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Features and functions of public administration
Concepts of public administration
Public administration and its features
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An Introduction to Public Administration
1. Define Public Administration and discuss its scope.
Public Administration has various definitions, and the most important definitions are:
Traditional Viewpoints (functions and actions)
o ' Public Administration is a detailed and systematic application of law. ', (Prof. Woodrow Wilson)
o ' Public Administration consists of all those operations having for their purpose the fulfillment of public policy as declared by authority. ', (L. D. White)
Broad View
o ' By Public Administration is meant the activities of the executive branches of the national, state, & local governments. ', (Simon)
o ' Public Administration in broadest sense denotes the work involved in the actual conduct of governmental affairs, and in narrowest senses denotes the operations of the administrative branch only. ', (Willough)
o ' Public Administration is that part of the science of administration which has to do with government and thus, concerns itself primarily with the executive branch where the work of the government is done. ', (Gullick)
o ' Public Administration is the art and science of management as applied to the affairs of the state. ', (Waldo)
o ' Administration is concerned with ‘what’ and ‘How’ of the government. The what is the subjectmatter, the technical knowledge of a field which enables the administrator to perform his tasks. The ‘How’ is the technique of management according to which co-operative programmes are carried to success. ', (Marshall E. Dimock)
There are various perspectives about the scope of Public Administration, I will mention the most important three perspectives here briefly:
1. Narrow perspective or posdcord perspective. (concerned only with those aspects related wit...
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...ocial welfare, food, agriculture, health, sanitation, transport, communication etc. are run by the department of Public Administration. Hence, Public Administration is a great stabilizing force in society. It is a preserver of the society and its culture.
2) POSBCORB represents an abbreviation of the seven types of functions which shows the scope of Public Administration. The seven types of functions are:
1. ‘P’ stands for planning
2. ‘O’ stands for organization
3. ‘S’ stands for staffing.
4. ‘D’ stands for Directing.
5. ‘Co.’ stands for Co-ordination.
6. ‘R’ stands for Reporting
7. ‘B’ stands for Budgeting
3) POSDCORB Perspective about the Scope of Public Administration is limited and narrow. It stressed on the tools of Public Administration. It does not show the substance of administration. It is a technique oriented perspective, not a subject oriented.
The main aim of public service is to deliver services that are of need to its people. How fast a public manager can address its people’s problem and concerns indicates its effectiveness. Responsiveness of the manager develops trust between him, the government, and the people. According to (Rainey, p106) bureaucratic responsiveness implies two things; responsiveness to the people’s wishes or responsiveness to the interest of the government.
Woodrow Wilson’s purpose in writing “The Study of Administration” is to bring awareness that the government systems in place need to be re-evaluated and improved. Wilson encourages we need to examine the history of administration set forth by others in determining certain needs to be accomplished in effective ways and methods. Wilson’s desirable outcomes for research within the public administration field are for government systems to become more productive and organized.
As, Goodnow has iterated the functions of politics communicate and addresses the state’s will however, he articulates that there is no boundaries or limitations to one or more authorities when managing politics, thus eluding to no appointed organization who handles political matters and the interest of the people. Perhaps, a contributing factor to complexities in the political and government systems and the functional roles of politics and administration. Woodrow Wilson essay “The Study of Administration,” he stresses that government systems and methods are in need of great improvement. (Woodrow. 1887) However, Wilson believes politics should be separated from administration, for administration should be a “field of business.” (Woodrow. 1887) Possibly speaking, if administration was separated would politics become more organized and an authority given to
“If you can write it and you can say it, you can do it.” In a single sentence Professor Eric Claville succeeded in attracting me to the study of public administration. Sitting in Introduction to Public Policy class, I was instantly fascinated by the idea that through effective communication I could improve policies and programs to better serve the public. Professor Claville’s lessons enabled me to think analytically as I developed a scholarly policy brief entitled “Enforcing a State-wide Texting While Driving Law in Arizona”. Soon, I was faced with the notion that public administration was not only an agent for change, but a tool to fulfill my passion. It is a possible pathway to take on a leadership role that would make a difference for disadvantaged groups.
Public Administration, as a field, had always captivated me right from my undergraduate days. I believe my curiosity for this field comes from my family. Both my father and my uncle were politicians. During my early days, I used to go to my father’s office where I had a great chance to observe different kinds of people with various jobs and interests. This was the first time I learned how mutual interests bring people together. When I understood how public relations work naturally, it forced me strongly to study and comprehend the complex theory of politics. After finishing high school, I made up my mind to pursue a career in Political Science. For this reason, I was enrolled to Istanbul Bilgi University’s Political Science program. After having completed my Bachelor’s Degree, I decided to excel in this field by completing a Master’s degree.
Public Administration involves the development, implementation and management of policies for the attainment of set goals and objectives that will be to the benefit of the general public. Since Public Administration involves taking decisions that affect the use of public resources there is often the question of how to utilize public resources for maximum public good. The National Association of Public Administration has identified four pillars of public administration: economy, efficiency, effectiveness and social equity. These pillars are equally important in the practice of public administration and to its success. This paper seeks to explain the role of each of the pillars in the practice of public administration.
This essay discusses the radical transformation of the principles and foundations of public administration from traditional to New Public Management. Firstly the essay will attempt to define the key terms of traditional public administration and the doctrine of New Public Management. Rabin J. (2003) explains that New Public Management embodies “a process in public administration that uses information and experiences obtained in business management and other disciplines to improve efficiency, usefulness and general operation of public services in contemporary bureaucracies.“Traditional Public Administration progresses from governmental contributions, with services perceived by the bureaucracy.
Traditional public administration is traced back to the works of scholars like Max Weber, Woodrow Wilson and Fredrick Taylor. This form of administration was mostly influenced by Max Weber with his bureaucratic model and theory. Max Weber was a well-known sociologist born in Germany in the year 1864. He came up with his bureaucratic model as a way to try to improve management in organizations. ‘Weber emphasized on top-down control in the form of monocratic hierarchy that is a system of control in which policy is set at the top and carried out through a series of offices, whereby every manager and employee are to report to one person in top management and held accountable by that manager’ (Pfiffner, 2004, p. 1).
Under the POAS, the Chief Executive has the right to first nominate candidates that he thinks fit for the fourteen Political Officials posts, to the Central People’s Government who has the power over official appointment. However, unlike the previous system, where the Principal Officials were civil servants hired on permanent and pensionable terms; the Principal Officials under the POAS will be employed on contract, where their contract term will not exceed that of the Chief Executive whom they were nominated
Public administration as a field of study and as a practice has continually evolved with American society. The United States has survived and thrived through major cultural shifts, varying degrees of economic climates, and both civil and world wars. Through out all these changes in our country, one thing has always remained the same, the fact that we are an ever evolving and always changing nation. Theories and forms of practice of public administration have also evolved parallel with the history of the United States. There have been numerous events in American history have lead to changes in society and the practice of public administration has both led and followed in the adaptation process of such monumental changes.
Since its emergence as a field of study, there have been some important contributions to public administration. Its goal has always been to improve productivity which then improves workplace performance. All of the contributions have been aimed at completing the work with the highest level of efficiency and at the lowest cost.
Since the Regan era more and more people have taken the idealistic political stance that governments should act more like a business with President as both CEO and Commander in Chief and voters as costumers and shareholders. There are three main reasons that adopting this ideology and borrowing the principles and practices of business undermines the essence and core values of Public Administration. The first reason is the most obvious to the casual observer, businesses are based on profits and governments are based on people. Success in the business world means profit, therefore asking government to run more like a business is asking the government to start maki...
In the political approach, political authority is divided between a central government and the provincial or state governments. This means that some provinces or states are accorded a substantial measure of constitutional or legal sovereignty, although they still remain subordinates of the central government in certain constitutional or legal respects. The political approach promotes the political values of military strength, economic development, union, and representation. In addition, it is characterized by three central features: state sovereignty, bicameralism, and multiple layers of representation.
Public policy can be defined as “What ever governments choose to do or not do” (Dye, 2008, p 2). In the context of this essay, public policies are a set of actors by the government in order to reach out to the masses. The ministries and departments are mandated to deliver specific mandates in the form of public goods and services.
Public sector reforms adopted in a number of countries such as USA, UK and New Zealand in the last fifteen years and characterised by efficiency units, performance management, contracting out, market type mechanisms, and agency status have come to be known as the New Public Management or NPM. Appearance of the NPM as shifting the paradigm from the old traditional model of administration has been promoted by a remarkable degree of consensus among the political leadership of various countries and is presented today as the major tool for public sector management reforms.