Recently in Public Administration Category

Source: Stephen Ursery, American City and County, Vol. 127 no. 1, January 2012

Some governments report savings from the program, others question the results.
Related:
Irving, Texas, saved millions as a result of Lean Six Sigma (Audio)
Source: American City and County, Vol. 127 no. 1, January 2012

Source: Douglas A. Brook and Cynthia L. King, Public Administration Review, Volume 71, Issue 6, November/December 2011
(subscription required)

From the abstract:
This case study reviews the enactment and implementation of the National Security Personnel System (NSPS) in the U.S. Department of Defense. Proponents of reform seized the opportunity to enact reform in the aftermath of 9/11, basing their arguments on national security concerns. However, the policy-making process did not produce a consensus for reform among key stakeholders in the personnel management policy community. Instead, the NSPS angered and alienated the Office of Personnel Management, the public employee unions, and a number of congressional Democrats. Implementation of the NSPS became problematic as Defense Department officials attempted to move quickly and independently to get the new system online, eventually forcing the department to put the system on hold. In the end, Congress imposed limits on its implementation, advocates for the system disappeared, and a new president supported the repeal of NSPS. This case provides useful insights into the formulation of future strategies for personnel management reform.

Source: Nandhini Rangarajan and Dianne Rahm, Review of Public Personnel Administration, Vol. 31 no. 3, September 2011
(subscription required)

From the abstract:
How have environmental initiatives and "going green" permeated the human resources realm? This article, through a nationwide survey, examines the extent to which cities have incorporated environmentally friendly human resource practices. Results reveal that income, education, environmental awareness and presence of preexisting successful environmental programs have an impact on technical and strategic human resource practices in U.S. cities. This article discusses the implications for public administration.

Source: Katherine Barrett and Richard Greene, IBM Center for the Business of Government, October 5th, 2011

...In an ideal world, we believe, this would be a time when governmental entities would be able to devote more energy than ever to the use of analysis to make sure that the limited dollars they have to spend are used most effectively and efficiently. Sadly, our ideal world is far from the one any of us live in. In fact, states and cities seem to be moving in precisely the opposite direction. From coast to coast, the very people who have historically been responsible for this kind of thinking are finding themselves out of work. And it's far more difficult to run a smarter government if you cut out its brains one budgetary shovelful at a time....

...At its peak in 2002, the California Research Bureau (CRB) had more than 40 staffers. Now it has 16....Just north, in Washington State, the state government has been cutting back funding for its well-respected auditor's office...Go to just about anyplace that compiles studies of local and state performance or cost-effectiveness, or other reports on government activities and you'll see the dropoff in production.

Source: David Yarkin, American City and County, Vol. 126 no. 7, July 2011

New York reforms its procurement practices to maintain services while lowering local government costs

Source: Katherine Barrett and Richard Greene, IBM Center for the Business of Government, 2011

Big problems call for big solutions. And so, with the states mired in historically unpleasant fiscal times, many have decided they need to go far beyond Band-Aid solutions in favor of tourniquets and transplants....But although there's a real attraction to restructuring government in a variety of ways, it's not easy. Unless these efforts can actually reduce staff, increase productivity or save money by combining back office operations, it can be like reshuffling the chairs on a leaky boat (we hesitate to use the usual cliché because we don't really think the federal government or the states are as bad off as the Titanic).
See also:
Reorganization Magic

Source: Tod Newcombe, Governing, Vol. 24 no. 6, March 2011

State and local governments are questioning the need for large, centralized, costly IT departments.

Source: Public Administration Review, Volume 70, Issue Supplement s1, December 2010
(subscription required)

Edited by Rosemary O'Leary and David M. Van Slyke Sponsored by the Phanstiel Family and the Maxwell School of Syracuse University

From the introduction:
...Our contributors offer evaluations of progress to date and chart many paths forward that reconceptualize the breadth and depth of government involvement; the multisectoral
engagement in the work of governance; and the organizational, policy, and management changes and tools that might be employed to improve decision making and results, both domestically and internationally...As this special issue of PAR goes to press, one thing is certain: public challenges are not going away. The profession and the scholarly study of public administration, while changing, will not diminish in scope and importance. In 2020, the major forces affecting public administration most likely will include globalism, security threats, aging populations, enormous budget deficits, climate change, environmental pollutants, food distribution disparities, regulatory challenges, workforce issues, and information technology. The jobs of public administrators in local, state, federal, and international organizations in most countries around the world will only become tougher, more complicated, and more challenging. It is safe to say that most public challenges will continue to be larger than one organization can handle, and that public managers will continue to do more with less. Technology will continue to flatten hierarchy, yielding changing views of leadership and management. There will be a greater role for the public, a greater need for collaborative governance, and a greater appreciation for deliberative democracy. Clearly, partnerships are at the heart of the future of public administration in 2020...

Sections include:
- Part I: 2020: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
- Part II: The Future of Local Government
- Part III: Public Organization of the Future
- Part IV: The Future of Strategic Management
- Part V: Have we missed the Boat on Strategic Planning?
- Part VI: The Past as Prelude: Were the Predictions of Classic Scholars Correct?
- Part VII: The Future of Public Administration as a Scholarly Field

Source: Steven Johnson, Wired, November 2010

...Launched in March 2003, 311 now fields on average more than 50,000 calls a day, offering information about more than 3,600 topics: school closings, recycling rules, homeless shelters, park events, pothole repairs. The service has translators on call to handle some 180 different languages. City officials tout a 2008 customer satisfaction survey, conducted by an outside firm, that compared 311's popularity to other call centers in both the public and private sectors. 311 finished first, barely edging out hotel and retail performance but beating other government call centers, like the IRS's, by a mile. (At the very bottom of the list, not surprisingly: cable companies.)...The 311 system has proved useful not just at detecting reliable patterns but also at providing insights when the normal patterns are disrupted. Clusters of calls about food-borne illness or sanitary problems from the same restaurant now trigger a rapid response from the city's health department. And during emergencies, callers help provide real-time insight into what's really happening.

Source: National Association of State Chief Information Officers, October 2010

Each year NASCIO conducts a survey of the state CIOs to identify and prioritize the top policy and technology issues facing state government. The top ten priorities are identified and used as input to NASCIO's programs, planning for conference sessions, and publications.