This week’s readings introduced four sources of organizational problems, including a choice among criteria of good organization, interagency conflict, interagency coordination, and role of staff.

Write a TWO PAGES essay in which you choose and describe one source of organizational problem. Identify a real-world example of public agencies’ failure or ineffectiveness (in delivering a specific service or carry out certain tasks) that originates from the source you choose. Analyze how the source contributes to the failure or ineffectiveness and discuss potential solutions.

For example, you can think of the failed response for Hurricane Katrina as a result of lacking timely coordination among state, local, and federal governments. The bidding wars among states to get personal protective equipment(PPE) last year can be considered as a manifestation of interagency conflict, where all states aim to achieve the same purpose (i.e., obtaining PPE) at the same time. Apart from these national events, you can also find examples from your workplace as long as it fits the context of public management.

Address the following in your paper:!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1- Choose one source of organizational problems. Describe its basic ideas and explain how it could cause organizational problems.

2- Describe the real-world example you choose. Which public agencies involve? What is the “failure”? what is the consequence? Please make sure you provide sufficient background information.

3- Analyze how the source you identified contributes or connects to the failure in your example. (e.g. Why delayed response in Hurricane Katrina is a result of insufficient coordination? How does it relate to the vertical/horizontal coordination challenges discussed in the textbook and lecture)

4- From your perspective, what might be the potential solution to address the problem? Please explain why.

PLEASE FOLLOW THIS instruction DOWN blow
( Format your paper and references according to APA guidelines. Provide at least FOUR references in APA citation style. Writing should be clear, well-organized, and contain minimal grammatical errors.)

ANSWER

Organizational Problems among Public Agencies

Organizational sources of problems describe events and causal factors that cause differences in goals and objectives (Kettl, 2018). This paper chooses interagency conflict as a primary source of the organizational problem, arguing that it occurs when two or more agencies are simultaneously involved in problem-solving and regulation of the same matter. Interagency conflict may arise when one agency that could have been formally subordinated overturns and overrules another agency in decision-making over the same issue (hierarchy conflict); when one agency influences the decisional authority of another agency when addressing a similar situation (relationship conflicts); and when two or more agencies have similar but overlapping decisional authority (equal power conflicts) (Farber & O’Connell, 2017). These instances create internal balances and checks when generating information to be shared, maximizing unhealthy competition between the involved agencies resulting in possible redundancies, poor productivity, decreased organizational performance and potential ineffectiveness in service delivery or absolute failure.

The 2005 Hurricane Katrina response was characterized as one of the major federal failures seen through lack of interagency coordination, indecisiveness, communication breakdowns, and ‘confusion.’ This failure can be attributed to the lack of timely coordination among agencies in federal, state, and local governments, presenting interagency conflicts. The agencies involved in disaster response and recovery were DHS (Department of Homeland Security), FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), DOD (Department of Defense), USCG (United States Coast Guard), NOPD (New Orleans Police Department), NHC (National Hurricane Center), state and local agencies such as New Orleans’s Emergency Operations, among others (Boin, Brown, & Richardson, 2019). However, despite the large workforce, comprehensive resources, and help, the response was termed a failure. It exposed deep-rooted controversies and problems in the federal government’s response strategies, lack of preparedness, and the presence of interagency conflicts among the many actors and agencies involved. This failure resulted in preventable deaths, suffering felt until today, homelessness, socio-economic costs and adverse political effects.

In Hurricane Katrina’s case, interagency conflict was experienced through hierarchical conflict and conflicts among agencies with equal powers addressing the same issue. When two or more agencies, such as in the Hurricane Katrina response and recovery have similar but overlapping decisional authority, conflict is susceptible. It becomes even worse when vertical coordination of many agencies from different power hierarchies fails. The agencies involved in the disaster response did not cooperate due to the differences in power hierarchies, roles, duties, and resource sharing in responding to the disaster. In a 2006 report, DOD and DHS cooperation were ineffective during the response, DOD and FEMA had coordination difficulties which slowed the response and recovery process. Command and control within government agencies such as DHS, DOD, and FEMA were defined as having unclear and overlapping roles and responsibilities (Davis, 2006). The confusion and lack of coordination among these agencies in the federal level escalated and spread into the state and local levels. An agency was ‘all over’ another’s organizational jurisdiction due to conflicting MVGOs (Mission, Vision, Goals, and Objectives) and lack of coordination and socialization of the involved agency members, serving the same purpose, thus, disrupting interagency power breeding ineffectiveness and response failure.

In conclusion, an effective and potential solution to address such issue would be developing a seamless, single system including agency members from federal, state, and local levels integrated with a single system such as a National Incident Management System (NIMS) (Oliver, Marion, & Hill, 2019). The system ensures effective information sharing, standard communication systems, and alert system to all involved agencies. Duties in disaster response and recovery should be redefined and communicated to avoid overlapping, maximizing coordination, command, and control, creating unified, seamless management of all agencies.

References

Boin, A., Brown, C., & Richardson, J. A. (2019). Managing Hurricane Katrina: Lessons from a Megacrisis. New York: LSU Press.

Davis, T. (2006). A FAILURE OF INITIATIVE. Final Report of the Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.

Farber, D. A., & O’Connell, A. J. (2017, August 21). Agencies as Adversaries. California Law Review, Vol 105, pp; 1375-1470. Retrieved from Government Executive: https://www.govexec.com/management/2018/08/when-interagency-conflict-good-thing/150713/

Kettl, D. F. (2018). Politics of the Administrative Process. New York: CQ Press Sage.

Oliver, W. M., Marion, N. E., & Hill, J. B. (2019). Introduction to Homeland Security: Policy, Organization, and Administration. New York: Jones & Barlett Learning.