Discussion

 Please add a thread about a tension that exists between the manager and analyst roles that were discussed in Chapter 2. 

ITS 832
Chapter 2

Educating Public Managers and Policy Analysts in an Era of Informatics

Information Technology in a Global Economy

1

Introduction
Educating Policy Managers and Policy Analysts
Two practitioner types
Policy informatics-savvy public manager
Policy information analyst
Needs addressed by two graduate programs
Master of Public Administration (MPA)
Master of Public Policy (MPP)
Chapter focus
Role of policy informatics in preparing practitioners

Practitioner Orientations to Policy Informatics
Two “ideal” types
Policy informatics-savvy public managers
Policy informatics analyst
Manager
Play important roles in implementation
Instrumental in using policy informatics projects
Analyst
Execute policy informatics initiatives
Other common role names
Analyst
Researcher
Modeler
Programmer

Policy Informatics-savvy Manager
May not need to
Build models
Analyze big data
Must be able to
Lead personnel who build models and manage big data
Necessary competencies
Systems thinker
Process orientations to public policy
Research methodologies
Performance/Financial management
Collaborative/communicative
Social media, IT, and e-Governance awareness

Policy Informatics Analyst
Start with basic competencies of managers
Additional necessary competencies
Advanced research methods of IT applications
Data visualization and design
Programming skills
Modeling skills
Perhaps one of the most important

Summary
Two types of practitioners
Managers
Analysts
Managers
Leadership
Interacting with actors
Analysts
Technical skills
Responsible for executing requirements