What Right Do Public Managers Have to Lead? by Behn

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Table of Contents

Exercising Initiative
Organizational Failures
Managers are Not Perfect
References

Robert Behn’s (1998) article “What Right Do Public Managers Have to Lead?” made an attempt to explore the subject of leadership with regards to correcting the organizational, political, analytical, executive, and judicial failures that exist in the American system of governance. The author was effective in providing an explanation why markets and systems of governance do not work perfectly. Human behaviors, judgment, and strict competition limit markets from operating flawlessly, which, in turn, puts dents in how organizations are being governed.

Exercising Initiative

The idea that leaders should exercise initiative in any aspect of societal or organizational life is very empowering particularly for public managers that are afraid of converting their knowledge into wisdom in order to benefit their companies. To mobilize the available resources and to motivate employees, public managers should gather all information about how change can be implemented in a way that will not harm the present system of governance. Behn (1998) differentiated between the initiatives undertaken by public managers and the efforts of legislative or governmental bodies, suggesting that leaders make clear statements of targets and purposes through education and motivation while bureaucrats “exercise their initiative by claiming they have no ability to exercise it” (p. 211). Therefore, it can be asserted that the author made a strong argument in favor of leaders that have a potential to implement actual organizational changes through communication and persuasion.

Organizational Failures

Because the author expressed the idea that the job of a manager is making sure that employees in organizations should operate smoothly, he differentiated between organizational failures to provide a better explanation of how they could be eliminated. Executive, legislative, political, civil, and judicial failures were outlined as results of inadequate behaviors of managers and governors with regards to their abuse of power or the lack of leadership skills that limit an organization from becoming successful and reaching its goals. As effective leaders, public managers should play a key role in advocating for the interests of the group that works towards the accomplishment of the set objectives; thus, there is a need in maintaining balance within the powers of the group that works towards a goal.

Managers are Not Perfect

The key theme that Behn (1998) effectively conveyed to the reader was that public managers are not perfect, the same way as organizations are not perfect. What is important is not to expect that people will act as “angels” within the system of governance. They should rather engage others in cooperation, promote the democratic system within organizations, and be prepared to find alternative solutions to the arising issues to ensure compliance of others. The principles outlined by Behn (1998) can be easily applied to the sphere of governance and public administration in the context of the twenty-first century, and help leaders understand that transparency, the building of trust, and engagement are core components of good relationships with employees. Furthermore, public managers should use discretion when working with legislative changes and disregard the traditional methods of governance to achieve the decentralization of available mechanisms.

Overall, the article was effective in explaining how public managers should approach the subject of leadership with regards to eliminating organizational failures that prevent companies from reaching the set objectives. The article provided valuable and practical information on how public managers can exercise initiative and guide employees towards improvement.

References

Behn, R. (1998). What right do public managers have to lead? Public Administration Review, 58(3), 209-224.

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What Right Do Public Managers Have to Lead? by Behn

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