Public administration as a calling: Leadership and service in action
Public administration requires collaborative efforts to support the functioning of an organization. Frequently, the achievement and downfall of an organization, especially in public institutions, heavily depend on public administration. Furthermore, throughout the process of public administration, disruptions manifest as sudden changes, issues, and obstacles. Disruptors are unavoidable, particularly for an expanding organization. During this period of upheaval, the organization’s strength and steadiness are put to the test.
In handling these disruptors, critical thinking matters. In making a decision for an organization in a state of disruption, critical and creative thinking play a vital role. One poor decision may lead to a bigger disruption. Every single step of the decision-making process should undergo critical and creative thinking, especially in public institutions, where every decision becomes a policy for the public to observe. Leadership defines governance; through leadership, the organization manifests the quality of public services it provides, which are the ends of governance.
A good leader resembles a complete public administrator. Without a doubt, leadership is public administration. The thought image of a leader, who knows the core of good governance, respects democracy, and applies critical and creative thinking in making decisions, is the same as the thought image of a public administrator.
With this, higher education institutions bear the biggest responsibility to transform this learning, especially as HEIs keenly join the movement for local and national development. Since then, the HEIs continue to value the relationships between critical thinking and strategic communication toward development. Thus, the role of public administration is to determine their operations. In connection to this, HEIs should ensure that every decision is made through critical and creative thinking, specifically when it comes to its core functions such as instruction, research, extension, and production.
Higher education must emphasize critical thinking abilities rather than just knowledge, nurturing engaged and effective citizens. Educators in higher education, those serving as classroom leaders and managers, need to move beyond memorization and collaboratively develop new understanding. This change necessitates ongoing curriculum evaluation and extensive faculty development.
Making sound decisions and policy alone is not enough; implementation and revision of these decisions, turned into policies, matter more. Open communication among stakeholders sets an atmosphere of innovation and creativity needed for sustainable development. Among the HEIs, strategic communication is valued as a bottom-up approach that strengthens participation, cooperation, and co-optation among the stakeholders; this also democratizes the entire bureaucratic system. Through this approach, the impact of possible disruptions is minimized, and adaptation over a short period of time becomes more viable.
Finally, a public administrator is somebody who makes decisions anchored on public value and creates resolutions grounded in a higher level of cognition and public conscience, and who voices out sensibly the will of the people.
Eric DS. Ebro,
candrews@enquirer.com
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