The Pursuit of Significance: Strategies for Managerial Success in Public Organizations

Highly progressive public managers around the world are now departing from traditional management practices and making dramatic improvements in the quality and productivity of their organizations. The author examines the approaches and philosophies that have guided the work of these “revolutionary” public managers. This book provides the tools with which to transform hierarchical, rule-bound public bureaucracies into organizations driven by a commitment to common purpose, a concern for high-quality public services, empowerment and shared leadership, a strategy of pragmatic incrementalism, and a dedication to public service. These five approaches provide a model by which public managers might more effectively carry out their own commitment to active and responsive public service. Moreover, public managers will find their own work assuming even greater meaning and significance.