Reforming (Transforming?) a Public Human Resource Management Agency : The Case of the Personnel Board of Jefferson County, Alabama

This book offers a first-hand look at the importance of human resource management (HRM) processes to not just one public agency but a large group of public administration entities that rely on a public HRM agency (the Personnel Board of Jefferson County) for its HRM processes.

More specifically, the book describes a more than three-year effort undertaken by the author as a federally-appointed court receiver to reform (or what some have referred to as “transform”) a public HRM agency from a model of inefficiency to one now considered “best in the business”. The book provides the details of the reform or transformation effort in addition to offering suggestions on how to bring about similar civil services and HRM reform in particular and government agencies in general.

The book is intended to fill a gap in the current literature while serving as a key work that highlights the importance of bringing about change in a public HRM entity.

Timely and topical, the book will be of great interest both to public administration personnel in general, and others in the fields of HRM and public sector management, and to management practitioners and others keen to inform their ability to bring about successful change.