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Peter D. Steane: School of Commerce, LaTrobe University, Bundoora, Australia
This paper analyses the role of values and leadership in strategy formulation within public and non-profit human service organizations. Unlike private sector organizations, they require a theoretical model that accommodates their distinctive motivational characteristics.
There is a well known advertisement on Australian television for Castrol Oil. The memorable punch-line "oils ain't oils!" reinforces the message that some (Castrol) oils are of greater benefit to trouble-free engine performance than other oils. It is an apt metaphor to begin analysing strategy across sectoral boundaries. The uncritical application of private sector strategic management practices in public and non-profit organizations can result in strategy outcomes that are less than expected. Performance gaps reinforce stereotypical accusations that public and non-profit managers lack the strategic acumen and capability of the private sector managers.
My argument is that private sector approaches to strategy are sometimes the wrong oil in public organizations and often the wrong oil in non-profit organizations. The metaphorical oil that lubricates the strategy formulation in different sectors varies. Yet the use of normative strategy approaches is a common occurrence in a climate where sectoral boundaries are increasingly blurred and collaborative ventures are fostered. The author's research analyses the influences of values and leadership on strategy within four Australian education systems, two public (technical and further education) and two non-profit (Catholic education) systems, which are referred to as Catholic education offices (CEOs). All four organizations are required to plan in a turbulent environment which requires fundamental changes in the way they operate. These changes are of a transformational nature because there is significant alteration to the basic structure and processes within management.
Shifting international agenda
Education systems within the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member countries have witnessed efforts by governments to influence the aims, structure and content of education. Governments are generally concerned with achieving broader socio-economic and political ends through education policy and practice. This indicates the increasing influence of broader stakeholders and interest groups in the management and operation of educational services.
Of the OECD nations that most influence Australian educational policy and practice, the USA and the United Kingdom figure significantly. In the USA, the conservative Reagan presidency initiated a move away from the...