Preparing Managers for the FutureAuthor(s): Robert J. DworakSource: Public Administration Review, Vol. 35, No. 6 (Nov. - Dec., 1975), pp. 674-675Published by: Wiley on behalf of the American Society for Public AdministrationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/974291 .

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PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REVIEW PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REVIEW

When the recent surge of political activism by students moved many of the public administration teachers and universities to concentrate on areas such as public policy and foreign administration- and away from their involvement in local govern- ment-a sense of unreality entered their proposals which further isolated the two worlds. Before we affect the "wedding" with business administration curricula proposed by some (writhing in PM), should not the practitioners again be consulted? Such proposals by academes still reflect their isolation from their "clientele." There may be

good reasons for moving toward such a union, but

they have not been discussed in the city manager's journals to date, as far as I recall.

An integral part of any total approach to education and training for the future should also be a concern with the "graduate" by the univer- sities and the professional organizations for that individual's entire career. In addition to offering in-service classes, attention should be given to his

periods "between" employment. At this most

desperate period in the administrator's life, no concern or effort is forthcoming from these two

groups to be of meaningful assistance. One pro- posal worth discussing is possible funding for his

continuing education during such periods of unem-

ployment. University "intensive semesters" or utilization of the manager in seminars, research

projects, League assignments, etc.-all of these would provide for the manager's growth and make the idle period positively utilized. This aspect of "professionalism" should be joint responsibility of ICMA and the universities-and thus, part of the

proposed "agenda." I perceive the required approach to this issue as

one of several overlapping circles of respon- sibility-academia, practitioners, and community- all involved in defining the problems, assigning roles, involved in the programs and feeding back ideas and reactions. All should be involved in the other areas-jointly-with managers on faculty committees, faculty serving on local commissions and boards, and with citizen input into all areas.

With the many problems on the horizon for local government, such an effort becomes impera- tive, but I feel the present piecemeal approach is doomed to much rhetoric, many studies and, alas, only limited value.

Murray Brown Editor and Manager

Western City Magazine

When the recent surge of political activism by students moved many of the public administration teachers and universities to concentrate on areas such as public policy and foreign administration- and away from their involvement in local govern- ment-a sense of unreality entered their proposals which further isolated the two worlds. Before we affect the "wedding" with business administration curricula proposed by some (writhing in PM), should not the practitioners again be consulted? Such proposals by academes still reflect their isolation from their "clientele." There may be

good reasons for moving toward such a union, but

they have not been discussed in the city manager's journals to date, as far as I recall.

An integral part of any total approach to education and training for the future should also be a concern with the "graduate" by the univer- sities and the professional organizations for that individual's entire career. In addition to offering in-service classes, attention should be given to his

periods "between" employment. At this most

desperate period in the administrator's life, no concern or effort is forthcoming from these two

groups to be of meaningful assistance. One pro- posal worth discussing is possible funding for his

continuing education during such periods of unem-

ployment. University "intensive semesters" or utilization of the manager in seminars, research

projects, League assignments, etc.-all of these would provide for the manager's growth and make the idle period positively utilized. This aspect of "professionalism" should be joint responsibility of ICMA and the universities-and thus, part of the

proposed "agenda." I perceive the required approach to this issue as

one of several overlapping circles of respon- sibility-academia, practitioners, and community- all involved in defining the problems, assigning roles, involved in the programs and feeding back ideas and reactions. All should be involved in the other areas-jointly-with managers on faculty committees, faculty serving on local commissions and boards, and with citizen input into all areas.

With the many problems on the horizon for local government, such an effort becomes impera- tive, but I feel the present piecemeal approach is doomed to much rhetoric, many studies and, alas, only limited value.

Murray Brown Editor and Manager

Western City Magazine

Preparing Managers for the Future

To the Editor:

In the July/August issue of our Review, two

separate articles appeared which in my view relate

directly to the same subject: the creation of

generic management programs which strive to

provide present and future managers with the

opportunity to equip themselves for careers in either the private or public sectors.

In his article, "Comparing Public and Private

Management: An Exploratory Essay," Michael A.

Murray does an excellent job of describing some of the points of convergence he sees between private and public management. His summary states his belief that ".. . actual management practices point to a blurring of public and private sectors rather than to a bifurcation." His argument that the lack of conceptual development is a more serious hinderance to genericism than the self-protective stance of free standing schools of business and

public administration might be disputed on the basis of Professor Henry's article, "Paradigms of Public Administration," published in the same issue.

Professor Henry concludes his article with the

suggestion that "... public administration can

prosper only in institutionally autonomous units, free of the intellectual baggage that burdens the field in political science departments and adminis- trative science schools, alike." I believe that

Henry's support for separation is clear. Perhaps the

question of whether or not public administration

prospers is not as significant as the question of what is the most beneficial approach to educating managers for future government service.

My interest in the issue stems in part from my current situation as a public administrationist (BS in PA, MPA, and DPA), coordinating an under-

graduate generic management program; elected by a faculty (12) composed of about 1/3 business, 1/3 social science, and 1/3 public administration. Our program offers 28 hours of integrated, generic course work beginning with communication skills and concluding with management policy informa- tion systems and organizational policy analysis.

The collective experience at Sangamon State

University has been that the motivation and interest of the individual faculty members (vis d vis

generic management) is of paramount importance. A belief in and a commitment to the utility of the

generic management approach is an absolute re-

Preparing Managers for the Future

To the Editor:

In the July/August issue of our Review, two

separate articles appeared which in my view relate

directly to the same subject: the creation of

generic management programs which strive to

provide present and future managers with the

opportunity to equip themselves for careers in either the private or public sectors.

In his article, "Comparing Public and Private

Management: An Exploratory Essay," Michael A.

Murray does an excellent job of describing some of the points of convergence he sees between private and public management. His summary states his belief that ".. . actual management practices point to a blurring of public and private sectors rather than to a bifurcation." His argument that the lack of conceptual development is a more serious hinderance to genericism than the self-protective stance of free standing schools of business and

public administration might be disputed on the basis of Professor Henry's article, "Paradigms of Public Administration," published in the same issue.

Professor Henry concludes his article with the

suggestion that "... public administration can

prosper only in institutionally autonomous units, free of the intellectual baggage that burdens the field in political science departments and adminis- trative science schools, alike." I believe that

Henry's support for separation is clear. Perhaps the

question of whether or not public administration

prospers is not as significant as the question of what is the most beneficial approach to educating managers for future government service.

My interest in the issue stems in part from my current situation as a public administrationist (BS in PA, MPA, and DPA), coordinating an under-

graduate generic management program; elected by a faculty (12) composed of about 1/3 business, 1/3 social science, and 1/3 public administration. Our program offers 28 hours of integrated, generic course work beginning with communication skills and concluding with management policy informa- tion systems and organizational policy analysis.

The collective experience at Sangamon State

University has been that the motivation and interest of the individual faculty members (vis d vis

generic management) is of paramount importance. A belief in and a commitment to the utility of the

generic management approach is an absolute re-

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1975 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1975

674 674

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COMMUNICATIONS COMMUNICATIONS

quirement if the obstacles to generic management education are to be overcome. These obstacles include among others: lack of conceptual frame- works, lack of text materials, difficulty in finding "generic" faculty, and a "step-person" status vis a vis schools of business administration and schools of public administration.

Despite these obstacles, I firmly believe that a generic approach to management offers the best possible preparation for managers (or potential managers) at the undergraduate level. An emphasis on basic managerial skills; communication, ability to motivate people, ability to use quantitative tools, ability to pursue a continual self-education process, and an understanding of the people-organ- ization-society relationships; is equally ap- plicable to business, government, or any organiza- tion in between. Additionally, mobility between business and government is facilitated by a generic preparation.

From my obviously biased perspective, I would like to see a dialogue begin among the few but growing number of business, social science, and public administration faculty committed to pre- paring managers for a future where the "private- public" dichotomy will be as meaningless as the "politics-administration" dichotomy is today.

Robert J. Dworak, Coordinator, Management Program

Sangamon State University

quirement if the obstacles to generic management education are to be overcome. These obstacles include among others: lack of conceptual frame- works, lack of text materials, difficulty in finding "generic" faculty, and a "step-person" status vis a vis schools of business administration and schools of public administration.

Despite these obstacles, I firmly believe that a generic approach to management offers the best possible preparation for managers (or potential managers) at the undergraduate level. An emphasis on basic managerial skills; communication, ability to motivate people, ability to use quantitative tools, ability to pursue a continual self-education process, and an understanding of the people-organ- ization-society relationships; is equally ap- plicable to business, government, or any organiza- tion in between. Additionally, mobility between business and government is facilitated by a generic preparation.

From my obviously biased perspective, I would like to see a dialogue begin among the few but growing number of business, social science, and public administration faculty committed to pre- paring managers for a future where the "private- public" dichotomy will be as meaningless as the "politics-administration" dichotomy is today.

Robert J. Dworak, Coordinator, Management Program

Sangamon State University

On the Virtues of Wheel Re-Invention

After having re-viewed Jacob Bronowski's As- cent of Man and been made slightly uneasy over how tenuous and fragile were those first critical developments in man's rise, I am convinced that those people who decry wheel re-invention are speaking nonsense. In numerous meetings of academics and practitioners in public administra- tion, I have heard the phrase repeated with obvious disgust that people shouldn't go around trying to re-invent the wheel. The obvious point of these phrase repeaters is that they know the answer to a problem and for only a slight honorarium or honorary degree they will bestow the solution upon the schmucks who've been struggling so long and fruitlessly to find it.

My retort is: let them struggle! Wheel re- invention is necessary and important! Struggling over problems is a healthy exercise in mental

On the Virtues of Wheel Re-Invention

After having re-viewed Jacob Bronowski's As- cent of Man and been made slightly uneasy over how tenuous and fragile were those first critical developments in man's rise, I am convinced that those people who decry wheel re-invention are speaking nonsense. In numerous meetings of academics and practitioners in public administra- tion, I have heard the phrase repeated with obvious disgust that people shouldn't go around trying to re-invent the wheel. The obvious point of these phrase repeaters is that they know the answer to a problem and for only a slight honorarium or honorary degree they will bestow the solution upon the schmucks who've been struggling so long and fruitlessly to find it.

My retort is: let them struggle! Wheel re- invention is necessary and important! Struggling over problems is a healthy exercise in mental

development, and most important of all it be- comes a threshold test of ability. If people can't invent the wheel, how can we expect them to do very much with it once they've got it. Some minimal level of competence should be demon- strated by groups before solutions are thrust upon them. Otherwise, the wheel might wind up being used only for decoration or worse yet as an object of worship since a "superior" foreign intelligence delivered it in god-like fashion. As a result of my view, I propose to persons interested in public administration matters, the "wheel re-invention strategy."

The wheel re-invention strategy involves taking a relatively simple and low-level task and saying, "see what you can do about this problem." Although the solution may be obvious to you, it is important to have people engage in problems that they can solve themselves. Such exercises build self-confidence and let you know that people can do a job. Also, you may have on your staff a new PhD political scientist-statistician-planner-cum- computer jock, and you need to know whether the guy has the sense to find his way home at night. Wheel re-invention will do that for you. You may never understand anything else that he does for you, but your wheel exercise lets you know that he has minimal competence. After having invented the wheel, development may proceed geometrical- ly, but first things have been done first.

I suggest that this strategy is helpful for groups, committees, and task forces of all sorts. If a threshold task can be carried out, other steps can be taken. Can the group pick a chairman or establish an agenda or decide when to adjourn? If the group can show itself that it can work together, it is capable of handling other jobs. But, trying to implant wholesale an organizational experience on the unexperienced is frustrating both for the knowers and the unknowers. Some form of learning must be experienced for it to be appreciated.

Furthermore, I suggest that as a nation we might be better off in our foreign policy if we let other nations experience their own problemfs without benefit of our instant solutions. America's bicentennial notwithstanding, we should be more modest and let other countries make their own mistakes in trying to re-invent the wheel. It is dangerous to give others solutions like democracy, Pepsi-Cola, atomic power, or self-actualization until those persons have shown that they can solve problems on their own. Wheel re-invention has its

development, and most important of all it be- comes a threshold test of ability. If people can't invent the wheel, how can we expect them to do very much with it once they've got it. Some minimal level of competence should be demon- strated by groups before solutions are thrust upon them. Otherwise, the wheel might wind up being used only for decoration or worse yet as an object of worship since a "superior" foreign intelligence delivered it in god-like fashion. As a result of my view, I propose to persons interested in public administration matters, the "wheel re-invention strategy."

The wheel re-invention strategy involves taking a relatively simple and low-level task and saying, "see what you can do about this problem." Although the solution may be obvious to you, it is important to have people engage in problems that they can solve themselves. Such exercises build self-confidence and let you know that people can do a job. Also, you may have on your staff a new PhD political scientist-statistician-planner-cum- computer jock, and you need to know whether the guy has the sense to find his way home at night. Wheel re-invention will do that for you. You may never understand anything else that he does for you, but your wheel exercise lets you know that he has minimal competence. After having invented the wheel, development may proceed geometrical- ly, but first things have been done first.

I suggest that this strategy is helpful for groups, committees, and task forces of all sorts. If a threshold task can be carried out, other steps can be taken. Can the group pick a chairman or establish an agenda or decide when to adjourn? If the group can show itself that it can work together, it is capable of handling other jobs. But, trying to implant wholesale an organizational experience on the unexperienced is frustrating both for the knowers and the unknowers. Some form of learning must be experienced for it to be appreciated.

Furthermore, I suggest that as a nation we might be better off in our foreign policy if we let other nations experience their own problemfs without benefit of our instant solutions. America's bicentennial notwithstanding, we should be more modest and let other countries make their own mistakes in trying to re-invent the wheel. It is dangerous to give others solutions like democracy, Pepsi-Cola, atomic power, or self-actualization until those persons have shown that they can solve problems on their own. Wheel re-invention has its

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1975 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1975

675 675

This content downloaded from 188.72.126.25 on Sat, 14 Jun 2014 19:16:21 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions