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Theory and Practice in Public Administration

What is Public Administration?
Given that there have been several immerging meanings defining what
Public Administration is, these would simply mean that the concept of this field
has a wide account of discussions. However, I would like to simply define this
field as the democratic way of implementing policies, services, and procedures
made solely for the interest of the people and for the establishment of programs
and projects which lead to the development of the countrys economic status and
its physical structure. With this, it expresses that Public Administration attends
to the demands of services of the states people and their rights to achieve a
growing economic status and a peaceful and convenient place to live in.
On the other hand, to further explain and support my claim of what Public
Administration is, Dwight Waldo, an American political scientist, claimed that
Public Administration has dual usages. According to him, Public Administration
is perceived to be as a field of practice and a field of study. Waldo keenly invoked
that PA is an activity or process of administering public affairs and carrying out
governmental functions. Additionally, he also added that PA is a field of study or
discipline is concerned with discovering and advancing theoretical and practical
knowledge in the field using scientific methods and other social sciences use.
Examples of which are how a policy is made and implemented, the
interrelationship between government institutions, human resource
development, impact of environmental regulation on communities and economic
activities, the behavior and attitude of public officials as the perform their
official duties, leadership styles of public managers, mechanisms adopted by
poverty-focused programs, and the relations of government and the citizens.
Perspectives of Public Administration
The three (3) perspectives of Public Administration are: 1)
Traditional/Conventional PA; 2) New Public Administration; and 3) New Public
Management. These had been differentiated in different thematic points as it is
shown in the table below.
Thematic
Points
Classical Public
Administration
New Public
Administration
New Public
Management
Context
Stability,
Predictability,
Orderliness in
Environment

Assumes a
Mechanical Model
of Man

Belief in Primacy of
Turbulence,
Temporariness,
Uncertainty
Assumes an
Authentic and
Humanistic
Model of Man
Belief in Primacy
of
Societal/Individu
Poverty, Low
standards of living,
Globalization,
Economic
Integration

Belief in Primacy of
Customer Service
Satisfaction

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Theory and Practice in Public Administration
Organization Goal
(Internal
Orientation)
al Goal (external
orientation)
Values
Efficiency
Economy
Effectiveness
Relevance
Social Equity
Client-
Orientedness
Accountability
Transparency
Predictability
Participation
Effectiveness
Efficiency
Result-oriented
Structure
Bureaucratic Non-bureaucratic Decentralized
Debureaucratization

Processes
O & M
Personnel
Fiscal
Distributive
Integrative
Boundary-
Exchange
Socio-Emotional
Reinventing the
Government
Re-engineering the
Public Sector

From the table, we can see that Traditional/ Conventional Public
Administration was strictly governed by policies which makes it highly
bureaucratic. This model of administration actually rests in important ways on
the articulation by Max Weber of the nature of bureaucracy. Additionally, it
emphasized top to bottom form of management, that is, a system of control in
which policy is set at the top and carried out through a series of offices, with each
manager and worker reporting to one superior and held to account by that
person. The bureaucratic system is based on a set of rules and regulations
flowing from public law; the system of control is rational and legal. The role of
the bureaucrat is strictly subordinate to the political superior (Pfiffner, 2010).
Second perspective of PA is the New Public Administration. This
highlights the importance of democratic citizenship, public interest, public policy
and services to citizens. First, a new theory should start with the ideal of
democratic citizenship. The public service derives its true meaning from its
mandate to serve citizens to advance the public good. This is the source of
motivation and pride of all those who choose to make it their life, whether for a
season or for an entire career. Second, a New Public Administration theory
would propose a unifying vision of policy, politics and policy implementation as
one circular, integrated, and interactive process that brings together all relevant
actors. This principle of active and democratic interactions would replace the
doctrine of strict separation a doctrine that has long been discredited but is
still considered as a point of reference, particularly when things go wrong. The
new theory would recognize the fact that both policy makers and administrators
are actively involved in all aspects of policy research, policy development and
policy implementation. It would help elected officials and professional civil

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Theory and Practice in Public Administration
servants act responsibly, ethically and in accordance with democratic principles.
It would also recognize that, in the twenty-first century, discretion is necessary
in policy implementation and, thus, would help to explore how the exercise of
discretion could be informed by citizens choices and participation. Finally, the
new theory would help to address the issue of professional responsibility and
accountability (Bourgon, 2007).
Lastly, the Public New Management, on the other hand, New Public
Management (NPM) is the label given to a series of reforms from the 1980s
onwards, to improve the efficiency and performance of western governments
and/or public sector organizations. NPM points to the failures and inadequacies
of public sector performance over time, and locates the problem in the nature and
processes of public sector activity and public administration. Thus, the model
suggests ideas borrowed from the private sector can improve the management
service and could be adequately used in the planning system. The following are
the characteristics of NPM according to David Osborne and Ted Gaebler (1993):
1. Catalytic Government: steering rather than rowing
2. Community-Owned Government: empowering rather than serving
3. Competitive Government: injecting competition into service delivery
4. Mission-Driven Government: transforming rule-driven organizations
5. Results-Oriented Government: funding outcomes, not inputs
6. Customer-Driven Government: meeting the needs of the customer, not the
bureaucracy
7. Enterprising Government: earning rather than spending
8. Anticipatory Government: prevention rather than cure
9. Decentralized Government: from hierarchy to participation and teamwork
10. Market-Oriented Government: leveraging change through the market

Classical Theories in Public Administration
1. Scientific Management Theory
Frederick Winslow Taylor, an American Mechanical Engineer and
regarded as the father of scientific management, is the prime advocate of
the Scientific Management Theory. His idea of the said theory originated
from his desire to improve and develop efficiency of working towards a
greater productivity and outputs. Along with this, he had initiated several
workplace experiments to determine different best performance levels. He
started his experiments with his concept of shovel design (i.e. time
studies) where it allows workers to render overtime just to increase their
produce. Also, Taylor had concepts about bricklayers (i.e. motion studies)
wherein he customized various motions required and developed an
efficient way to lay bricks. These "time and motion" studies had led Taylor
to conclude that workers work more efficiently than others if they are

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motivated to be paid more when they could have as many productions.
From these workplace experiments, Taylor then developed the four
principles of scientific management. These principles are also known
simply as "Taylorism".
Thus, according to Taylor, in order for the organization to become
successful in terms of its productivity, he recommended that the
management should establish specific work targets, compensate workers
for the tasks and goals met, and provide regular feedback.
Though the theory has leave helpful guides on how to run an
organization, the problems along with Taylorism concepts should not be
neglected. Among the weaknesses in the said theory are (Akrani, 2011):
1. Exploitation of Workers
Taylor's Scientific Management put unnecessary pressures on the
employees to perform the work faster. Importance was given to
productivity and profitability. This resulted in exploitation of the
employees. Therefore, many employees joined trade unions. This also
resulted in mistrust between management and employees.
2. Problem of Unity of Command
Taylor used functional foremanship. So, the workers have to report
to many bosses. This breaks the principle of unity of command, where the
workers have to report to only one boss. Lack of unity of command can
create confusion and chaos in the organization.
3. Mechanical Approach
Taylor's approach was a mechanical approach. He gave too much
importance to efficiency. He did not consider the human element. Taylor
considered workers as robots, which could speed up the work at any cost.
4. Problem of Separation of Planning from Doing
Taylor said to separate planning from doing. In reality, we cannot
separate planning from doing. The planners should also be engaged in
doing, and then only they will be able to make realistic plans for the
organization.

5. Individualistic Approach
Taylor's scientific management gives too much importance to
individual performance and not to group performance. However, the

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success of an organization depends not only on individual performance of
workers, but also on group performance of workers.
6. Wrong Assumptions
Taylor assumed that workers are motivated only by financial gains.
However, in reality, workers are motivated not financial incentives but
also by social needs and personal egos.
7. Narrow Application
Taylor's scientific management has narrow application. It can be
applied only when the performance of the workers can be measured
quantitatively. It can be applied only for factories where the performance
can be measured quantitatively. It cannot be used in the service sector
because in this sector the performance of a person cannot be measured
quantitatively.
2. Administrative Theory of Management

Henri Fayol is a French mining engineer and a management
theorist. He is the first management thinker who provided the conceptual
framework of the functions of management in his book Administration
Industrielle et general. Due to his contribution to management theory
and principles, he is regarded as the Father of Modern Management
Thought. According to Fayol management, is simply the art of planning,
organizing, staffing, commanding, coordinating and controlling.

Fayols Administrative Theory of Management has contributions in
various aspects of management like the Principles of Management. These
14 principles of Fayol have guided Public Administrators on how to run an
organization. By which according to him, management should be viewed
as a profession that can be trained and developed and he even emphasized
that there is broadness of the making of policies of top level managers (
top down approach). Lastly, this theory Offers a universal managerial
prescriptions.

Nonetheless, this theory is as not perfect as what anyone else
thinks, it also has various of limitations wherein sometimes affecting the
performance of the organization if not controlled. Some of its weak points
in are (Akrani, 2011):
1. Management Oriented Theory: The administrative management theory is
management oriented. It does not give much attention to the problems of
the workers.

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2. Lack of Importance to Informal Organization: The administrative
management theory does not give any importance to informal organization
or groups. It gives importance only to the formal organization structure.
3. Concepts Borrowed From Military Science: Some of the concepts of
administrative management theory were borrowed from military science.
They tried to apply these concepts to the social and business
organizations. For e.g. Henri Fayol gave importance to "commanding" and
not "directing" the workers.
4. Mechanical Approach: The administrative management theory has a
mechanical approach. It does not deal with some of the important aspects
of management such as motivation, communication and leading.
3. Bureaucratic Theory

Max Weber is a German political economist and sociologist who
had proposed a different Principles and Elements of Management than
those proposed by Taylor and Fayol. These principles and elements of
management describe an ideal pure form of organizational structure.
According to him, through Bureaucracy, organizations will be guided with
optimal form of authority- rational authority which comes in three
forms. These are: 1) Traditional Authority- past customs; personal loyalty;
2) Charismatic Authority- personal trust in character and skills; 3)
Rational Authority- rational application of rules or laws.
Aside from these principles and elements projected by Weber, he
also categorized Bureaucracy into four principles which are: 1) in a
bureaucracy, a managers formal authority derives from the position he or
she holds in the organization; 2) in a bureaucracy, people should occupy
positions because of their performance, not because of their social
standing; 3) the extent of each positions formal authority and task
responsibilities, and its relationship to other positions in the organization
should be clearly specified; and 4) authority can be exercised effectively in
an organization when positions are arranged hierarchically, so employees
know whom to report to and who reports to them.
Nevertheless though advantages and benefits from adopting this
theory are specifically determined like offering particular Rules and
Procedures, Duties and Responsibilities, Selection process and promotion
procedures, and Division of labor, it has still its downsides by which it lead
to inefficiency when implemented. These are: 1) the system suffers from
too much of redtape and paper work; 2) employees do not develop
belongingness to the organization; 3) there are some strict rules and
regulations which treated the employees like machines and not like
individuals; and 4) employees become so used to the system they resist to
any change and introduction of new techniques of operations.

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Theory and Practice in Public Administration

Governance and its Attributes
Governance has been widely used in different field of studies by which it
gains a lot of perceptions, meaning, and concepts. To understand well the
underlying meanings of governance it is just right to look at the meanings named
from several organizations and experts.
First according to World Bank (1992) governance is a method through which
power is exercised in the management of a countrys political, economic, and
social resources for development.
The World Bank's focus on governance reflects the worldwide thrust toward
political and economic liberalization. Such a governance approach highlights
issues of greater state responsiveness and accountability, and the impact of these
factors on political stability and economic development.
The working definition used by the British Council, however, emphasizes that
"governance" is a broader notion than government (and for that matter also
related concepts like the state, good government and regime), and goes on to
state: "Governance involves interaction between the formal institutions and
those in civil society. Governance refers to a process whereby elements in society
wield power, authority and influence and enact policies and decisions concerning
public life and social upliftment."
Governance, therefore, not only encompasses but transcends the collective
meaning of related concepts like the state, government, regime and good
government. Many of the elements and principles underlying "good government"
have become an integral part of the meaning of "governance".

Eight Attributes of Good Governance
There are eight specified elements of good governance. These are: 1) rule
of law; 2) transparency; 3) responsiveness; 4) consensus oriented; 5) equity and
inclusiveness; 6) effectiveness and efficiency; 7) accountability; and 8)
participation.
To achieve our aspiration to have good governance, first, there should be a
strict compliance with the rule of law. This element pertains to the observance of
fair legal frameworks that are enforced by an impartial regulatory body (i.e.
legislative body) in order to give an optimal protection of the nation- the people.
Secondly, transparency should also be taken into account because it has a
great influence on the way they judge a certain administration in the future.

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Through this means, information should be provided in easily understandable
forms and media and that it should be openly available and directly accessible to
those who will be affected by governance policies and practices, as well as the
outcomes resulting therefrom; and that any decisions taken and their
enforcement are in compliance with established rules and regulations.
Third attribute is responsiveness. It suggests that consultation to
understand the different interests of stakeholders in order to reach a broad
consensus of what is in the best interest of the entire stakeholder group and how
this can be achieved in a sustainable and prudent manner.
Next is equity and inclusiveness. In here, the organization provides the
opportunity for its stakeholders to maintain, enhance, or generally improve their
well-being provides the most compelling message regarding its reason for
existence and value to society.
Another is effectiveness and efficiency. From this view, good governance
means that the processes implemented by the organization to produce favorable
results meet the needs of its stakeholders or participants, while making the best
use of resources human, technological, financial, natural and environmental
at its disposal.
The last two elements are accountability and participation. Accountability
is a key principle of good governance. It requires that in every action documented
in the policy statement, there should ones who will get accountable. It simply
means that an organization is accountable to those who will be affected by its
decisions or actions as well as the applicable rules of law.
Meanwhile participation means the active involvement of both men and
women either directly or through legitimate representatives, is a key cornerstone
of good governance. Participation includes freedom of expression and assiduous
concern for the best interests of the organization and society in general.
_________________________________




Case Analysis
Situation:

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Theory and Practice in Public Administration
Mr. Y, the LCE of LGU X, is disgusted with the result of evaluation of a
commissioned group regarding the quality of services delivered by the agency.
Most of the agencys clients disclosed their dissatisfaction on the performance of
the LGU due to the following problems encountered in the process of getting the
LGU services:
a) There is so much delay in getting the services due to vagueness of
procedures;
b) Absence of flow charts that would guide the clients to get the services they
needed;
c) There is palakasan in the process of getting the services in the system;
and
d) Majority of the frontline service providers do not follow the rules and
policies governing the operation of the public agency.
Concerning the above concerns, Mr. Y met the different Department
Heads and section chiefs to present and discuss the problems. A committee was
formed to study the problems and was given 5 days to design a working paper to
the same group, one recommendation was to hire a Consultant to help improve
the delivery system of the LGU.

Questions:
1. Suppose you were chosen as the Consultant of the LGU, name and discuss
at least two theories that would guide you to understand and recommend
solutions to the problems stated above.
To effectively resolve the glitches that make the LGU X unpleasant
towards its clients, the chosen Consultant should at least make an assessment
first to determine the underlying reasons which cause the occurrence of problems
as mentioned above.
If I will be the consultant, the theories which I think that definitely would
help me are the Bureaucratic Theory and the Human Relations and Behavioral
Science Theories.
I really perceived that the Bureaucratic approach suggested by Weber will
resolve the issues of vagueness of procedures, the absence of flow charts that
would guide the clients to get the services, palakasan in the process of getting
the services in the system, and the practice of frontline service providers in not
following the rules and policies governing the operation of the public agency. The
principles of the said theory are helpful in addressing the said problems because

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Theory and Practice in Public Administration
its concepts strictly employ well-defined implementation of rules and
regulations, high degree of division of labor and specialization, and a well-
defined hierarchy of authority. Also the principle of rationality, objectively and
consistency will firmly guide the employees in carrying out their functions as
public servants of LGU X. Besides, this approach also provides every
organization a given methods to be followed by the employees in doing their
works.
Meanwhile, just to strengthen the effectiveness of bureaucratic theory in
addressing the issues, it would be better if it shall be married with the concepts
of the Human Relations and Behavioral Science Theories. So, the application of
Human Relations and Behavioral Science Theories suggest that though the
concept of the first theory is quite stricter in its principles, the impact of making
changes in the agencys culture while resolving the issues will not be hard for the
employees to follow. It is in a sense that these theories still recognize the
importance of individual or group behavior and emphasized human relations.
Based on the Hawthorne experiments, these approaches emphasized social or
human relationships among the operators, researchers and supervisors
(Roethlisberger and Dickson, 1943). It was argued that these considerations were
more consequential in determining productivity than mere changes in working
conditions. Productivity increases as a result of high morale and the workers
willingness to change their malpractices is influenced by how the managers deal
with them.
Ultimately, it is still would be more effective and efficient if the principles
of the modern theories of management will also be applied in resolving issues.

2. Identify and explain four specific concepts/principles that would help you
design policies and activities to enhance the delivery system of the LGU.
I believe that the following principles of management would help design
effective policies ad activities that would enhance the delivery system of the
LGU. It will be done so by applying the concepts of Basic management Functions
of Fayol, Neo- Classical principles, and the concepts of Modern theories
particularly the Management Science.
First, through the basic management functions proposed by Fayol, it
would be easier for the LGU to resolve the issues since they will be applying the
concepts of planning, organizing, staffing, commanding coordinating, and
controlling. When planning, the employees will focus on how they should perform
in the workplace by keeping in their minds the LGUs mission, vision, objectives,
and goals. Secondly, through organizing, there will be a stricter observance of
division of labor, delegation of authority, coordination, and departmentalization.

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Theory and Practice in Public Administration
Also, staffing will tell who would be the right person to hire for a particular job.
Next are commanding, coordinating, and controlling. If these three will further
be applied, there will be a strict compliance of the rules and regulations
governing the LGU by which leading to the proper carrying out of excellent
services supposedly needed by the clients.
Next would be the principles of the Neo-Classical Theory. From the
concepts of the said theory, it highlights the value of an individual, a work group,
and a participative management. The first element emphasize that each
individual is unique in a way they behave and work independently in an
organization. Secondly, taking into account the importance of a work group, the
organization will be able to recognize the desire of every man to belong, to be
accepted by, and stand well in his group. Lastly, the participative management
which allows the workers to take part in decision making about their work
conditions, will make the employees belongingness to the group will be
organized.
Lastly, the management science of the modern theory will further enhance
the efficient formulation of policies and activities that will solve the problems of
the LGU. By applying the Management Science Process which are observing
(identification of a problem that exists (or may occur soon) in a system or
organization), defining the problem (problem must be clearly and consistently
defined, showing its boundaries and interactions with the objectives of the
organization), model construction (development of the functional mathematical
relationships that describe the decision variables, objective function, and
constraints of the problem), model solution (models solved using management
science techniques), and model implementation (actual use of the model or its
solution).
3. Identify and explain at least two strategies to enhance employee behavior in
promoting quality performance of the LGU delivery system?

Priority Recommendation Activities:
a) Conduct a regular meeting to thresh out issues and problems affecting
the delivery of services of the organization
b) Make a flow chart or a citizens charter that would guide clients on how to
access their needed services
I believe that through a conduct of a meeting every Monday each week
would alleviate problems especially in a failure of agency to satisfy the needs of
service of its clients. I suggest this because, in our agency, this is the strategy
used by our regional director. The essence of conducting a meeting is to recognize
the problems encountered by the employees in implementing rules and

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Theory and Practice in Public Administration
regulations and also in the implementation of programs and projects. The
benefits of the meeting, as we call it Mancom in our bureau, are so many. First,
the top management will be able to discuss the issues for each week and provide
a possible solution for each problem. Secondly, it will also boost the productivity
of the workers because the top management will challenge each worker to have
outstanding outputs from their work loads. Lastly, it will be a time for the top
management to recognize the employees who are doing excellently in their
works.
Lastly, making a flow chart or a citizens charter that would guide the
clients on how to access their needed services should be encouraged because this
is really helpful to lessen the burden of asking each employee everytime the
clients proceed to the next process.

Applicable Laws on the Problems
RA 9485 (Anti Red Tape Act of 2007)
Section 6. Citizens Charter - All government agencies including departments,
bureaus, offices, instrumentalities, or government-owned and/or controlled
corporations, or local government or district units shall set up their respective
service standards to be known as the Citizen's Charter in the form of information
billboards which should be posted at the main entrance of offices or at the most
conspicuous place, and in the form of published materials written either in
English, Filipino, or in the local dialect, with these details:
(a) The procedure to obtain a particular service;
(b) The person/s responsible for each step;
(c) The maximum time to conclude the process;
(d) The document/s to be presented by the customer, if necessary;
(e) The amount of fees, if necessary; and
(f) The procedure for filing complaints.

Section 11. (b) Grave Offense Fixing and/or collusion with fixers in
consideration of economic and/or other gain or advantage.
Penalty - Dismissal and perpetual disqualification from public service