Outsourcing State and Local Government Services

Outsourcing State and Local Government Services

Author: John O'Looney

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 1998-11-19

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 0313035350

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Should we be doing—or trying to do—everything ourselves, or might it be better to contract some tasks out to others? Could they do them better and cheaper than we can? More and more state and local governments are asking these questions, and while there are many answers on the Federal level, these answers often don't apply lower down the line. Nevertheless, it is evident that contracting out is often the better strategy—but how best to go about it? What are the benefits and what are the hidden risks? Dr. O'Looney's book provides precisely the guidance that state and local managers need: first, how to decide to outsource a government service, then step-by-step how to proceed. Based on extensive interviews and other research, O'Looney takes managers through the intricacies of contract outsourcing and administration, but in doing so he makes clear that he appreciates the importance of government. His book is not an argument for privatization, as so many other books are; rather, it is an affirmation of government and the benefits of its many services. Readers will find theory and advice on the services that are most suitable for contracting out; a listing and review of the components of a high-quality analysis, including the analysis of often overlooked political, organizational, and functional aspects of government; advice on how to go from deciding to outsource to actually designing, implementing, and monitoring a contract in situations that could prove hazardous to the livelihoods of government workers. He also discusses the changes that need to be made in the organizational culture, management, and employee training as a result of the change to a contract-based system of providing services; the considerations in designing work specifications and other critical aspects of the government-vendor relationship, and how ideal contracting processes and ideal contracts can differ according to the nature of the service being contracted. The result is a thorough and highly practical volume for executives and managers in the public sector, and for those who hope to do business with them.


Developing External Partnerships for Cost-Effective, Enhanced Service

Developing External Partnerships for Cost-Effective, Enhanced Service

Author: Larry H. Dietz

Publisher: Jossey-Bass

Published: 2002-01-24

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780787957889

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With growing expectations from students, parents, staff, faculty and the community for efficient and effective services on the campus, student affairs administrators are increasing their use of outsourcing arrangements and external partnerships to meet these demands. This volume offers a variety of models for the enhancement of services through external partnership, including on- and off-campus collaboration with public and private entities. It explores the challenges student affairs professionals face when determining how to meet a particular constituency's needs in the most cost-effective and efficient manner. A significant theme that emerges in this connection is the importance of structure in assessing and evaluating current levels of service. The ideas shared in this volume will assist decision-makers in the process of evaluating current services and determining whether and in what form external partnerships can improve those services for the benefit of the campus and the community. This is the 96th issue of the quarterly report New Directions for Student Services.


Private Security, Public Order

Private Security, Public Order

Author: Simon Chesterman

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2009-11-05

Total Pages: 262

ISBN-13: 019957412X

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Public functions are increasingly being outsourced to the private sector. This includes activities that impact on human rights and security. Drawing on insights from various disciplines, this book looks at the costs and benefits of privatization and at whether there are limits to this trend.


The Privatization of Human Services

The Privatization of Human Services

Author: Harold W. Demone

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2013-11-09

Total Pages: 275

ISBN-13: 3662303094

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No reader of professional journals, agency reports, or the daily press needs to be told that Professors Gibelman and Demone have assembled a vol ume of contributions to a very lively debate. The two words highlighted, "privatization" and "contracting," sum up the prescriptions of many for social service reform and the anxieties of others who question the new strategies. The pace and scale of developments over the past 2 decades sometimes allows us to forget that the subject has a long history. Privatization may be thought of as involving public turnover to the private sector of responsi bility for services it has been delivering. Or it may be the public sector arranging for the private sector to take on new services that the public wishes to encourage or for which it accepts responsibility. The transaction usually involves public funds. The historical story, however, is not one of public temporal primacy.


Student Services

Student Services

Author: Susan R. Komives

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2003-06-17

Total Pages: 760

ISBN-13: 0787971235

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Since it was first published in 1980, Student Services: A Handbook for the Profession has become a classic reference in the field. In the fourth edition of this important resource the contributors'—a stellar panel of student affairs scholars—examine the changing context of the student experience in higher education, the evolution of the role of student affairs professionals, and the philosophies, ethics, and theories that guide the practice of student affairs work. Comprehensive in scope, this book covers a broad range of relevant topics including the development of student affairs, legal and ethical foundations of student affairs practice, student development, learning and retention theories, organizational theory, dynamics of campus environments, strategic planning and finance, information technology in student affairs, managing human resources, multiculturalism, teaching, counseling and helping skills, assessment and evaluation, and new lessons from research on student outcomes.


Privatizing the Public University

Privatizing the Public University

Author: Christopher C. Morphew

Publisher: JHU Press

Published: 2009-07-01

Total Pages: 221

ISBN-13: 0801896606

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With public colleges and universities facing substantial budget cuts and increased calls for accountability, more institutions now rely on private revenue streams for support. As market-driven policies and behaviors become more commonplace, some cautious critics sound the alarm, while others watching the bottom line cheer. But which perspective gets it right? Does the privatization of public higher education threaten its very mission or support it? In this collection of essays, economists, policy makers, political scientists, sociologists, and organizational researchers discuss the impact of privatization from their respective disciplinary perspectives and assess its implications for the future of higher education. Privatization may bring additional funds and services that are free from government regulations and oversight, but does it also allow private interests to have undue influence over public higher education? Should public universities have to compete in the economic marketplace as vigorously as they do in the marketplace of ideas? What are the implications when institutions of higher learning function like businesses? With privatization now a reality for most public colleges and universities, an objective examination of the issue from these diverse academic perspectives will be welcomed by those struggling with its challenges.