The second edition of The Public Administrator’s Companion: A Practical Guide examines the most important elements of public administration. The authors provide readers with a keen understanding of how government works, useful for both students and practitioners of public administration. The book discusses governmental structure, human resources, and public funding. It delineates administrators’ actions in strategic planning, consensus building, budget development, performance measurement, and public policy assessment and implementation. This edition includes new chapters on nonprofit organizations and leadership for administrators, as well as an appendix about preparing and making presentations. The previous edition’s appendix on getting a job in local government has been revised to include interviewing and hiring from the perspectives of both the agency and applicant. Real-world examples and cases from the local, state, and federal level reinforce key topics. Each chapter ends with a “Practicing Public Administration” section that provides helpful exercises for building the skills described in the chapter and a “Bibliography,” which provides useful source materials that can broaden the reader’s comprehension of the chapter.

As in previous editions, this highly practical book is written with beginning MPA students and practitioners in mind. It focuses on the interpretation and use of research findings, not just number crunching. It covers the entire research process, from initial questions to final report, in clear, jargon-free language, and includes numerous easy-to-understand examples and exercises that provide opportunities for concrete applications of the concepts. It is solidly grounded in public administration and recognizes both the promise and limitations of research within a political environment. Key features of the book: --It is highly practical and written to accommodate a mix of readers: those who want to become analysts, managers who will oversee research contracts, and citizens who need to know whether to believe the facts and data they read in today's news; --It minimizes the use of jargon and explains difficult concepts in clear language. Plentiful end-of-chapter exercises provide opportunities for concrete application of the concepts; --Key points are highlighted as "takeaway lessons" so readers are reminded about what really matters. The tough questions to ask are suggested in every chapter; --Examples and applications are used throughout the book to illustrate concepts and add topical interest; --It covers the entire research process, from initial questions to the final report. This book demystifies and makes practical the research every public administrator and policy analyst needs to do the job well. Online instructor's materials, including a Test Bank, PowerPoint slides, and a Survey and Documental Analysis (SDA) guide, are also available to adopters.

This book is designed to serve either as a companion to current introductory public administration textbooks or as a stand-alone casebook. It presents several case studies around several main themes or topics of public administration, including leadership, budgeting, ethics, and decision making.

The public sector today permeates much of society. This wide-ranging reach is distilled into a cogent overview of governing in the twenty-first century in the latest edition of Johnson’s acclaimed work. In a clear and engaging style, the author examines the public-private collaborations through which public policies are shaped, implemented, and revised. Throughout, he emphasizes the role of public administrators in forming and maintaining the partnerships that advance the goals of government. Johnson’s well-organized survey draws on both classic works and current issues in describing the organization and operation of American government. Abundant sidebars on current challenges like immigration, health care, disaster preparedness, homeland security, infrastructure investment, and data privacy offer valuable examples of public administration in practice and illuminate the collaborative nature of American governance.

Women in Public Administration: Theory and Practice provides a comprehensive exploration of the gender dimension in public administration through a unique collection of writings by women in the field.

Updated in its 8th edition, Introducing Public Administration provides readers with a solid, conceptual foundation in public administration, and contains the latest information on important trends in the discipline.Known for their lively and witty writing style, Shafritz, Russell, and Borick cover the most important issues in public administration using examples from various disciplines and modern culture. This approach captivates readers and encourages them to think critically about the nature of public administration today.

What do public administrators and policy analysts have in common? Their work is undertaken within networks formed when different organizations align to accomplish some kind of policy function. To be effective, they must find ways to navigate complexity and generate effective results. Governance Networks in Public Administration and Public Policy describes a variety of trends and movements that have contributed to the complexity of these systems and the challenges that must be faced as a result. Providing a theoretical and empirical foundation in governance networks, the book offers a conceptual framework for describing governance networks and provides a holistic way to conceive their construction. The text details the skills and functions of public administrators in the context of networked relationships and presents the theoretical foundations to analyze governance networks. It identifies the reforms and trends in governing that led to governance networks, explains the roles that various actors take on through networked relationships, highlights the challenges involved in the failure of networked activities, and illustrates how policy tools are mobilized by these relationships. Be a part of building governance networks 2.0! The author’s website contains support materials such as PowerPoint® presentations, writable case study templates, and other useful items related to building the field’s capacity to describe, evaluate, and design governance networks using the framework of this book. You can post case studies of governance networks, draw on other’s case study materials, and learn about research and educational opportunities. Based on research and real-life experience, the book highlights the interplay between public actors and policy tools. The authors demystify this complex topic of governance networks and explore the practical applications of the conceptual framework. Practical and accessible, the book presents concepts in such a way that readers can engage in these ideas, apply them, and deepen their understanding of the dynamics unfolding around them.