Programs That Can Lead to an Improvement or a Decline in the Productivity of a Public Agency - Essay Example

Part 1 Reform." Please respond to the following: •Describe four incentive programs that can lead to an improvement or a decline in the productivity of a public agency. Justify your choices. In public sector incentive programs face unique challenges when compared to private sector, because usually profits are used to measure a program’s success that cannot be implied in public sector. Incentive programs that do not single out superior performers, decline the productivity of a public agency as employees are not differentiated based on performance and they feel that rewards are not worth the efforts as employees with low performance are also rewarded (TCRP, 1994). Incentive programs that are formulated by including employees are well received and increase employees’ satisfaction and improve productivity because they perceive it to be fair and justified (TCRP, 1994). Teamwork incentive programs or Gain sharing improve both individual and team’s productivity because supervisors and workers together develop teams that are successful in total quality processes and continuous improvement. As every member is involved in process improvement each gets cash awards, paid from savings and revenue gains, hence collectively work together thus improving productivity and earning incentives (Wyman, 2011; GAO, 2000). Non-monitory incentive programs such as awards, recognition, shields, certificates etc., or assigning prestigious works, autonomy or training opportunities for performance exceeding expectations also increase productivity more than monetary incentives because they provide more motivation to perform better (GAO, 2000). •Explain e-governance and assess its relationship to public administration According to Gordon (2004, p. eGovernance is “about the use of information and communications technology to improve the quality and efficiency of all phases of the life cycle of legislation”. Whereas Indian planning commission states that “e-Governance is in essence, the application of Information and communications technology to government functioning in order to create ‘Simple, Moral, Accountable, Responsive and Transparent’ (SMART) governance” (Planning Commission of India, 2003: Para 83). In simple terms it means that using information technology to improve the public administration’s organization, efficiency and effectiveness to satisfactorily serve the citizens (Zouridis and Thaens, 2003). It is claimed that only governments who are online will survive. eGovernments have accelerated the pace of reforms in administration and public management ((Zouridis and Thaens, 2003). eGovernment enables public administration to bring its transactions online and provide customers ease and convenience in transactions dealings with public administration with the use of information technology. However it has been established that it provides only shallow transactions whereas complicated transactions that require regulations and legislations are not provided online, thus reducing the effectiveness of eGovernance. Yet eGovernance at present has become an essential part of public administration and has improved the efficiency and quality of public administrations (Gordon, 2004). Part 2 "Philadelphia’s Municipal Wireless Network." Please respond to the following: •Describe and analyze four strategies the city of Philadelphia has used to balance and manage the interests of its various stakeholders when planning for and implementing its Municipal Wireless Network. The four strategies the city of Philadelphia has used to balance and manage the interests of its various stakeholders are 1. Digital inclusion strategy, is formulated to address the digital divide, variety of tactics are included to remove the internet usage barriers created by economic and social factors by providing internet and computer at lower cost and knowledge building and motivating the public to use both. It takes care of the interests of the citizens and customers at the lower end who are not able to use internet because of high cost and through digital inclusion this segment of the society will also be included in the mainstream of computer and internet usage (Brietbart, Meinrath and Lakhsmipathy, 2007). 2. Network Ownership: It is a core strategy for delivering the wireless services through partnerships with the existing private firms and not owning or controlling the wireless network ownership by itself. This was for giving businesses to local private firms. However this strategy went against the interests of other stakeholders as only EarthLink’s proposal was accepted and it gained the ownership and control of the network, as the major portion of the future revenues from the network would be enjoyed by EarthLink alone and Wireless Philadelphia also lost the ability to provide benefits of the network to the community and has to depend upon EarthLink (Brietbart, Meinrath and Lakhsmipathy, 2007). 3. Continuous process of technology refresh strategy was to keep technology updated and total replacement by the end of seven years so that technology does not become obsolete and matches with the prevailing technology, for business continuity and technology changes do not disrupt it and retains users, this strategy takes into account the private businesses and customers interest and facilitates them with up to date technology at less cost (Brietbart, Meinrath and Lakhsmipathy, 2007). 4. Promoting competition: Digital inclusion strategy doe not meant that providing internet connectivity at low cost for all, using taxpayers’ money thus demolishing other competitors business because they would not be able to provide services at such a low cost. Rather Philadelphia wireless network focused on promoting competition whereby providing low cost services only to those who deserve it and those who did not qualified for the low-cost account had to pay the standard prevailing rate thus taking care of other businesses as well. And keep entry barriers low, letting the market fix the prices and open access market (Brietbart, Meinrath and Lakhsmipathy, 2007). •Speculate: In what ways does technology shape organizational structure? Include specific, concrete examples as part of your response. Organizations employ technology in simplest and most advance forms like personal computer for word-processing and advance state of the art computer aided manufacturing machinery (Kierman, 1995). An organization’s central technology greatly influences its organizational structure (Volti, 2010). New technology arrival changes the job design, physical layout of the organization or its location, brings autonomy, changes line staff relationships, synergy, organizational processes and work teams formation (Keirman, 1995). For example communications based on information technology has changed the organization structure drastically. Email, video conferencing, intranet, computer systems had not only improve the efficiency and quality of work and lessened the time required to complete it but made organizational structure flexible, and lean by promoting concepts like work from home, remote connection etc.(Hauptman and Allen, 1987; Keirnan, 1995). Advance manufacturing technology helps in achieving the strategic pursuit of lean manufacturing that is very important in time-based manufacturing and for achieving competitive advantage for manufacturing firms (Nahm, Vonderembse, Koufteros, 2003). References Breitbart, J. Meinrath, S. and Lakshmipathy, N. (2007). The Philadelphia Story Learning from a Municipal Wireless Pioneer, New America Foundation, Retrieved 9 Mar, 2013 from http://www.newamerica.net/files/nafmigration/NAF_PhilWireless_report.pdf GAO. (2000). Using Incentives to Motivate and Reward High Performance. Human Capital. United States General Accounting Office. Retrieved 6 Mar, 2013 from http://www.gao.gov/new.items/gg00118t.pdf Gordon F.T. (2004). eGovernance and its Value for Public Administration. eGovernment competence Center. In Malerba, D. (ed) KDNet Symposium on Knowledge-Based Services for the Public Sector: Bonn, June 3 –4. Hauptman. O and Allen. T.J. (1987). The Influence of Communication Technologies on organizational structure: A Conceptual Model for Future Research. Working Paper. Alfred P.Sloan School of Management. Keirman, V.M, (1995). The Impact of Technology on Organizational Transformation. Organization Theory Research Paper. Retrieved 3 Mar, 2013 from http://www.mindspring.com/~kiernan/mgt6107.html#Impact Planning Commission of India. (2003). eGovernance. In Promoting e-Governance. Second Administrative Reforms Commission. Eleventh Report. Retrieved 9 Mar. 2013 from http://darpg.nic.in/darpgwebsite_cms/Document/file/promoting_egov11.pdf. Nahm. A.Y, Vonderembse. M.A, and Koufteros, X.A. (2003). The impact of organizational structure on time-based manufacturing and plant performance. Journal of Operations Management 21, pg. 281-306. Retrieved 6 Mar, 2013 from http://info.cba.ksu.edu/sheu/MANGT810/Literature%20Purchasing/Nahm.pdf TCRP (1994). Incentive Programs to Improve Transit Employee Performance. Transportation Research Board Executive committee 1994. National Research Council. Retrieved 6 Mar. 2013 from http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/tcrp/tsyn03.pdf. Volti, R. (2010). Society and Technological Change. 6th Edition. Worth Publishers. Wyman. K (2011). Productivity Board. Washington Secretary of State. Retrieved 5 Mar, 2013 from http://www.sos.wa.gov/productivityboard/. Zouridis. S, and Thaens, M., (2003). E-Government: Towards a Public Administration Approach. Asian Journal of Public Administration Vol.25. No.2. pgs. 159-183. Retrieved 7 Mar, 2013 from http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/apcity/unpan045350.pdf. Read More