 |
Desktop administrators. Professionals. Street-level bureaucrats. Policy entrepreneurs
|
|
|
|
Desktop administrators
Desktop administrators are career civil servants down the hierarchy a few steps from political executives. They are middle managers and closely fit the general description of a bureaucrat. Whether a social worker supervisor or the director of a major government program, the desktop administrator spends days filled with memoranda and meetings.
The desktop administrators are torn between the promises and practicality of governing. Desk administrators guide policy intentions into policy actions that actually change, for better or worse, people’s life.
Desktop administrators differ fundamentally from political executives in that most of them are career civil servants. After a short probation period, most earn job tenure, and usually are not fired. Tenure insulates the civil service from direct political interference in the day-to-day working of government. Job tenure protects civil servants from losing their jobs, but they may be reassigned to less important jobs of equal rank if they lose favor with political executives.
Professionals
Professionals make up the third major role-type in public organizations. Modern professionals receive standard specific training that ends with certification. They also learn values and norms of behavior.
Increasingly the work of public organizations depends on professionals and more and more professionals are involved in public administration. The work of professionals involves applying their general knowledge to the specific case and requires considerable autonomy and flexibility.
An important difference between professional and non-professional work is who evaluates performance. Nonprofessionals are evaluated by their immediate supervisors. Professionals assert their independence from supervisors. Their work is evaluated by peer review of their colleagues and that has flaws: fellow professionals are sometimes more willing to overlook the mistakes of colleagues for different reasons.
Street-level bureaucrats
Street-level bureaucrats (social workers, police officers, public school teachers, public health nurses, job and drug-counselors, etc. ) are at the bottom or near the bottom of public organizations.
Their authority does not come from rank, since they are at the bottom of hierarchy, but from the discretionary nature of their work. They deal with people and people are complex and unpredictable, they are not the same and require individual attention. A common complaint about public bureaucrats is that they treat everyone like a number; they ignore unique problems and circumstances. But there are only general guidelines how to deal with people (an abusive parent, an arrested, poor, old or sick person), and it is impossible to write better guidelines to make everyone happy. Street-level administrator must use judgment to apply rules and laws to unique situations, and judgment requires discretion.
|
|
|
Given limited resources, public organizations want fewer, not more clients, and this is an important difference between public and private organizations, which attract more clients to earn more profit. And dependence of clients on street-level bureaucrats often creates conflicts.
Street-level bureaucrats work in situations that defy direct supervision. Even when supervisors are nearby, much work with clients is done privately. Most paperwork and computerized information systems attempt to control street-level bureaucrats, who in turn become skilled in filling out forms to satisfy supervisors while maintaining their own autonomy.
Street-level bureaucrats are also policy-makers. They often decide what policies to implement, their beliefs can affect their work with clients, they may interpret the policy to benefit clients and vice versa, and thus they may change the policy while implementing it.
Policy entrepreneurs
The policy entrepreneur is generally considered to be the charismatic person at the top, though they can exist at all levels of an organization. They are strongly committed to specific programs and are strong managers. They are skilled in gathering support and guiding an idea into reality. The role requires conceptual leadership, strategic planning, and political activism. This role is both necessary and dangerous. They take risks and push limits, which are necessary for a dynamic government, but they also bend rules and sometimes lead policy astray.
Ex. 2. Read the text again for understanding its main points and answer the " What" -questions given below:
1) What is a role? What is a role-type? What is role overload?
2) What helps to identify rights and obligations of each employee?
3) What may become a source of stress and overload?
4) What are the most common five role-types in public organizations?
5) What do political appointees do? What do elected officials do?
6) What are desktop administrators?
7) What is the third major role-type in public organisations?
8) What is the work of street-level bureaucrats?
9) What is an important difference between public and private organisations?
10) What do policy entrepreneurs do?
Ex. 3. Now read the text for detailed information to complete the following sentences:
1) Large organisations employ many individuals: charismatic …, caring …, innovative …, and numerous … who lend individuality to ….
2) Cabinet secretaries and policy analysts like actors step … that are already largely defined.
3) … exists when the demand of various roles … an individual's ability to balance expectations.
4) The lawyer who must … to care for a sick child is experiencing a ….
5) The most common five role-types are …, …, …, …, and ….
6) … occupy the top of public organisations; in most cases they are ….
7) … have responsibility for major decisions; however, the ultimate authority rests with ….
8) … protects civil servants from losing their jobs.
9) The work of professionals requires … and ….
10) Street-level bureaucrats often decide what policies to implement, their … can … their work with ….
Ex. 4. Answer the following 'Why'-questions:
1) Why can employees experience role overloads or role conflicts?
|
|
|
2) What holds an organisation together? Why?
3) Why are political executives called political appointees? What are their functions?
4) Why are desktop administrators said to fit the general description of a bureaucrat?
5) Desktop administrators are mostly career civil servants, aren’t they? Why?
6) Why does the work of professionals require considerable autonomy and flexibility?
7) Does the authority of street-level bureaucrats come from rank or nature of their work? Why?
8) Why does dependence of clients on street-level bureaucrats often create conflicts?
9) Why is the role of policy entrepreneurs both necessary and dangerous? What risks do they take? What limits do they push?
10) What is meant under “leading policy astray”? Why?
|
|
|
