Publisher Description

The past two decades have seen an increase in the number oforganisations working together in multiagency settings andincreased calls for partnership and participation in organisationaland public life. Models for this kind of working arrangement rangefrom contracting out and joint planning, through to more formalarrangements such as setting up a joint agency. How to make thesearrangements effective in developing policy and aidingdecision-making can, however, be problematic. To make themultiagency setting work, organisations must manage diversity,resolve conflict and promote collaboration. The processes foreffective decision-making in multiagency settings form the centralconcern of this book. Group processes must become moreparticipatory, democratic and empowering. Illustrated with casestudies drawn from the US, Africa, Asia, Latin America, as well asthe UK and Europe, the book surveys the range of multiagencysettings, explores the mechanisms and processes for multiagencywork, and reviews a range of processes and tools that have shownthemselves to be effective. Partnership & Participation offersno guaranteed answers, but provides a useful framework andstimulating guidelines for those facing the many questions that areraised by working in a multiagency setting.

Back Cover

The past two decades have seen an increase in the number of organisations working together in multiagency settings and increased calls for partnership and participation in organisational and public life. Models for this kind of working arrangement range from contracting out and joint planning, through to more formal arrangements such as setting up a joint agency. How to make these arrangements effective in developing policy and aiding decision-making can, however, be problematic. To make the multiagency setting work, organisations must manage diversity, resolve conflict and promote collaboration. The processes for effective decision-making in multiagency settings form the central concern of this book. Group processes must become more participatory, democratic and empowering. Illustrated with case studies drawn from the US, Africa, Asia, Latin America, as well as the UK and Europe, the book surveys the range of multiagency settings, explores the mechanisms and processes for multiagency work, and reviews a range of processes and tools that have shown themselves to be effective. Partnership & Participation offers no guaranteed answers, but provides a useful framework and stimulating guidelines for those facing the many questions that are raised by working in a multiagency setting.

Flap

The past two decades have seen an increase in the number of organisations working together in multiagency settings and increased calls for partnership and participation in organisational and public life. Models for this kind of working arrangement range from contracting out and joint planning, through to more formal arrangements such as setting up a joint agency. How to make these arrangements effective in developing policy and aiding decision-making can, however, be problematic. To make the multiagency setting work, organisations must manage diversity, resolve conflict and promote collaboration. The processes for effective decision-making in multiagency settings form the central concern of this book. Group processes must become more participatory, democratic and empowering. Illustrated with case studies drawn from the US, Africa, Asia, Latin America, as well as the UK and Europe, the book surveys the range of multiagency settings, explores the mechanisms and processes for multiagency work, and reviews a range of processes and tools that have shown themselves to be effective. Partnership & Participation offers no guaranteed answers, but provides a useful framework and stimulating guidelines for those facing the many questions that are raised by working in a multiagency setting.

Author Biography

Ann Taket, Professor of Primary Health Care, Faculty of Health & Social Sciences, South Bank University, London. Has over 18 years experience in OR and Health Services Researchand has over 100 publications. She has worked as advisor to WHO, ODA and the British Council. Leroy White, Principal Lecturer in Primary & Community Care Reearch, Faculty of Health & Social Sciences, South Bank University, London. Has over 10 years experience in OR in both the UK and developing countries. He has over 30 publications.
Leroy White & Ann Taket contributed 'Critiquing Multimethodology as Metamethodology: Working Towards Pragmatic Pluralism' to the Wiley book 'Multimethodology', edited by John Mingers and Tony Gill.

Table of Contents

MULTIAGENCY WORKING.

Introduction to the Multiagency Setting.

Models of Multiagency Working.

Methods Used in Multiagency Settings.

INTRODUCING PANDA.

Pragmatic Pluralism.

Pluralism in the 'Nature' of the Client.

Pluralism in the Use of Specific Methods/Techniques.

Modes of Representation.

Pluralism in the Facilitation Process.

PANDA IN ACTION.

Using the PANDA Framework for Planning Process.

Case Studies Using PANDA.

Conclusion.

References.

Index.

Long Description

The past two decades have seen an increase in the number of organisations working together in multiagency settings and increased calls for partnership and participation in organisational and public life. Models for this kind of working arrangement range from contracting out and joint planning, through to more formal arrangements such as setting up a joint agency. How to make these arrangements effective in developing policy and aiding decision-making can, however, be problematic. To make the multiagency setting work, organisations must manage diversity, resolve conflict and promote collaboration. The processes for effective decision-making in multiagency settings form the central concern of this book. Group processes must become more participatory, democratic and empowering. Illustrated with case studies drawn from the US, Africa, Asia, Latin America, as well as the UK and Europe, the book surveys the range of multiagency settings, explores the mechanisms and processes for multiagency work, and reviews a range of processes and tools that have shown themselves to be effective. Partnership & Participation offers no guaranteed answers, but provides a useful framework and stimulating guidelines for those facing the many questions that are raised by working in a multiagency setting.

Feature

Meeting a growing need among social scientists, health care managers, and agencies, this book addresses the issues and the difficulties involved in multi-agency arrangements. The authors, noted experts in primary and community health care, provide both an overview of the subject and offer a unique framework for action.

• Introduces the history and various models of multi-agency work.
• Explores relevant methods and methodologies.
• Describes the "Participatory Assessment of Needs and the Development of Action (PANDA)" framework, developed and used by the authors.
• Shows how to manage diversity, resolve conflict, and promote collaboration between companies involved in a multi-agency arrangement.
• Illustrated with case studies from UK/Europe, the US, Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Details