Management Development, TQM, and Motivation Theories in the IRS

Introduction to Management Development in the Public Sector

The management development process has been adopted in both the public and private sectors for the enhancement and development of new managers and professionals. Such an enhancement program was adopted and implemented in the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), a public sector agency. The agency implemented the principles of Total Quality Management, and in this regard the Richmond District enhanced a program conducted in other offices by using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Adjective Check List. The process adopted by the IRS was designed to identify those interested in managerial positions. Not every staff member has the potential to become a manager; therefore, the experience factor was given less weight compared to the motivation and leadership qualities of the interested professionals.

The objective of this exercise was to provide an opportunity for non-managerial employees to learn about themselves and about the organization's expectations for managers. The programs initiated by the organization focused on the personal capabilities of each participant, and the methodology was adopted to explore the suitable and diversified backgrounds and mentalities of the professionals. Questions relevant to personal information, experience, objectives, organizational development, and several case studies were used to challenge the participants. The focus of the exercise was to ensure the enhancement of the managerial and professional expertise of the participants; for that purpose, the exercises "enabled the participants to assess their values, managerial styles and attitudes, and career interests" (Hayes, 1988). The management-oriented sessions and seminars led potential participants to realize their capabilities to the fullest, with particular attention placed on decision-making, evaluation, and discussion.

Roles, Responsibilities, and Assessment Techniques

The organization typically assigns managerial responsibilities to employees across various divisions, taking into account differences in areas of specialization. The IRS offers employment positions including "accountants, position classification and labor relations specialists, fiscal analysts, training and development specialists, criminal investigators, and taxpayer assistors" (Welch, 2001). In all such departments, managerial skills are required to ensure performance improvement and management development. The IRS conducted the necessary exercises and reviews that led to the identification of twenty-one generic skills that managers need. These twenty-one skills are divided into four categories: interpersonal skills, analysis and decision-making skills, managing systems and organizations, and understanding operations.

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Adjective Check List incorporate self-assessment relevant to the interpersonal skills category, which encompasses "self-awareness, understanding individuals and groups, and communications" (Welch, 2001). The scheme converged interpersonal skills and managerial skills, and the influence of these respective aspects was monitored. Both instruments provided participants with insight that helped them resolve concerns related to career development. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator was designed in accordance with the conclusions of Carl Jung's theory of psychological types. It enabled participants to concentrate on managerial skills and leadership qualities, and on "the assessment of their preferences with regard to judging and perceiving" (Jaques, 1989).

The findings and results derived from the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator helped the organization better understand how employees react to different situations, and this information was used to evaluate the managerial potential and capabilities of the employees. Participants were also encouraged to focus on topics given significant attention during the sessions, in order to learn and apply appropriate lessons where applicable. The Adjective Check List provided another exercise through which participants could describe and assess their capabilities and potential, leading to greater self-understanding. Such techniques boosted employee morale and confidence, and encouraged active participation within clearly defined limits of authority.

Total Quality Management and Employee Motivation

The organization adopted the principles of Total Quality Management, which were aimed at nurturing employees across wide areas including "top-management leadership and support, focus on the customer, employee training and recognition, and employee empowerment and teamwork" (Hampton, 1987). The core purpose of these performance and managerial enhancement programs was to assess the "congruence between the employees' characteristics and the needs of the total quality organization" (Welch, 2001).

The organization placed strong emphasis on implementing Total Quality Management as a management-driven philosophy, according to which every member of the organization is both encouraged and expected to understand and review the organizational mission. This, in turn, leads to improvement in work quality and ultimately to customer satisfaction. Total Quality Management originated in the private sector, where organizations' outputs were tangible products and profit maximization was the primary motivation. In the case of public organizations, TQM implementation is most applicable to those entities that have services as their outputs. It is important to note that employees "who value opportunities to advance their careers are motivated if they believe that quality performance will facilitate career advancement"; furthermore, employees who "believe that there are opportunities for them to advance their careers in an organization also tend to be more satisfied there" (Hamel, 2000).

The nature of the job and the environment offered by the organization have always generated interest among managers and other professionals, because a conducive professional atmosphere provides individuals with an opportunity to apply and implement their ideas in the best possible manner, aimed at the development of the organization. The contribution of an employee toward an organization can neither be requested nor forcibly extracted; rather, it is the professional environment that supports professionalism, which will eventually bring out latent skills, leadership qualities, and related contributions from employees within their defined capacity (Hirsh, 1987).

The responsibility of managers is to maximize output from available resources, and to that end, perfection must lie in the inputs and the management of variable forces. For the individual professional, this means clarity in responsibilities and a full understanding of the organization's operations and objectives. The terms relevant to job design and work organization must be clearly defined and explained, and traditional approaches to job design must be thoroughly examined. Alternative approaches that address the needs of employees should be explored, and the organization should encourage the generation of proposals and ideas that can be reviewed and debated so that the most effective recommendations can be adopted. The organization should also stress the significance of adaptability, practiced by employees as needed, so that productivity benefits are achieved. All such factors are essential and are likely to contribute toward the professional development of employees, ultimately resulting in enhanced performance (Nadler, 1998).