The purpose of this essay is to investigate the factors that influence the middle-managers' way of handling challenging situations at work. The questions include in which way managers handle the demands and expectations of the professional role, but also what factors they consider as important to be able to cope with these challenges. The material that forms the basis for this study is four dissertations which all deal with issues concerning the leadership that is conducted at the operational level. The theoretical basis of the study includes various theoretical concepts such as social action, coping strategies and social support. Also, parts from the dramatic perspective have been retrieved where Erving Goffman's theory about “the mediator” is relevant to current essay. Previous research explains how middle managers get in a difficult position between the different actors' interests within the organization. The research also describes the complexity of middle-level leadership. The results of the present study shows that managers handle difficult situations at work by balancing loyalties, seeking support at work, and relate to the leadership role in a certain way. The factors that affect whether managers can handle challenges are due to personal or organizational factors, such as the orientation of the organization, the amount of social support or the influence of the personal life. / Studien syftar till att undersöka vilka faktorer som har betydelse för hur mellanchefer hanterar de utmaningar som präglar ledarskapet.Forskningsfrågorna besvarar på vilket sätt cheferna hanterar de krav och förväntningar som ställs på yrkesrollen, men också vilka faktorer som de anser skapar förutsättningar för att kunna hantera dessa krav och förväntningar. Det material som analyserats och som utgör grunden för studien är fyra avhandlingar som alla behandlar frågeställningar kring det ledarskap som bedrivs närmast verksamheten inom vård och omsorg. Studiens teoretiska utgångspunkter innefattar olika teoretiska begrepp såsom socialt handlande, copingstrategier samt socialt stöd. Även delar från det dramaturgiska perspektivet har hämtats där Erving Goffmans teori ommedlaren utgör relevans för föreliggande studie. Tidigare forskning redogör för hur mellanchefer hamnar i en klämd position mellan olika aktörers intressen inom organisationen, forskningen beskriver också den komplexitet som ett ledarskap på mellannivå innebär. Föreliggande studies resultat visar att chefer hanterar svåra situationer i arbetet genom att balansera lojaliteter, söka stöd i arbetet och förhålla sig på ett visst sätt till ledarrollen. De faktorer som påverkar huruvida cheferna anser att de kan hantera utmaningar beror på personliga alternativt organisatoriska faktorer, såsom verksamhetens inriktning, upplevt stöd och privatlivets karaktär.

Because of an increasing demand from customers and changing external environment, there is a need for continuous improvements, for both manufacturing and service organizations, to meet these demands. Manufacturing organizations have been working systematically with quality improvements for a long time, but it has not been as common for service organizations. Because of that the methods to use for implementation of the systematic improvements have not been designed to fit service organizations, and not either for public organizations. The purpose of this thesis is to explain if and why the Swedish Road Administration’s organizational culture and handling of ideas and deviation support an implementation of continuous improvement management. The study of the Road Administration’s performance is being compared to Clarion Hotel, as Clarion is a Swedish good example in continuous improvements in service organizations. To fulfil the purpose, a case study is made at the Road Administration organization, where a quantitative study of the organizational culture is made, and also a qualitative study of the performance. The quantitative study is based on Detert et al (2000) eight important values for effective continuous improvements that Detert et al. has connected to eight dimensions of organizational culture. The qualitative study is based on factors that previous studies have shown to be important for success of continuous improvements. The results show that the Road Administration’s organizational culture can support a system of continuous improvement, but there are subcultures that have opposite values within the organization. Within some cultural dimensions there is a strong culture, which is positive as these values support the improvement system. The results also show that the performance of Clarion Hotel and the Road Administration is well in line with many of the critical success factors, but there are some areas in need of improvement. The two organizations are differing in their performance at certain points, which can be an contributing cause of the fact that Clarion Hotel is interpreted to be ahead of the Road Administration, in terms of a successful implementation of continuous improvement. The major differences are the degree of involvement of the employees and their knowledge of the improvement system, as well as the lack of strategic focus on improvements in the Road Administration, and that the improvements have not yet had effect on the strategic goals. The results indicate that the Road Administration has not succeeded in communication the purpose of improvements and it also seems that there is a lack of communication around the values of the organization.

Lean management is a philosophy focused on identifying and eliminating waste throughout a product’s entire value stream. It originates from the manufacturing system of Japanese automotive manufacturer Toyota and attracted due to its tremendous success widespread attention worldwide. Lean promises significant benefits in terms of waste reduction, and increased organizational and supply chain communication and integration.Generally, in terms of operations and improvements service companies are far behind manufacturing industries. Transferring Lean management concept from the manufacturing shop floor to services might offer opportunities for improvements. Many manufacturing businesses have improved and profited by the use of Lean management methods and tools. Yet the benefits haven’t been as nearly as impressive for service industries applying Lean management principles.The challenge in applying Lean to services is the lack of widely available references for implementing Lean in a service organization. Although some successful examples of Lean implementations in service businesses could be noticed in the past no standardized framework or general guideline was solidified for implementing Lean management in service organizations. In addition, implementing Lean and achieving the levels of organizational commitment, employee autonomy, and information transparency needed to ensure its success is a complicated task.This paper approaches to develop a conceptual framework for implementing Lean management in service organizations. Based on a sound theoretical foundation of Lean management methods in production and considerations about service management, challenges of implementing Lean in a service environment are derived. Ultimately, a conceptual framework is developed to implement Lean management approach in service businesses using a specific set of Lean tools.

Organizational capacity is a concept that has garnered increased attention from the public and nonprofit management literature in recent years. Capacity, broadly defined as the ability of an organization to fulfill its goals, has been of particular focus of scholars interested in understanding the variables that impact organizational performance. Despite the increased focus on organizational capacity in the literature, the concept remains vague. Given the fuzziness of the concept of capacity, there is much opportunity to contribute to the field's knowledge and measurement of the concept. This dissertation adds depth to the capacity literature in public and nonprofit management by identifying, describing and measuring the different dimensions of capacity relevant to local social service delivery organizations. Utilizing a two-phase sequential mixed method design including both interview and survey data, the findings suggest that organizational capacity consists of a number organizational resources and capabilities that impact the functioning of the internal organization as well as its relationships with other relevant organizations and external stakeholders. In particular, six dimensions of capacity were identified: human resource, financial resource, information technology, knowledge, stakeholder commitment, and collaborative. The survey results indicate that the six dimensions are connected to the theoretical construct of organizational capacity. However, results from the discriminant validity tests of the six subscales are mixed. This finding implies that these dimensions represent broad constructs that impact the other dimensions directly. This finding also highlights the challenge of defining and measuring discreetly the specific dimensions of capacity. Future research should examine these discrepancies in order to further disentangle capacity as a theoretical construct. / Ph. D.

No description available.

The increase of standardized working methods in social work is a well discussed topic due to the fact that the social workers have to practice social discretion in their profession. Previous research into the topic of work methods for social work and work involving human service organizations has been extensive. Many previous works have appraised standardized working methods as this is believed to effectivize and legitimize social work further. However, another school of thought argues that standardized methods may limit the worker and prevent them from making crucial decisions based on their own judgment. This study presents and discusses how standardized working methods may affect the social workers liberty to act of their own accord by using their professional discretion. Furthermore, the study discusses how standardized methods of work may affect the overall profession of social work altogether. The findings suggest that, although standardized working methods may be very effective, they must still allow room for individual judgment as well. This will ensure that rules and regulations are followed and the goals of the organization are being met, without compromising on the important relationship between social workers and their clients. A recurring theme throughout this study is the complexity of social work.

Globally, the use of ERP systems has increased significantly. Organizations in developed and developing countries are pursuing ERP systems to stand out globally for facilitating their growth beyond their previous inhouse systems. Even if public organizations were not the main target of ERP systems, as ERP systems were first developed for manufacturing organizations, due to the countless benefits gained from the utilization of the systems they became part of the worldwide trend of implementing ERP systems long ago. These organizations have different culture and encounter numerous challenges due to several reasons. The purpose of this study was to explore ERP system implementation challenges by developing countries’ public sector organization’s and identify which critical factors has high impact in the success or failure of the implementations. The participants were 11 experienced IT experts with adequate knowledge on the ERP currently or previously involved in ERP implementation in Ethiopia, chosen case country in public sector organizations. The results of this study are comprised of systematic literature review and qualitative analysis, and data were collected using documentary search and semi-structured online interviews, respectively. Through deductive thematic analysis, themes were identified which are presented in 5 categories: critical success factors, ERP systems pre-implementation challenges, during implementation challenges, post implementation challenges, success of ERP system implementation and its measurements. The results are discussed based on comparison of the literature findings and qualitative analysis.

The study aims to describe and analyse the relationship between norm and practice regarding social services casework on honour-related problems. The relationship between norm and practice involves the difference between the way it is intended that social workers shall operate in these cases and how they perceive that this works in practice. We interviewed two focus groups of eight Swedish social workers, four in each group. We also held an individual interview with a social services business developer. Focus group interviews were based on two vignettes; one depicting an honour-related case and the second an "ordinary" case. The purpose of the vignettes was to investigate whether there is a difference in the assessment and handling of ordinary versus honour-related cases. The results of the interviews were analysed using Hasenfeld's theory on Human service organizations. We also used Lipsky's theory on street-level bureaucracy. We displayed similarities to previous research showing that social workers are unsure of how to assess and act on honour-related cases. It was evident that the social workers we interviewed were confident working "ordinary" cases involving child abuse, but felt uncertain dealing with honour-related cases. Because they are less frequent they have developed neither routines nor guidelines for them. The study showed that social workers’ lack of knowledge of honour-related problems and differences in culture limits their effectiveness in these cases. The results suggest that the social workers we interviewed rely on outside expertise when they are insecure, and consequently feel that they have no need for action plans or guidelines in honour-related cases. Lack of guidance and inadequate knowledge presents difficulties for social workers to meet the girls’ needs for help and support.

Magistro baigiamajame darbe atliekamas motyvacinių faktorių įtakingumo vertinimas Lietuvos, JAV ir Didžiosios Britanijos paslaugų ir gamybos organizacijose, analizuojami Lietuvos ir užsienio autorių teoriniai teiginiai darbo motyvacijos bei motyvacinių faktorių klausimais, išryškinami motyvacinių faktorių įtakingumo ypatumai Lietuvos, JAV ir Didžiosios Britanijos paslaugų ir gamybos organizacijose. Darbe nustatyti motyvacinių faktorių ir demografinių veiksnių tarpusavio sąryšiai, identifikuoti pagrindiniai darbo motyvaciją įtakojantys veiksniai gamybos ir paslaugų organizacijose. Magistro darbo pabaigoje pateikiamos išvados ir rekomendacijos. / The master‘s paper is subjected to exercising motivation factors influence evaluation research in service and manufacture organizations in Lithuania, USA and Great Britain as well as analysis the works of Lithuanian and foreign authors on the subject of theoretical work motivation and factors of motivation, also there are exposed peculiarities of motivation factors influence in service and manufacture organizations in Lithuania, USA and Great Britain. Here is also detected correlation between motivation and demographical factors as well as identified the main factors making influence on job motivation in service and manufacture organizations in Lithuania, USA and Great Britain. At the end of master‘s paper outcomes and recommendations are submitted.

The aim of this study has been to highlight how school social workers experience their discretion, and furthermore how they feel about working in a context mainly dedicated to teachers. The study is executed with a qualitative research method where ten interviews with school social workers, in eight schools in the area of Stockholm have been conducted. The theoretical framework used to analyze the results was discretion, street-level bureaucracy and human service organizations.The main findings of this study imply that the most important ambition of the social work that was conducted in the schools was to help the students reach their knowledge goals. The assignment is, however, not clearly defined, which has lead to school social workers defining the mission and goals themselves. They all have wide discretion and great possibilities to decide how to execute their work, but how they use the freedom that was given seems to vary among them. An additional finding was that being a school social worker is often a solitary role in the organization, and therefore most of them highlight the importance of enjoying independent work and having a co-worker to discuss their work with.