Management Model of Schools and Institutes of Public Administration: The Case of Government School Network of the State of Rio Grande do Sul - Brazil

In this article we aim to analyze the management model adopted by the Government School Network developed in the State Government of Rio Grande do Sul (RS), the southernmost Brazilian state which shares a border with Argentina... [ view full abstract ]

In this article we aim to analyze the management model adopted by the Government School Network developed in the State Government of Rio Grande do Sul (RS), the southernmost Brazilian state which shares a border with Argentina and Uruguay and ranks fourth in terms of national GDP. From October 2011 onwards, the RS Government began to implement the Government School Network (REG), setting it up as an integrated system for the ongoing training of civil servants and social workers of the State. The Network incorporates some innovations that need to be understood and studied in greater depth, as they may contribute to the management of excellence in other schools and institutes of administration. The first innovation concerns to the network action model, based on a new societal approach of public management that could be seen as an alternative to the New Public Management model. The second one is that, in addition to including permanent training and enhancement of civil servants, the actions have been extended to include social workers in order to equip them to formulate and implement public policies as well as prepare and monitor projects. The third new paradigm is the fact that the REG is part of the strategic projects of the RS State Government and has also made progress in the construction of evaluative elements of a qualitative nature, with the results achieved by the Network being constantly monitored by a Systematic Strategic Monitoring. The fourth innovation is to develop training actions aimed at the enhancement of value and respect to the diversity present in the civil service and in society, focused on aspects such as: social inclusion, democratic, participatory, accountable and transparent management, duly integrated with sustainable development. Finally, what differentiates the Government School Network from other networks implemented in Brazil is the investment in research.
The article discuss all this aspects and analyze the strategies of implementation of this management model. It also try to demonstrate the effectiveness of the approaches addressed in the courses offered into concrete proposals geared to the citizens, i.e. in the provision of better public services and the formulation of more consistent public policies.