Analysis of the management canon: An Internet Delphi study of management readings and competencies deemed essential by leaders in the fields of public administration and public library direction compared with readings required and competencies taught at their respective graduate schools.

摘要

Using the Delphi method (rounds of responses by experts moving toward consensus), the researcher sought managerial competencies and readings upon which leading city managers and public library directors could agree. After establishing two separate panels of perceived leaders (as nominated by their peers), the researcher asked respondents who committed to the study to respond at a Web site to both lists of competencies and selected titles as sugsested by a comprehensive literature search.; Simultaneously, the researcher made a smilar enquiry of management instructors at the graduate schools of librarianship and an equal number (randomly selected) of instructors at graduate schools in public administration.; Without offering conclusive findings, the study indicates similarities in the panelists' belief systems. Library directors agreed that the following skills were "essential:" adaptability/flexibility; automation awareness; communication; and vision. City managers unanimously valued similar skills (with different names) as "essential," including: change mastery; community involvement; planning; political maneuvering; problem solving; stress reduction; and technological literacy.; Neither panel could unanimously agree upon "essential" readings. Library directors included six titles with high scores, three of which the city managers agreed upon, including: Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Covey; In Search of Excellence by Peters and Waterman; and, Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, and Practices by Drucker.; There was little correlation of these selections with the responses by the graduate schools which participated. Most programs were not oriented toward specific skills and the required readings were most often textbooks (although the practitioner panels did select one text each).