George M. Guess - Böcker

The history of transit system management in the United States has largely been a history of failure--failure to come to grips with the real issues involved and failure to develop effective policies for an efficient and rational system.This book, the first major survey in more than a decade, catalogues management attempts to overcome constraints imposed by external institutional and sociopolitical factors, as well as by internal labor and resource problems. In combining actual case histories with academic insights, it offers managers and consultants the tools to make transit systems work.

First published in 1987, this reissue explores contemporary United States foreign aid policies and thinking in the Reagan era. The author argues that aid policy is often confused as a result of bureaucratic decision-making processes. The book contrasts the experience of the many countries where aid-giving has produced unwished-for effects with the few countries where the desired results have occurred. The author concludes by arguing for a new approach to aid-giving by the United States.

First published in 1987, this reissue explores contemporary United States foreign aid policies and thinking in the Reagan era. The author argues that aid policy is often confused as a result of bureaucratic decision-making processes. The book contrasts the experience of the many countries where aid-giving has produced unwished-for effects with the few countries where the desired results have occurred. The author concludes by arguing for a new approach to aid-giving by the United States.

Managing international development and aid programs often relies on trial and error and flexibility. Practitioners need a mix of management theory and field practice to prepare them for work in other countries—transitional, developing, wealthier, and poorer alike. Filling an important gap in the literature for graduate students and practitioners in the public sector, private firms, contractors, and nonprofit organizations that manage development assistance projects, this is a guide to dealing with core issues likely to be faced in doing field work.International Development Management for Public and Nonprofit Organizations offers an accessible primer on the basics of managing and motivating people, teams, and organizations. It focuses on challenges and opportunities to managing in difficult cultures and contexts, including hostile political regimes. The book takes a deeper look at management in four sectors: public finance, urban transport, K–12 education, and natural resources and the environment. Presented throughout the book are 28 cases, designed to stimulate critical discussions, as well as five technical exercises to allow integration of theory and practice. This textbook is supplemented by slides for teaching along with a sample syllabus. It is addressed to current and future international aid managers, including those enrolled in international management and international development courses at the university level. Professional development organizations, such as contractors, nonprofits, and donors, will also find the book a useful addition to their training materials.

Managing international development and aid programs often relies on trial and error and flexibility. Practitioners need a mix of management theory and field practice to prepare them for work in other countries—transitional, developing, wealthier, and poorer alike. Filling an important gap in the literature for graduate students and practitioners in the public sector, private firms, contractors, and nonprofit organizations that manage development assistance projects, this is a guide to dealing with core issues likely to be faced in doing field work.International Development Management for Public and Nonprofit Organizations offers an accessible primer on the basics of managing and motivating people, teams, and organizations. It focuses on challenges and opportunities to managing in difficult cultures and contexts, including hostile political regimes. The book takes a deeper look at management in four sectors: public finance, urban transport, K–12 education, and natural resources and the environment. Presented throughout the book are 28 cases, designed to stimulate critical discussions, as well as five technical exercises to allow integration of theory and practice. This textbook is supplemented by slides for teaching along with a sample syllabus. It is addressed to current and future international aid managers, including those enrolled in international management and international development courses at the university level. Professional development organizations, such as contractors, nonprofits, and donors, will also find the book a useful addition to their training materials.

Every government engages in budgeting and public financial management to run the affairs of state. Effective budgeting empowers states to prioritize policies, allocate resources, and discipline bureaucracies, and it contributes to efficacious fiscal and macroeconomic policies. Budgeting can be transparent, participatory, and promote democratic decision-making, or it can be opaque, hierarchical, and encourage authoritarian rule. This book compares budgetary systems around the world by examining the economic, political, cultural, and institutional contexts in which they are formulated, adopted, and executed. The second edition has been updated with new data to offer a more expansive set of national case studies, with examples of budgeting in China, India, Indonesia, Iraq, and Nigeria. Chapters also discuss Brexit and the European Union's struggle to require balances budgets during the Euro Debt Crisis. Additionally, the authors provide a deeper analysis of developments in US budgetary policies from the Revolutionary War through the Trump presidency.

Efforts by governments to promote sustained domestic economic development have been mixed. Success depends on many factors including location, geography, climate, external competition, human resources, natural resources, timing, political and governmental institutions, government capacity, implementation, leadership, values—and maybe luck. This complexity means that while development experts can often identify ingredients for success, few can prescribe the specific mix needed by a particular state to achieve sustained development over the long term. In Building Democracy and International Governance, author George M. Guess uses both case studies and careful data analysis to argue that federalist democracy may just be the most responsive, authoritative, and flexible system for nation building, and that there is value in confronting the challenges that lie in exporting federalist democracy abroad. Guess demonstrates the ways in which federation structures provide positive redundancy against failures, flexibility to change course and implement programs and policies, and state legitimacy and strength. Examining twelve wealthy and developing countries from five regions, representing democratic and authoritarian government structures, confederations, and federations, this book will be of interest to those teaching graduate and undergraduate courses in Political Development, Democratization, Federalism, and Comparative Political Economy.

Efforts by governments to promote sustained domestic economic development have been mixed. Success depends on many factors including location, geography, climate, external competition, human resources, natural resources, timing, political and governmental institutions, government capacity, implementation, leadership, values—and maybe luck. This complexity means that while development experts can often identify ingredients for success, few can prescribe the specific mix needed by a particular state to achieve sustained development over the long term. In Building Democracy and International Governance, author George M. Guess uses both case studies and careful data analysis to argue that federalist democracy may just be the most responsive, authoritative, and flexible system for nation building, and that there is value in confronting the challenges that lie in exporting federalist democracy abroad. Guess demonstrates the ways in which federation structures provide positive redundancy against failures, flexibility to change course and implement programs and policies, and state legitimacy and strength. Examining twelve wealthy and developing countries from five regions, representing democratic and authoritarian government structures, confederations, and federations, this book will be of interest to those teaching graduate and undergraduate courses in Political Development, Democratization, Federalism, and Comparative Political Economy.

Every government engages in budgeting and public financial management to run the affairs of state. Effective budgeting empowers states to prioritize policies, allocate resources, and discipline bureaucracies, and it contributes to efficacious fiscal and macroeconomic policies. Budgeting can be transparent, participatory, and promote democratic decision-making, or it can be opaque, hierarchical, and encourage authoritarian rule. This book compares budgetary systems around the world by examining the economic, political, cultural, and institutional contexts in which they are formulated, adopted, and executed. The second edition has been updated with new data to offer a more expansive set of national case studies, with examples of budgeting in China, India, Indonesia, Iraq, and Nigeria. Chapters also discuss Brexit and the European Union's struggle to require balances budgets during the Euro Debt Crisis. Additionally, the authors provide a deeper analysis of developments in US budgetary policies from the Revolutionary War through the Trump presidency.

Holistic, comparative analysis of multiple budget systems and contexts.Increasingly, governments must respond to the negative impacts of global economic crises on their revenues to finance needed services, and the collapse of their real industrial and financial-banking sectors. How they respond most effectively is a new study area which demands sharing of lessons between nations on government fiscal policies and performance. Budgeting for and financing of government programs and services vary widely among nations and it is important that we understand the implications of similarities and differences in methods and systems. Only through comparative analysis of public budgeting systems can results be improved in such policy areas as health, education, economic stabilization, and infrastructure development. The current global economic crisis has increased fiscal deficits and the accumulated public debts of most countries. It is especially critical now that lessons from budgeting in particular regional clusters be compared and that policymakers adopt the most relevant and useful ones that are available. In Comparative Public Budgeting, George M. Guess and Lance T. LeLoup examine conditions affecting budget decisions at the national and local levels. They review how nations classify their revenue and expenditure transactions, compare cultural and economic conditions between regions, and examine legal and institutional features that affect public management of budgets. Incorporating the most recent and significant changes in budget policy spanning more than 230 nations including the United States, the Commonwealth countries, and a selected group of European Union members, this book offers a fresh analysis of how cultural, institutional, and political forces determine how countries allocate resources and spend them for programs and policies.

Holistic, comparative analysis of multiple budget systems and contexts.Increasingly, governments must respond to the negative impacts of global economic crises on their revenues to finance needed services, and the collapse of their real industrial and financial-banking sectors. How they respond most effectively is a new study area which demands sharing of lessons between nations on government fiscal policies and performance. Budgeting for and financing of government programs and services vary widely among nations and it is important that we understand the implications of similarities and differences in methods and systems. Only through comparative analysis of public budgeting systems can results be improved in such policy areas as health, education, economic stabilization, and infrastructure development. The current global economic crisis has increased fiscal deficits and the accumulated public debts of most countries. It is especially critical now that lessons from budgeting in particular regional clusters be compared and that policymakers adopt the most relevant and useful ones that are available. In Comparative Public Budgeting, George M. Guess and Lance T. LeLoup examine conditions affecting budget decisions at the national and local levels. They review how nations classify their revenue and expenditure transactions, compare cultural and economic conditions between regions, and examine legal and institutional features that affect public management of budgets. Incorporating the most recent and significant changes in budget policy spanning more than 230 nations including the United States, the Commonwealth countries, and a selected group of European Union members, this book offers a fresh analysis of how cultural, institutional, and political forces determine how countries allocate resources and spend them for programs and policies.

Practitioner-oriented sampling of the major tools used to deal with current public-sector fiscal issues.Directed at state and local financial managers, Government Budgeting presents, in a short and succinct manner, a sampling of the major tools used to deal with current fiscal problems. George M. Guess provides examples from a number of states and localities and explains how to use them in diverse situations. At the end of each chapter, cases, exercises and/or questions are provided for further study. The chapters cover the major topics needed by today's practitioners: core concepts and definitions of budgeting and financial management; how to analyze the revenue budget and evaluate revenue sources; how one might plan expenditures and prepare an annual request; how capital projects should (and should not) be planned, analyzed, compared, placed into a capital improvements program, and financed; and the critical topic of budget implementation. Without claiming that practical tools can resolve every problem, the book suggests that if all stakeholders used such analytic tools the outcomes might be better for the general welfare.

Practitioner-oriented sampling of the major tools used to deal with current public-sector fiscal issues.Directed at state and local financial managers, Government Budgeting presents, in a short and succinct manner, a sampling of the major tools used to deal with current fiscal problems. George M. Guess provides examples from a number of states and localities and explains how to use them in diverse situations. At the end of each chapter, cases, exercises and/or questions are provided for further study. The chapters cover the major topics needed by today's practitioners: core concepts and definitions of budgeting and financial management; how to analyze the revenue budget and evaluate revenue sources; how one might plan expenditures and prepare an annual request; how capital projects should (and should not) be planned, analyzed, compared, placed into a capital improvements program, and financed; and the critical topic of budget implementation. Without claiming that practical tools can resolve every problem, the book suggests that if all stakeholders used such analytic tools the outcomes might be better for the general welfare.