Author

Nilo Mia

Date of Award

Spring 4-26-2008

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Public Administration (MPA)

Abstract

In a public research intensive university work teams can be organized to accomplish many tasks. Forward thinking administrative managers and supervisors have discovered that the same skills coaches use to create winning teams in athletics also work in the business setting. While much has been written about transferring these skills to the business environment, there is very little information focused on specific managerial techniques that contribute to allowing university employees who are assigned together on a work team to attain greater levels of collaboration and job satisfaction.

This research study endeavors to evaluate two key techniques that managers can use to create a positive environment for university work force team collaboration and job satisfaction. One approach is to employ a strategic employee selection method targeting individual preferences of work team volunteers. The other approach is to select work team membership based on specifically required functional skill sets.

At the University of California Davis, these methods are used to accomplish university work tasks by both administrative and academic units. Utilizing a survey questionnaire, key informant and work team member interviews, these approaches will be evaluated to determine the effectiveness of using work teams in achieving job satisfaction, university work collaboration, and project cost reduction.

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