Managing America's Small Communities: People, Politics, and Performance / Edition 1

by David H. Folz, Edward P. French

Overview

Managing America's Small Communities charts several key aspects of the largely unexamined world of small city management. This book describes the democraphic trends, structural features, executive behavior and service quality among small communities. Are small cities growing, declining or have they remained untouched by the force of change? To what extent have the structural changes and reforms that have swept through larger cities touched small communities? What are the characteristics and behaviors of small city chief executives and how involved are different executives in the dimensions of the governmental process? How do chief executives in small cities make decisions about local services and programs? Are there differences in the extent to which appointed managers and elected mayors are responsive to community interests? The book also examines the frequency with which small communities provide various services, the quality of services provided and how small city officials can diagnose problems with service quality and performance. The book's theme is the value added to small communities that evidence professionalism in city administration. The benefits that accrue to having a professional city manager are most apparent in the extent to which city managers are engaged in decisions related to each of the dimensions of the governmental process, the level of service quality provided, and the prospects for measuring service performance.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780742543393
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	08/25/2005
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	5.84(w) x 8.88(h) x 0.57(d)

About the Author

David H. Folz is associate professor of political science and MPA coordinator at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He has written dozens of journal articles and conference papers and is the author of Survey Research for Public Administration. P. Edward French is an instructor in the political science department at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He is the co-author of Understanding American Government.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction Part 2 Why Study Small Communities? Part 3 Purpose of the Book Part 4 Data and Methods Part 5 Plan for the Book Chapter 6 Profile of Small Communities and Chief Executives Part 7 Demographic Trends in Small Communities Part 8 Structural Features of Small Town Governments Part 9 The Chief Executives of Small Communities Part 10 The Issues That Concern Small City Chief Executives Part 11 Summary Chapter 12 Executive Behavior and Decision Making Part 13 Role Emphases and Time Allocation Among Chief Executives Part 14 Executive Involvement in the Governmental Process Part 15 Patterns of Consultation in Decision Making by Executives Part 16 The Influence of Local Interest Groups on Executive Decisions Part 17 Summary Chapter 18 Measuring and Comparing Municipal Service Quality Part 19 The Concept of Service Quality Part 20 The Two Dimensions of Service Quality Part 21 Conceptual Model of Service Quality Part 22 The Service Performance Gap Part 23 The Service Delivery Gap Part 24 The Knowledge, Service Design and Communication Gaps Part 25 The Value of Measuring Input Service Quality Part 26 Indicators of Input Service Quality Part 27 Police Services Part 28 Fire Protection Services Part 29 Building Code Enforcement Services Part 30 Solid Waste Recycling Part 31 Input Service Quality Levels Among Small Communities Part 32 Explaining Differences in Input Service Quality Part 33 Summary Chapter 34 Measuring and Comparing Municipal Service Performance Part 35 Approaches to Performance Benchmarking Part 36 Types of Measures Used in Assessing Service Performance Part 37 Municipal Benchmarking Projects Part 38 The ICMA Benchmarking Project Part 39 The Northwest Municipal Conference Projects Part 40 The North Carolina Benchmarking Project Part 41 The South Carolina Benchmarking Project Part 42 The Tennessee Benchmarking Project Part 43 Lessons from the Municipal Benchmarking Projects Part 44 Implications of Benchmarking Projects for Small Communities Part 45 Summary Chapter 46 Conclusion Part 47 Directions for Future Research Part 48 Appendix A: Measures Used for Police, Fire, Solid Waste and Recycling Services in Municipal Benchmarking Projects Part 49 Appendix B: Financial Data Collection Forms for the Tennessee Municipal Benchmarking Project