The government’s approach to public sector management is in dire need of an overhaul, according to a report from Lancaster University Management School.
It said that the government’s reform agendas after the NHS modernisation plan in 2000 were too target-driven and had demoralised senior NHS managers.
Professor Frank Blackler, the report’s author, said: “The lack of local control, centralised priorities and the target regime have left a legacy, despite the slashing of targets.
“A lack of understanding between politicians and the public sector is largely to blame for the difficulties surrounding leadership and there is a real need to bridge the gap.”
The research, based on 25 interviews with NHS chief executives, assessed the roles and concerns of senior-level management.
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