Includes bibliographical references (pages 293-323) and indexes.

What makes public organizations distinctive: reexamining common views -- The environment of public organizations -- The impact of political power and public policy -- Formulating and achieving purpose: power, strategy, and decision making -- Organizational structure, design, and technology -- The individual in the organization: values, motivation, and work attitudes -- Leadership, managerial roles, and organizational culture -- Teamwork: understanding communication and conflict in groups -- Understanding and measuring organizational effectiveness -- Organizational change and development -- Managing for excellence in the public sector -- Appendix: The study of organizations: a historical overview. Bringing together generic management literature with research literature on public organizations, Rainey addresses the management of public organizations, including organizational environments, strategy, decisionmaking, structure and design, effectiveness, change, communication, conflict, leadership, and motivation. He also discusses issues of managing the political environments of public organizations; attaining power and influence; developing managerial strategy and organizational mission; motivating employees; developing effective leadership; and managing organizational change and development. ISBN 1-55542-344-2: $34.95.