee loyalty, morale and job satisfaction (55%).
Six Objectives to Improve
Organizations
1.
2.
3.
Output process or effectiveness- reflects on
improvement in the quantity, quality, and timeliness of
outputs or services and a resulting increase in the
satisfaction of output recipients.
Coordination – means an improvement in decision
making, communication, planning, integration of subunit,
and relationships with other units.
Motivational climates- has to do with the orientation of
unit members; it is reflected by an improvement in
initiative, involvement, satisfaction, identification with
the unit, coordination, creativity, and interpersonal
relations.
Six Objectives to Improve
Organizations (Cont.)
4.
5.
6.
Stability – equilibrium – is improved as strain and
pressure are reduced, as stability or balance is increased
and as workforce retention improves.
Savings- simply means economizing savings increase as
money and other resources are conserved.
Resource acquisition – is reflected by increasing
revenues or profits, growth in size of the unit, and a
generally increased ability to acquire resources.
Eight Means to Achieve Objectives
?
Perceptions and
Attitude Modification
? Authority System
Modification
? Structural
Reorganization
? Measurement and
Evaluation Process
?
Modification of work
methods via
technology
? Retraining and
Replacement
? Workflow
Modification
? Introduction of a new
program
Public Sector Productivity Factors
?
Process factors
systems, controls and
technology, the use of
capital equipment,
automation, work
simplification,
reorganization, revised
procedures and
workflow, and
technical
improvements.
Public Sector Productivity Factors
?
Product factors
including both
quantity and quality.
This makes possible
the use of economies
of scale, workload
stability, and product
redesign and
diversification.
Public Sector Productivity Factors
?
People factors
including
considerations of
motivation and skills.
Flexible hours, job
enrichment, career
development
programs, and
amenities in the work
environment.
Five Types of P. I.
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
Inputs decreased, Outputs same – The O/I ratio
improves over time if resource inputs diminish
while output remains constant.
Inputs same, Outputs increased – P improves if
output increases, but resources remain constant.
Inputs decreased, Outputs Increased – Output
may increase while inputs decline.
Inputs increased, Outputs increased at faster rate
Although both increase, O grows faster than I.
Inputs decreased more that Outputs decreased – a
reduction in both with I declining faster than O.
Measurement Categories
?
Internal Output- work as
? Both private and public
an internal (or
organizations measure
intermediate) product.
inputs in terms of the
? External Output- or final
amount of resources
outputs are the end
products of the
used.
organization.
? For output the private
? Effectiveness of Outputsector uses sales or
Measuring agencies
profit-loss statements.
success in accomplishing
These measures are not
assigned missions or
applicable to the public
whether govt programs
are achieving objectives
sector. Thus, major
established for them, with
obstacles to gauge P
regard to both costs and
are measurements of
results.
output.
Catalysts to Increase Productivity
?
Productivity Bargaining- The process of
negotiating increases in P with public employee
unions.
? Capital Investment- Increases in P efficiency
reflect cost-reducing technological advances.
? Awareness of Innovation- A constraint on
productive capital investments or on the
advantageous application of other catalysts such as
P bargaining is simply inadequate information about
similar efforts.
? Management Audits – A measure of effectiveness.
The ranges of concern: the 3 Es: efficiency,
economy, and effectiveness- or as a general means
of improving an organizations operations.
Catalysts to Increase Productivity
?
Principles of Management- The application of
private sector models in terms of measurement of
input and output, product bargaining, capital
investment, awareness of innovations, and even
management auditing. The factor that may be the
most direct means of enhancing P, is the
comprehension of those qualitative management
principles that can help administrators maximize the
advantages of quantitative findings.
Achieving Competencies for
Public Service: The Professional
Edge
Based on book by James S. Bowman, Jonathan P. West and
Marcia Beck
Vignette 1
? Joshua Bennett
? New MPA graduate
? State government HR employee
? Experiencing undelivered promises regarding
needed resources and OJT to upgrade IT skills
? Related underdeveloped TECHNICAL skills
and competencies, leading to unneeded stress
and job frustration
Vignette 2
? Maria Rodriguez
? Recognized and accomplished clinical
psychologist in nonprofit arena
? Appointed to new responsibilities as hospital
ethics committee chair
? Placed in an unfamiliar role where she is faced
with interpreting new federal regulations,
institutional policies, legal issues, and ethical
concerns
? She has ETHICS concerns because patient health
care has become driven by financial concerns,
and she is unclear how to proceed
Vignette 3
? Regina Blackstone
? Successful corporate researcher used to
working independently on technical issues
? Recently placed in charge of a government
contract initiative that requires leadership
skills and project management capability
? Her lack of LEADERSHIP skills may
compromise her ability to carry out this
project
Public Service Challenges
? A shift in competencies needed as a result of
transitions from the old public service to the
new public service
? Technical – Need for technical skills required to
complete evolving responsibilities necessitated by
recent developments in information technology
? Ethical Ability to resolve moral dilemmas linked to
changes in the legal and ethical public service
environment
? Leadership – An ability as leader to model desired
organizational behavior and champion development
of private sectorpublic service partnerships
Competencies and
Competency Modeling
? Competencies specific skills or abilities
needed to perform concrete tasks with
measurable outcomes
? These competencies can be inherent or
attainable
? Hard skills involve the ability to reach
organizational goals that involve technical,
financial, or other systems-related outcomes
? Soft skills involve processes of interpersonal
interaction that motivate and compel employees
to excel in their job performance
Competencies and
Competency Modeling
? The five areas of competencies for public
managers:
?
?
?
?
?
Task competence – (performance)
Administrative competence – (execution of policy)
Political competence – (values and power)
Ethical competence – (conformation to moral values)
Professional competence – (substantive field and task
mastery)
The Changing Context
of Public Service
? What are the areas of change within public
service?
? Technical environment
? The rapid expansion of information technology and new
media as well as cyber security concerns impact how
effectively public servants can perform
? Internal environment
? Increased mobility within the job sector, first-order
devolution of decision making from the federal level to
state/local governments, and second-order devolution
from government to nonprofit and private organizations
require rethinking which entity/group is most able to
effectively provide public services
The Changing Context
of Public Service
? External environment
? Domestically – The political atmosphere of the workplace, the role
of the media, and demographic shifts impact how effectively
public servants can perform
? Internationally the rise of supranational and multinational
organizations, the impact of globalization on management and
service provision, and the ongoing debate regarding whether or
not American obligations under international treaties should
impact domestic law will impact how public service is organized
and implemented domestically
? Managerial environment
? The decentralization of decision making, the need for quality
negotiation skills, a developing need for sophisticated human
resource skills, and the complexities of cross-sectoral service
provision and contract administration will impact how effectively
public service managers can perform.
The Workplace of Todays
Public Service Professional
? This workplace is in constant flux, causing
apprehension and uncertainty, but also
providing new opportunities and challenges
? Six Key Characteristics of todays workplace
include:
?
?
?
?
?
?
Flatter organizational hierarchies
An increase in temporary workers/staff
Wider use of subcontracting and outsourcing
Massive downsizing of permanent workers
A post-union bargaining environment
Virtual organizations
The Changing Nature of Public
Service: From Old to New
? Public service staff advances the public welfare, upholds
the public trust, delivers services to citizens, promotes
the collective interest, and accepts the responsibility for
the service provision
? The challenge to the service provider becomes to make
complex political problems more manageable, as well as
the capability to make moral decisions in order to keep
the public trust in government
? Therefore, the public service professional (or agency)
responsible for service provision must provide a triangle
of competencies:
? Technical expertise – (the how)
? Ethical integrity (the why)
? Leadership in the field/industry (the what)
The Old Public Service
? Traditional p…
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