My original goal for the blog, Inside the Health Department, was to provide an outlet for governmental public health employees to voice their concerns about the state of their discipline. I told myself I would run the blog for eight to twelve months and then assess its status. Well, nearly […]
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Employee morale is defined by the Business Dictionary as “the emotions, attitude, satisfaction, and overall outlook of employees during their time in a workplace environment.” Who is responsible for assessing and monitoring the morale of governmental public health employees and taking action when it declines? My experience showed me that effective […]
In a previous post, I wrote that the development of effective leaders must be prioritized if governmental public health agencies are to be transformed. A large body of literature exists on the styles and qualities associated with successful leaders. After having read that literature (admittedly a small portion), it seems […]
In my last posting, I said I would relate the characteristics of dysfunctional families to toxic organizations. I do so here, but first, let’s briefly revisit those characteristics. Recap Members of dysfunctional families often: Live in denial about their problems. They may also be anxious, hypervigilent, and live in […]
I will soon turn the attention of this blog to how toxic organizations might be transformed, but before I do so, I would like to explore the topic of why organizational dysfunction persists despite clear signs of its existence (e.g., low morale, poor performance, and high employee turnover). It’s not […]
I am very happy to announce that my novel, Think Zebras, was released today. The story follows Mary Campbell, the nurse supervisor for the Revere County Communicable Disease Control Unit, as she unravels the mystery of why her county is experiencing an increase in norovirus outbreaks. Readers of this blog […]
This posting looks at the culture of public bureaucracies as one of the barriers to innovation and reform identified by Roberts Gates in his book, Passion for Leadership: Lessons on Change and Reform from Fifty Years of Public Service (1). Anyone who has worked in a government agency knows that […]
In my last posting, I presented three barriers identified by Roberts Gates about why public institutions are failing (1). This posting looks at a fourth, and as with the first three, I relate it to my experience working in governmental public health. _________________________________________________________________________________________ My initial reaction to news about legislators […]
In his new book, A Passion for Leadership: Lessons on Change and Reform from Fifty Years of Public Service, Roberts Gates has written the most candid and accurate summary I’ve seen yet of why public institutions are failing the American people (1). And Dr. Gates has the practical experience to back […]
In my last post, I presented the hypothetical case of a program manager who is a bully and how that person’s behavior might negatively influence the morale of a public health agency. Adam Grant, PhD, an organizational psychologist and professor at the Wharton School of Business, captures many of the […]