Top Administrators Research Articles

Comparing Japanese and American Administrative Elites

Using evidence from surveys of top administrators, we examine differences between Japanese and American administrative elites. Our findings are far more complex than the reigning stereotypes of an apolitical, technocratic and elitist Japanese bureaucracy contrasted to a politically charged, conflict-oriented and social-reformist American federal executive. For example, senior Japanese bureaucrats take political considerations into account, compared to technical ones, no less than top American officials. American administrators have a more negative view of the role of political parties than their Japanese counterparts and, on average, an equally negative view of politicians interfering in their work than the supposedly more elitist, autonomous and technocratic Japanese bureaucrats. The article closes with a discussion of why popular conceptions of the two bureaucracies break down in practice.

Power in the Public Relations Department

This chapter addresses the gaps that remain in our understanding of the role power plays in the practice of public relations. Through that knowledge, a future generation of public relations practitioners may learn to spot organizations where their ability will be matched with a corresponding degree of power. Isolation of the public relations department from top administration, in their view, limits its practice to the role of “explaining and justifying” others’ decisions. Before attempting to answer the question, the chapter addresses what is known about the relationship between public relations and organizational power. The chapter deals with possible impacts of power on the individual practitioner, on the field of public relations, on the organizational system, and on society. The professional practice of public relations, more as a managerial than technical process, undoubtedly would have positive effects on the organizational system.

NSF Director Continues to Steer Agency on Technological Course

Erich Bloch is approaching the last year and a half of his six-year term as director of the National Science Foundation. He continues to carry a relaxed style and an air of command over the $1.9 billion agency. And with the weakening of centralized science and technology advising at the White House level, he has emerged as the top Administration spokesman for the country's policies in research and engineering. Bloch came to the job from a vice presidency at IBM in 1984 with some apparent handicaps. He was an engineer, not a basic researcher, and had no academic credentials as a researcher or administrator. But no previous NSF director was more experienced than Bloch in managing scientists and engineers in a technologically intensive environment. So he came to the foundation with some pretty definite ideas on what he felt was the need to take the agency into the real world of technological competitiveness. And never ...

Upward Influence: How Administrators Get Their Way

Mid-level administrators are caught between the needs of the groups they lead and the top administrators who have the power to meet those needs. A study of hospitality-program heads shows how these mid-level administrators influence their superiors to win advantages for their department

The Thirty-Fifth Law Clerk

The advocate must learn to live in the tension between what the legal precedents are and what he and his client would like them to be. For the Solicitor General, who briefs and argues the United States cases before the Supreme Court, every aspect of this tension is heightened: his client is the United States, his court is the Supreme Court, and his precedents are the Court's own. Moreover, his responsibility is greater. Because he speaks for the executive branch, the Court weighs his words more heavily. Someday a thoughtful and intelligent book will be written about the Solicitor General and this tension. Lincoln Caplan's The Tenth Justice: The Solicitor General and the Rule of Law1 is not it. The Tenth Justice has three themes. The first is that the Office of the Solicitor General, until quite recently, has been largely independent. Caplan's definition of independent as applied to the Solicitor General is somewhat obscure, but it seems to have two elements: first, that the Solicitor General should have only limited contact with top administration officials; and second, that the Solicitor General need respond in only a limited way to the goals of the administration. Thus, Caplan believes that the Solicitor General historically has acted as a

The internal crisis of corrections: Professionalization and the work environment

Criminal justice policymakers and managers have viewed professionalization as a favored solution to the current crisis in correctional systems across the country. Utilizing case study data drawn from a state correctional system located in the western United States, we find that upgrading line correctional staff was a strategy used by top administrators to improve the image of their agency and maintain the autonomy of their prison system in the face of a threatened take-over by the federal court. However, in mandating the professionalization of their personnel, these managers failed to confront deeper organizational problems. Instead, they argued that an educated staff was the cure for acknowledged operational problems—including corruption and inhumane treatment. The failure to combine staff upgrading with more comprehensive organizational reforms merely heightened the frustrations within the workforce of the state's correctional institutions. In essence, these professionalization strategies represent a pr...

How Long Does It Take To Make a Decision

It is still not completely understood what speeds up or slows down the decision‐making process. The duration of decision making may range from a month to four years, but usually takes about 12 months. Most processes run into disruptions and interruptions, which lengthen the time taken. Measuring decision making is difficult since it is virtually impossible to define the beginning and end of the process. The evidence for this comes from an extensive study of how top managers and administrators in the public and private sectors move towards a conclusion. A database was established of 150 cases of strategic decision making obtained by interviewing. Six cases were traced back by intensive case study methods. Short, medium and long decision processes are examined using case examples. One of the curious features of decision making is what happens before the deliberation process starts. Impediments and delays are discussed and whether committees slow the process.

Graduate education in public health nursing: evaluation and recommendations.

AbstractA survey was conducted of graduates of ten public health nursing master's degree programs that support the aggregate approach to public health nursing. Topics included activities related to the aggregate focus, demographic and employment characteristics, job satisfaction, and reasons for selecting positions. There was a high level of employment among the respondents, and they tended to be satisfied with their jobs. They worked in diverse settings and held positions ranging from staff nurse to top administrator. Although the graduates performed aggregate focus activities in any setting, there were differences in level of performance among persons in the different types of positions. Based on analysis of the data, recommendations are made in areas of graduate programs, graduates, and employers and communities.

Knapp confirmed as NSF Director

Edward A. Knapp was confirmed by the Senate in a voice vote on April 15 as the director of the National Science Foundation (NSF). The Senate vote followed a confirmation hearing by the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee. Knapp, who was nominated by President Reagan to head the foundation in November, had been assistant director for NSF's mathematical and physical sciences (MPS) directorate since July 1982.Allegations that he has been politicizing NSF have beleaguered Knapp since he asked for resignations or firm commitments to leave from three NSF top administrators in December (two of these administrators had been planning to leave, though no resignation dates had been set). Knapp assured the Senate committee during the April 13 confirmation hearings that he made the decision to ask for the resignations and that, although he had discussed his plan with Office of Science and Technology Policy officials, they did not request that certain people be removed in exchange for particular increases in the NSF budget. Knapp consistently has defended himself against the allegations by saying that he wants his own team at the agency.

The role of the nursing school in the academic health center: report of a study.

This paper highlights for the nursing education community selected data from a recently completed study of the organization and governance of academic health centers, conducted under the auspices of the Association of Academic Health Centers and funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. It is hoped that the limited information presented here will stimulate interest in the larger study. Presented and discussed are data derived from three different questionnaires used in the study. Top administrators in academic health centers were surveyed in order to produce information on the structural components and hierarchical relationships in contemporary academic health centers, the processes by which decisions are made and conflicts are resolved, and the conditions which administrators envision for their institutions in the future. Deans of nursing schools were part of the survey group, and their responses are examined along with those of deans of other health professional schools.

PROGRAM EVALUATION AND ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROL

What is the role of program evaluation research in making and implementing social policy and how do program evaluators view the social programs they evaluate? This article discusses the findings of two closely related studies that examine these questions from the perspective of organization theory. These studies found that program evaluations rely on methods of research that do not correspond to the extent of uncertainty in social programs over goals and causal knowledge, and that most evaluations define organizational effectiveness solely in terms of goal achievement. In addition, of the various groups with a stake in the evaluation process, only federal and top program administrators influenced the implementation and interpretation of the studies. These findings, when taken together, suggest that program evaluation research acts more to augment administrative control than to increase our understanding of the effects of social policy.

The U.S. Ambassador & The Modern Age

For the past half-dozen years I made my living as an ambassador. People have not stopped asking, “Just what does an ambassador do?” The question is something of an improvement on the one encountered by former ambassador to Great Britain, Kingman Brewster, as reported in Newsweek a year ago: “Do you think ambassadors matter any more?” Perhaps my acquaintences are simply kinder—or less sophisticated— than Brewster's.Most of the classic books on diplomacy try to answer such questions by describing ambassadors as analysts, reporters, and negotiators. The American public favors another, simpler response. So do many top administrators in Washington—especially when they are new to office. They conclude that in this age of jet aircraft, instant communication, summits, and special envoys, ambassadors are mere post office boxes and innkeepers.

The Carter Civil Service Reforms: Some Implications for Political Theory and Public Administration

The Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 (CSRA) marked a major departure in federal personnel policy. Not only did it institute a system of merit pay for mid-level managers, establish a Senior Executive Service (SES) for top administrators, and provide a firm statutory basis for labor relations in the federal sector, but by vesting most functions of the old bipartisan Civil Service Commission in the newly created Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the CSRA redefined the lines of authority for personnel management, placing most responsibilities squarely in the hands of presidential representatives. More remarkable than the substance of this legislation, however, was the overwhelmingly favorable reception it received (and continues to receive) from academic Public Administration. No administrative reform in recent memory has attracted such support or reflected such widespread consensus among students of governmental affairs. Indeed, in some ways the provisions of the CSRA are the premises of modern public administration, a coincidence that presents an unparalleled opportunity to examine some of the basic assumptions of the field. In this article, I dissent from this consensus and use the CSRA to focus a discussion of the linkages between political theory and public administration. My central argument is that Public Administration's recent counsel has been, as Vincent Ostrom put it, bad medicine, a kind of administrative malpractice

TOP ADMINISTRATORS IN NEW SOUTH WALES

Australian Journal of Public AdministrationVolume 40, Issue 4 p. 350-354 TOP ADMINISTRATORS IN NEW SOUTH WALES First published: December 1981 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8500.1981.tb00529.xRead the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume40, Issue4December 1981Pages 350-354 RelatedInformation

EPA's handling of problems stirs controversy

During recent weeks the Environmental Protection Agency has been the focus of controversy. Stories of already low, and still falling, morale within the agency, the resignation of important EPA managers, and the seeming aloofness of top administrators to the concerns of the rest of the staff all have been reported in the press. Problems at the agency have prompted at least one Congressman, Rep. James J. Florio (D.-N.J.), to call for the resignation of EPA Administrator Anne M. Gorsuch (see page 8). Two of the more serious matters have been subjects of Congressional hearings, and, despite long sessions, much of EPA's motivations and plans are still unknown. Gorsuch and EPA deputy administrator John W. Hernandez were questioned by panels from both houses of Congress on the proposed drastically reduced budget for the agency for fiscal 1983 and on the possibility that several meetings held by Hernandez with industry representatives may have been improper, if not ...

Program evaluation data: who needs it? Assessing the need for evaluation.

While many apriori arguments assert that administrators need evaluative data, further empirical needs assessment is required to determine whether this belief is true. Staff need for basic data was studied in a psychiatric hospital during a controversy about the modification of a program. Thirteen staff members, all of whom were parties to the debate, estimated the level and trends in the program's discharge rate. The results suggest that while individuals were only moderately accurate in their knowledge of Program P's average discharge rate (mean error=±21%), the mean of the group as a whole was extremely accurate (error=±1.5%). Staff as a whole were not aware of trends in the discharge rate (p>.05), although top administrators had moderately accurate knowledge of trends (r=.52, p=.01).

The dental school's role in academic health centers: report of a study

This paper highlights for the dental education community selected data from a recently completed study of the organization and governance of academic health centers, conducted under the auspices of the Association of Academic health Centers and funded by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. It is hoped that the limited information presented here will stimulate interest in the larger study. Data derived from three questionnaires used in the study are presented and discussed. Top administrators in academic health centers were surveyed to assemble information on the structural components and hierarchical relationships in contemporary academic health centers, the processes by which decisions are made, the way in which conflicts are resolved, and the conditions that administrators envision for their institutions in the future. Dental school deans were part of the survey group, and their responses are examined along with those of deans of other health professional schools.

Recent Developments in Sino-Japanese Relations

Research Article| July 01 1980 Recent Developments in Sino-Japanese Relations Shinkichi Eto Shinkichi Eto Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Far Eastern Survey (1951) 20 (7): 726–743. https://doi.org/10.2307/2643925 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Twitter LinkedIn Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Cite Icon Cite Search Site Citation Shinkichi Eto; Recent Developments in Sino-Japanese Relations. Far Eastern Survey 4 April 1951; 20 (7): 726–743. doi: https://doi.org/10.2307/2643925 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu nav search search input Search input auto suggest search filter All ContentAsian Survey Search This content is only available via PDF. Copyright 1980 The Regents of the University of California Article PDF first page preview Close Modal You do not currently have access to this content.

The Ecole Nationale d'Administration and the Civil Service College

The Eleventh Report of the Select Committee on Expenditure of 1977 reflected the concern felt in Britain, and indeed throughout Europe, that a modern, efficient civil service should have the capacity to cope with the increasing technological complexity of advanced industrialised nations. In this context, the recruitment and training of an efficient bureaucracy is of paramount importance. The training of civil servants in Britain and France highlights the different priorities within the two civil services and also differences in educational traditions and social structures. Nevertheless, both countries are trying to produce civil servants who can cope with similar problems. The modern bureaucrat needs wide-ranging abilities to assess and implement policies. An appreciation of technological advances, an understanding of economics, an insight into political institutions, pressure groups and international repercussions are to be counted among the numerous requirements for an adaptable bureaucrat. The training of the future cream of the administrative class is viewed as a means of providing these entrants with the initiative, confidence and general ability to apply solutions to problems in the form of legislation. The origins of both the Civil Service College in Britain and the Ecole Nationale d'Administration in France differ widely although their aims converge towards the same need for an educated, capable and efficient administrative class. The first initiative for the creation of a college for civil servants in Britain dates back to the Charter Act of 1833. The College at Haileybury, which was opened for a year only, was designed to meet the requirements of the East India Company. Its administrators had received no proper training as such, but learnt their duties as they carried them out. With a move towards an increase in responsibility, the emphasis was laid on educational qualifications and a system of open competition was initiated. It was intended to remove the inequalities of patronage, which up to then was the accepted method of entry. The Northcote Trevelyan Report of 1854 insisted on merit for recruitment. It also laid down the principle that the recruit should be moved round various departments as an integral part of his training. It was not until 1968, with the Fulton Report, that the need for an institution of training was felt as a vital requirement for entrants wishing to become top administrators. This led to the opening of the Civil Service College in 1970. Training in Britain rests on a tradition of 'all-rounders', whereas France prides itself on a class of specialists whose recruitment was originally based on privilege. Under the Old Regime in France, there was a single administrative elite recruited mostly among the 'Noblesse de Robe'; the 'Maitres des Requites' went through an induction course before they were sent out to the provinces. They were expected to perpetuate the values of the King's service. Napoleon I added another grade to the hierarchy-the 'auditeurs'-and aimed at efficiency

Towards a Theory of Changing: A Means-Ends Model of the Organizational Improvement Process

This study is based on a nationwide sample of top administrators in state government organizations. Using a critical incident approach, each administrator was asked to select the one change that he or she considered to be his or her most outstanding management improvement action. In describing the change the respondents were asked about their change strategies and resulting outcomes. Using a factor analysis and answers to open-ended questions, eight types of administrative change strategies (Work MethodsTechnology, Information Dissemination, Structural Reorganization, Retraining-Replacement, Authority System, Objective Setting-Measurement, Work Flow, Programs) and six types of outcomes (Improved Output Process, Motivational Climate, Resource Acquisition, Coordination, Savings, Equilibrium) were identified. Using a repeated multiple regression analysis, the relationships between the means and ends were explored. The findings illustrate the necessity for a precise definition of effectiveness and the need for a new and larger concept called organizational vitality. The implications for understanding and planning change are discussed at both the theoretical and applied level. It is pointed out that the means-ends model should serve as a useful framework for the planning of change.