Job Satisfaction of Public Managers in Special Districts

• Author: Evan M. Berman,Jonathan P. West
• Published date: 01 December 2009
• Date: 01 December 2009
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/0734371X09337710
• Subject Matter: Articles

327

Review of Public Personnel

Administration

Volume 29 Number 4

December 2009 327-353

© 2009 SAGE Publications

10.1177/0734371X09337710

http://roppa.sagepub.com

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http://online.sagepub.com

Job Satisfaction of Public

Managers in Special Districts

Jonathan P. West

University of Miami

Evan M. Berman

National Chengchi University

Little is known about special districts and their personnel. This study examines the job

satisfaction and professional backgrounds of senior managers in large special districts.

Senior managers in these districts report very high levels of job satisfaction, possibly

among the highest of all such managers in public administration. Senior managers are

satisfied or very satisfied with four of the most important determinants of job satisfaction:

pay, the opportunity to use one’s talents at work, job security, and the ability to make a

meaningful impact on one’s region or community. About one fourth of administrators on

management teams in large special districts have their highest degree in public affairs,

and among those with an MPA degree, three fourths have experience in business. This

study concludes that it is time to take special districts more seriously both in research and

as a locus of activity and career development for public managers.

Keywords: job satisfaction; special districts; public managers; local government

Special districts are the fastest-growing form of local government, providing

increased employment opportunities for public managers; today, there are about

as many cities as special districts, respectively, 35,937 and 35,356.1 For the most

part, special districts are single-purpose jurisdictions specifically dedicated to

activities such as toll roads, airports, water management (including sewer, storm

water, and drinking water), business improvement, parks, utilities, fire services, and

libraries (Bacot & Christine, 2006; Bauroth, 2007; Heikkila & Isett, 2007; Judd &

Swanstrom, 2008; Porter, 1994; Skelcher, 2007; Stephens & Wikstrom, 1998). The

growth of special districts also increases demand for services that are part of manag-

ing public organizations, such as human resource management (HRM). Yet, despite

the growing importance of special districts, we know next to nothing about the man-

agers who work in them, their backgrounds, their satisfaction with compensation,

and other factors associated with their job satisfaction. These matters are relevant to

public personnel administration as well as to prospective and current public manag-

ers. In short, this research aims to fill the gap in our knowledge about special dis-

tricts and the managers who direct them.

Specifically, this article addresses the following important questions: What are

the educational and professional backgrounds of senior managers in special districts

328 Review of Public Personnel Administration

(e.g., Do they have Master of Public Administration [MPA] degrees)? How satisfied

are managers in special districts with their jobs, salaries, and security, and how do

they perceive them relative to other public and private organizations? How satisfied

are they with opportunities for professional development in special districts? Does

their work in special districts provide sufficient opportunity to make a difference?

This research is based on a national survey of managers in large special districts, as

well as on in-depth interviews that provide context and depth to the survey results.

Special districts are officially defined as independent, special purpose govern-

mental units (other than school district governments) that exist as separate entities

with substantial administrative and fiscal independence from general-purpose local

governments (U.S. Census Bureau, 2005).2 Special districts are important because

they increasingly span a broad number of activities, they significantly influence how

services are provided, they are an increasingly substantial area of public sector

employment, they constitute about 40% of all governmental units, and because, as

separate jurisdictions, they engage in the full spectrum of policy formulation and

implementation activities. Specifically, according to the most recent Census (2002)

on special districts, they are the fastest growing form of government (up from 10.6%

or 12,340 units in 1952). Although cities still employ about five times as many

people as special districts (3.4 million vs. 721,000 full-time equivalent employees in

2002; U.S. Census Bureau, 2004), during the last 30 years, employment growth in

special districts has been almost four times that of cities (116% vs. 30%). The differ-

ence in employment numbers reflects that most (91%) special districts are single-

purpose governments that provide fewer services than general-purpose governments

(U.S. Census Bureau, 2005).3

This study contributes to the knowledge base by providing systematic informa-

tion that assists in furthering the study of these jurisdictions. At present, the study of

special districts is severely hampered by the inability to assume even the most basic

matters. For example, we do not know whether top management jobs in special

districts are seen as being desirable or not (a main concern in contemporary human

resource [HR] recruitment), and we do not know whether managerial challenges in

other public jurisdictions and agencies apply to these administrators in special dis-

tricts (e.g., compensation and opportunity to make use of one’s talents). Special

districts are so severely understudied in public administration4 that we do not know

empirically the extent of differences in their structure and context relative to other

forms of government; we do not even know the backgrounds of managers leading

these jurisdictions.5

Some form of exploratory research is now needed. Whereas scientific knowledge

is commonly advanced by developing and testing new theoretical propositions, here

it is advanced by exploring these “uncharted waters” and comparing special districts

to what is known regarding other jurisdictions, thus making use of existing theoretical

propositions and findings.6 This study focuses on job satisfaction because (a) it is a

relevant concern to HR, (b) systematic studies exist about it in other jurisdictions, and

(c) importantly, factors associated with job satisfactions span a very broad range of