Understanding and Managing Public Organizations, 5th Edition

CHAPTER THREE

WHAT MAKES PUBLIC ORGANIZATIONS DISTINCTIVE

The overview of organization theory in Chapter Two brings us to a fascinating and important controversy. Leading experts on management and organizations have spurned the distinction between public and private organizations as either a crude oversimplification or an unimportant issue. Other very knowledgeable people have called for the development of a field that recognizes the distinctive nature of public organizations and public management. Meanwhile, policymakers around the world struggle with decisions—involving trillions of dollars’ worth of assets—about the privatization of state activities and the proper roles of the public and private sectors. Figure 1.2 asserts that government ...