Management development programme by ministry of education
1.
2. Administrative core of the ministry was organised
into nine divisions.
The three central objectives were:-
To cope with an ever increasing workload with a
shortage in staff .
Improve the ministry’s ability to adapt quickly to
rapidly changing external demands.
To provoke professional management.
3. Selection of persons having a real genuine impact on
managerial processes.
General feeling among staff that something had to be
done to professionalize management in the
organization.
It was not a manager development programme but
“a comprehensive management development
programme.”
To establish “custom tailoring”, three things were
done:
consultant conducted interviews individually as
well as in group
4. Consultants attended and observed a number
of regular staff meetings in the organization.
A reference group was established for contact
between consultant and participants.
5. The working paper having interview information gave
three key points:
Top management team was not aware as a decision
making and policy formulating body. Too much time was
spent on exchanging information rather than discussing
problems and devoloping general guidelines for the
organization.
The culture of the organization was aware to be frindly
and polite
conflicts was to be put an end.
Manager should focus more on general managerial
problems.
6. This activities of the programme consisted of two main
streams:
Management courses and individual projects.
Each participant was asked to define a personal
management project theme, which:
Content important, complex management problems
of a specific, realistic nature.
Was of personal interest to the participant
Was of importance to the organisation
7. Involved some degree of risk taking.
Necessitated joint effort by the participant and his or
her subordinates.
Had a clear formulation of targeted end result.
Could be documented and evaluated.
8. The experiential learning model gave some points:
Learning is useful people are placed in experience
loaded environment with a certain degree of risk taking
and with high level of commitment to task performed.
Management- interpersonal process of influence and
power.
Participants could choose a task which was known and
new to them.
Project proposal had to be presented in writing and
accepted by the top management team and the
consultants.
9. The evaluation of the management development
programme is divided into separate process, result
and design evaluations.
Initial reception of the programme was quite
positive.
Individual projects- Interesting, necessary, important
but time consuming.
Motivation and energy with which the programme
participants dealt with their projects varied a lot.
10. After and overall evaluation of the results of the
programme:
Top management team enhanced its consciousness
and ability to carry out its strategic management role.
The team had become more visible and significant in
organization as well as frank and involved more
fruitful discussion.
The management group as a whole (the 54
participants) had a common long lasting interaction.
There was an increased consciousness of the
managers roles, task and possibilities.
11. Despite these positive results there were limits to the
impact of the project.
The bureaucratic culture acted as a negative point on
the more action oriented approach.
12. 1. National culture is feminine
emphasis on interpersonal processes, social
skills, end of conflict.
no hierarchical level.
2. Individualism
A link between the participant and his or her
subordinates.
Seen catalyst for organizational change.
13. 3. Power distance
Very low
Managerial staff goes through all the processes
reducing the distance between organisational levels
4. Uncertainty avoidance
Ambiguity was built into the programme.
participants were encouraged for good learning
experience.
14. A ministry experienced an IT revolution, a design
programme, an effectiveness programme and a change in
organizational structure.
The idea of this programme was to discuss vision and
objects of organization and relates to “psycologiacl
contract” of each individual.
The vision reports based on close interaction with all
layers of organization
The middle managers were doing a vital role as
“ambassador” as well as collector of information from
non managerial staffs and pass to top managers.
Athis case illustrates how the crucial role of middle
manager run a management devolpoment programme.