South Africa is experiencing a process of formidable and fundamental change. Public administrators as well as politicians are under tremendous pressure as heavy demands are being placed on them. These demands include coping with interventions such as Affirmative Action, Employment Equity, and the importance of managing diversity in the workplace. Despite improvements in race relations in the past twenty years, dysfunctional and ineffective behaviour still occur. This may be a reflection of the discomfort and anxiety experienced by employees in the work setting. In order to comply with legislation, organisations created opportunities for Black, Asian and Coloured males and females, White females and disabled people. This, in return, leads to perceptions of preferential hiring. The view that Affirmative Action involves preferential hiring and treatment based on group membership creates resistance to its implementation and original purpose. The reason for this resistance might be linked to the fact that people still perceive discrimination and injustice in the workplace. These perceptions seem true in public organisations even though public organisations have taken a positive stance with regard to implementing Equal Employment and Affirmative Action plans. A qualitative design with an availability sample (N = 20) of employees working in a public organisation was used. The qualitative research makes it possible to determine the subjective experience of employees in a public organisation. Semi-structured interviews based on the phenomenological method were conducted with employees working in different sections and different positions in a public organisation. Non-directive questions were asked during the interview. The tape-recording of the interview was transcribed verbatim in order to analyse the information. Content analysis was used to analyse and interpret the research data in a systematic, objective and quantitative way. A literature-control has been done to investigate relevant research in order to determine the comparativeness and uniqueness of the current research. Results indicated that Affirmative Action has been used as a tool in achieving its goal by focusing on preferential hiring. From the responses it was clear that the majority of the participants are of opinion that preferential hiring led to the appointment of incompetent candidates. It appears from the interviews that appointments are made without basing it on merit. This is against the basic principle of the public organisation of hiring and promoting employees by set standards. Due to the fact that previous disadvantaged groups are being placed in positions of which they have no experience or are not trained in, job related knowledge seems to present a problem. From the interviews it appeared that employees felt that poor customer service increased across the organisation due to the appointment of incompetent candidates. This also seems to have an effect on the workload being handled. It seems that predominantly white employees tend to be ambivalent towards Affirmative Action. Part of the reason for this ambivalence is the fear of change, especially when that change involves a radical re-thinking of past strategies. White employees, employed by the old apartheid system, feel alienated and/or marginalised in the new Affirmative Action process. White employees are also leaving organisations because they seem not to be part of the Affirmative Action process. This leads to loss of expertise occurring in organisations. Though organisations show a considerable amount of improvement on relationships between black and white, discrimination still seems to present itself through the implementation of Affirmative Action. Managing diversity is crucial for the effective management and development of people. It is important not to focus only on cultural differences but also concentrate on individual needs and perceptions. Unfortunately, it appears that South Africa is in the process of making the same mistakes as other countries in focusing on a power game and corruption. Black employees in particular, seem to be actively recruited, placed in senior positions and given the related finishing. In other words top management are using their 'power' to enforce Affirmative Action. There are also those who want to abuse the system or maybe understand the system incorrectly. Corruption coming from top management tends to make employees negative. In order to address these issues, a succession and career planning process needs to exist which is closely tied to the organisations' strategic plan. Employment Equity, as a strategic objective, is managed by the organisation, but needs the Human Resources function in a support and consultancy role. As such, it requires translation into practical objectives for departments, managers and employees. Recommendations were made for future research. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

BACKGROUND: Powerful public-private partnerships (PPPs) can only be established if the partners are able to deal with complexity. Such partnerships may serve to stimulate local community and economic development. Thus, it may maximise the effectiveness of local groups and resources in meeting the needs for rebuilding a community through a partnership representative of the public and private sectors. A problem that exists in South Africa, is the uneven distribution of population ratios dependent on public and private sector health care service delivery, in relation to the proportion of pharmaceutical service providers in the different sectors. OBJECTIVE: The main objectives of this qualitative research investigation were to examine the prospects for PPP development in the pharmaceutical sector of South Africa as well as to explore the possibilities of a proposition for a proposed generic public-private partnership model to be managed and used in the pharmaceutical sector of South Africa. METHOD: The study comprises of the exploration of the research questions by means of a qualitative research design. The study design implicated a balance between the in-depth literature study and a qualitative research process. The researcher employed a grounded theory approach to collect and analyse the data. Data collection represented the identifiable role players and opinion formulators in the South African health care sector. By following a combination of the various qualitative sampling methods and techniques, a total of 38 (n=38) interviews were conducted. The data collected from the interviewees and from the literature study were integrated and analysed by making use of computer assisted data analysis. SETTING: The researcher selected interviewees from the South African health care sector. The interviews included role players in the pharmaceutical sector in both the public and private sectors. The interviewees further represented eight different spheres of the pharmaceutical setting in South Africa. KEY FINDINGS: The investigation identified a range of prospects for PPP development in South Africa and these were reported in terms of views, expectations and scope for success. The management elements for developing and sustaining joint ventures between the public and private sectors were identified and a proposition was formulated in theory to serve as a proposed generic PPP model (PGM) in the pharmaceutical sector for the South African health care milieu. CONCLUSION The exploratory qualitative investigation surfaced the various facets of the complexity of PPPs. The investigation concluded that several barriers, such as competition and market entry disparities between the macro and micro level pharmaceutical entities, which impede PPP development, affected the prospects for PPP development in South Africa. The South African legislation, South African Treasury guidelines, regulations and the views of the SA Competition Commission need transformation to accommodate both the micro and macro level pharmaceutical service providers in the formation of PPPs. Capacity building within the sphere of pharmaceutical service delivery to the bigger population of South Africa may become sustainable on removal of these barriers. A series of recommendations were presented and several critical issues in need of supplementary research, have been identified. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Pharmacy Practice))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

The central objective of this study was to establish the extent to which public procurement, as applied at Sedibeng District Municipality, contributes to the development of designated suppliers. Previously, procurement was considered just another function of government responsible for purchasing and receiving goods. Currently, procurement is considered a strategic function that can be utilized by government to achieve certain policy objectives, such as Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) and Local Economic Development (LED).If implemented properly, without favoritism, nepotism and corruption, public sector procurement will promote the empowerment of designated groups. In this way, it will address socio-economic imbalances of the past. The study's hypothesis implied that Sedibeng District Municipality has laudable objectives to promote black economic empowerment through procurement. However, the implementation procedures and processes showed considerable constraints. Academic literature and government procurement documents were reviewed; and interviews were conducted at Sedibeng municipal area. The literature study was based on best procurement practices both in government and private sector. Empirical research was conducted on Sedibeng District Municipality's procurement unit practices, Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise development and the benefits of procurement to designated suppliers. The purpose was to determine the role that procurement policies play in promoting black economic empowerment. Eventually, a number of models and systems were recommended to improve procurement policies and procedures at Sedibeng District Municipality. These methods include: Management Assessment System; Realistic Objectives System; Departmental Evaluation Plan; Contract Progress Report Form; and Checklists. In the view of the researcher, a combination of these methods can assist to improve procurement policies and procedures. / Thesis (M. Development and Management)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2009.

The central objective of this study was to establish the extent to which public procurement, as applied at Sedibeng District Municipality, contributes to the development of designated suppliers. Previously, procurement was considered just another function of government responsible for purchasing and receiving goods. Currently, procurement is considered a strategic function that can be utilized by government to achieve certain policy objectives, such as Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) and Local Economic Development (LED).If implemented properly, without favoritism, nepotism and corruption, public sector procurement will promote the empowerment of designated groups. In this way, it will address socio-economic imbalances of the past. The study's hypothesis implied that Sedibeng District Municipality has laudable objectives to promote black economic empowerment through procurement. However, the implementation procedures and processes showed considerable constraints. Academic literature and government procurement documents were reviewed; and interviews were conducted at Sedibeng municipal area. The literature study was based on best procurement practices both in government and private sector. Empirical research was conducted on Sedibeng District Municipality's procurement unit practices, Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise development and the benefits of procurement to designated suppliers. The purpose was to determine the role that procurement policies play in promoting black economic empowerment. Eventually, a number of models and systems were recommended to improve procurement policies and procedures at Sedibeng District Municipality. These methods include: Management Assessment System; Realistic Objectives System; Departmental Evaluation Plan; Contract Progress Report Form; and Checklists. In the view of the researcher, a combination of these methods can assist to improve procurement policies and procedures. / Thesis (M. Development and Management)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2009.

Few empirical studies have examined the relationship between learning organization dimensions and public sector performance. While others have argued that public organizations are important contexts to for the study of organizational learning, learning in public sector and government organizations has not been given the empirical attention that private sector learning has. The goal of this study is to assess to what degree a government bureaucracy can learn and to examine whether a relationship exists between learning (predictor variables) and performance (criterion variables) in a government organization. To evaluate this, the government department of Family Services and Consumer Affairs within the province of Manitoba, Canada was used as a case study. All non-political staff in the Department were invited to complete an online version of an adapted version of the Dimensions of the Learning Organization Questionnaire (DLOQ). The current study addresses several gaps in the literature. This study found that a relationship indeed exists between organizational learning and performance in a Canadian public sector context. Second, a fourth variable of performance (goal performance) was added to assess the relationship between organizational learning and an organization’s stated goals. Dimensions of the learning organization were found to be predictive of goal performance. Third and finally, this study offers recommendations on if and how a public sector organization can move from a bureaucracy, with its hierarchical authority and rules and order, to a learnaucracy, based on individual empowerment and a culture of reflexivity.

Sammanfattning Offentliga organisationer är ofta komplexa vilket innebär utmaningar i utformning och genomförande av styrning. Ett flertal internationella studier har publicerats om styrning inom den offentliga sektorn.  Dock behövs ytterligare empiriska studier och teoretisk utveckling för att ge stöd till chefer inom offentlig sektor för att de ska kunna utnyttja resursstyrningens potential. Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka hur styrning praktiskt tillämpas vid valda förvaltningar inom Region Gotland, samt vilken kongruens som finns mellan de olika styrmodeller som används. Region Gotland är en av många offentliga organisationer i Sverige som har tillämpat NPM-principer. Kundorientering, decentralisering och användning av styrmodeller utvecklade för det privata näringslivet genomsyrar organisationen. Det är flera olika former för styrning och ett antal olika styrmodeller tillämpas samtidigt. En kombination av olika former av styrning och styrmodeller utgör en styrmix inom organisationen. Empiriska data samlades genom semi-strukturerade intervjuer samt genom analys av Region Gotlands skriftliga styrdokument. Ett brett urval av chefer eftersträvades, verksamma inom olika förvaltningar, och slutligen har tio personer vid fyra förvaltningar intervjuats. Resultaten av studien visar att balanserade styrkort har en central plats i  Region Gotlands styrmix. Organisationens komplexitet leder till svårigheter med anpassning av modellen till verksamhetens kontext. Balanserade styrkort används mest för uppsättning av mål och dessas uppföljning. Praktisk implementering och genomförande av balanserade styrkort på verksamhetsnivå finns bara hos en förvaltning av fyra undersökta. Implementering av balanserade styrkort inom en verksamhet med stark kulturstyrning kräver engagemang av chefer på alla nivåer, stöd från toppen och tid för kulturförändring. Balanserade styrkort kräver ständigt arbete för att utveckla dem. Från denna studie framgår det inte att det finns några större problem med motsättningar mellan olika modeller. Dessa förekommer dock inom administrativ styrning, till exempel vid införande av ny policy eller nya riktlinjer. Det kan också uppstå motsättningar mellan budgeten och balanserade styrkort. Dock står det tydligt i Region Gotlands styrdokument att vid konflikter är det ekonomin som styr. Resultaten av studien bekräftar i stora drag den bild som ges i tidigare forskning. Studien ger kompletterande perspektiv genom belysningen av problematiken i en verksamhet med både kommunal och statlig styrning, samt genom den geografiska tillhörigheten (tidigare större studier på området har gjorts i andra länder). Vidare forskning om styrning i offentliga verksamheter, framför allt på verksamhetschefsnivå, är angelägen. / Abstract The purpose of this research is to analyze how management is applied practically within selected public sector administrations of Gotland Region and determine what congruence is applied between different management models. Empirical data has been collected through semi-structured interviews and together with analysis of Gotland Region governing documents. Firstly the aim was to interview a wide selection of different public sector managers. However, ten representatives from four different administrations were finally interviewed. The results of the study show that a balanced management takes a central place in Gotland Region Management Control Systems Package. The complexity of the organization causes difficulties in applying the model to the whole organization. Balanced scorecard is mostly used for goal setting and monitoring. Only in one of four administrations practical application and implementation of balanced scorecard on management level taking place. Implementation of balanced scorecards within organizations with strong cultural governance requires committed managers at all levels, support from the top managers and time for cultural transformation. This study reviled did not find major contradiction between different models of management. However, contradictions may occur within administrative control. Should a conflict between economic aspects and balanced scorecard occur, economy takes control. This rule is clearly stated in the governing documents.

This thesis is an exploratory study that measured the alignment of corporate risk management practices in six organizations in the Government of Canada with best practices described in the 2009 ISO 31000, as well as five independent variables believed to influence risk management practices in an organization. The objective was to determine if risk management practices vary from one organization to another in a single government, and if so why, as well as building a number of testable hypotheses for future research. The thesis found that risk management practices do vary significantly from one organization to another. It also found that there is a strong correlation between an organization’s budget, total workforce and the policy instruments it uses, and the alignment of its corporate risk management practices with ISO 31000:2009. This study furthers our understanding of how risk management is implemented in public sector organizations.

Government of Canada communications professionals work in an increasingly challenging environment, characterized by an intrusive 24/7 media cycle, a frenetic pace of evolving communication technologies, layered accountability requirements, political tension, and waning public trust. Scholars call on professional communicators to help rebuild public trust, which is intrinsic to a healthy democratic government. The Three-dimensional Model for Transparency in Government Communication developed by Fairbanks, Plowman and Rawlins (2007) serves as the theoretical framework for investigating the Government of Canada’s approach to transparent citizen-focused communications from the perspective of communications professionals. The model’s adaptability to the Government of Canada context is tested through 23 qualitative semi-structured interviews with Government of Canada senior communications advisors, managers and executives. The data is analysed using constant comparative thematic analysis. The findings demonstrate that Government of Canada communicators strongly value transparency. Furthermore, the key components of the transparency model – communications practices, organizational support and provision of resources – encapsulate the factors that influence the practice of transparent citizen-focused communications by the Government of Canada. The study concludes by offering recommendations for future research and practical applications.

In 2007, Uganda had one of the lowest levels of access to electricity in the world. Given the influence of multilateral and bilateral agencies in Uganda; the strong international reputation and domestic influence of its President; the country’s historic achievements in public sector and economic reform; and the intimate connection between economic performance, social well-being and access to electricity, the problems with Uganda’s electricity sector have proven deeply frustrating and, indeed, puzzling. Following increased scholarly attention to the relationship between political change, policymaking, and public sector reform in sub-Saharan Africa and the developing world generally, this thesis examines the multilevel politics of Uganda’s electricity sector reform process. This study contends that explanations for Uganda’s electricity sector reform problems generally, and hydroelectric dam construction efforts specifically, must move beyond technical and financial factors. Problems in this sector have also been the result of a model of reform (promoted by the World Bank) that failed adequately to account for the character of political change. Indeed, the model of reform that was promoted and implemented was risky and it was deeply antagonistic to domestic and international civil society organizations. In addition, it was presented as a linear, technical, apolitical exercise. Finally the model was inconsistent with key principles the Bank itself, and public policy literature generally, suggest are needed for success. Based on this analysis, the thesis contends that policymaking and reform must be understood as deeply political processes, which not only define access to services, but also participation in, and exclusion from, national debates. Future approaches to reform and policymaking must anticipate the complex, multilevel, non-linear character of ‘second-generation’ policy issues like electricity, and the political and institutional capacity needed to increase the potential for success. At the heart of this approach is a need to carefully consider how the character of state-society relations in the country – “governance” – will influence reform processes and outcomes.

In this study, it is aimed to derive strategies and develop a Balanced Scorecard in General Directorate of Environmental Impact Assessment and Planning in Ministry of Environment and Forestry. Firstly, the objectives of the General Directorate defined in the law are reassessed and strategies to realize the objectives are derived by making use of feedback received by conducting surveys to 4 main stakeholder groups which are the staff of the General Directorate, Provincial Directorates, companies preparing EIA reports, other public institutions, and interviews with managers. Following the determination of strategies, performance measures for each strategy are specified, replaced into internal business perspective, stakeholder perspective and learning and growth perspective in the Balanced Scorecard and and finally deployed to head of departments and branch offices.