FRONTLINE MANAGEMENT EVALUATION OF SELECTED PUBLIC SECTOR POSTGRADUATE COLLEGES IN PUNJAB, PAKISTAN

Abstract

The principals in the public sector postgraduate peripheral colleges in the Punjab are the frontline management in these colleges. The present study is delimited to qualitative evaluation of the effectiveness of the Frontline Management (the principals) of the 35 selected public sector postgraduate peripheral colleges in the Punjab. The study is based on the perceptions of the vice-principals and the senior-most staff members from the teaching staff of the colleges under study about their principals. Mainly two questionnaires were used for eliciting responses from the respondents, one for independent variables-vision, integrity, political networking, courage, initiative, professional management training, high exposure and dynamism and the other for effectiveness, the dependent variable in the study. The third questionnaire was for rank- ordering of the independent variables, yet another for eliciting general information about the study on open-ended questions. The data so obtained was tabulated and analyzed using SPSS 15. Inferences were drawn from the results obtained from t-test for single samples for hypotheses testing and Linear Regression and Multiple Regressions Analyses. The t-test for paired samples (Associations) was also performed. On the basis of the results of analyses, 08 out of 25 hypotheses were accepted and 17 were rejected at 0.05% significance level, showing thereby, that the frontline management (the principals) of the peripheral postgraduate colleges under study lacked the 06 characteristics desirable for effectiveness namely, vision, courage, initiative, professional management training, high exposure, and dynamism except 02 those of integrity & political networking and these colleges also lacked effectiveness. The expected and perceived rank-ordering of the independent variables also differed. The variation in dependent variable was not significantly explained and affected by the independent variables except integrity, political networking & training. Very weak correlations were manifested between the independent variables and dependent variable except integrity, political networking & training which were significantly correlated with the dependent variable i.e., effectiveness at 0.05% significance level. Some interesting insights were perceived in the colleges under study. Politicized culture, tuition mafia, sponsor- protégé relationships, and no- work culture were some of them. The need for inculcating the desirable characteristics for effectiveness of frontline management is strongly emphasized.