Change, changes and changing: The views of public manages

Abstract

Recently forty public sector managers were asked to respond to three open-ended questions dealing with change: ‘What are the beneficial aspects of change?’ What are the negative aspects of change and What are the toughest problems faced when bringing about change? Their responses suggested that the ability of managers to bring about change was seen as being quite inportant.For most, change was felt to have a very positive impact on the organization and on its people, even wha the conditions for bringing about change wae less than ideal. These mmagers also felt change had its costs. Risk and uncertainties, temporary declines in productivity and, unanticipated consequences were frequently mentioned. Bringing about change was not t o be easy. Resistance and the managanent of change were two of the toughest problems canfronting these managers. The results of this research provide a variety of insights into the views of public managers regarding change. Perhaps the most important are their attitudes towards change. The managers who participated in this study welcaned change; desired t o become me successful in the management of change and of the change processes and; were quite concerned with the consquences associated with change.