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Making the Madisonian System Work: Case Studies in Contemporary American Government From the Kennedy School of Government's Senior Executive Fellows Program
The teaching cases in this collection, harvested from the Kennedy School's Senior Executive Fellows Program for federal public managers, are based on the experiences of public sector managers and designed for practitioners and would-be practitioners as case studies in the nuts and bolts of political management.
Assembled and written* by Dan H. Fenn, Jr., the eleven cases selected for this collection illustrate the strengths and weaknesses of the "Madisonian system." They are written from a managerial perspective and are designed to force the participant to think through the question: "What would I do if I had this problem?" The issues they lay out are common ones.
How do I deal with an aggressive reporter in an environment that is highly controversial and political?
How do I maintain my agency's stance of objectivity when my data is going to affect the outcome of a political struggle?
How do I balance the extraordinary talent of an employee against his bizarre personal behavior?
Do I really want an entrepreneurial subordinate who upsets my agency and, if so, how do I manage him?
How do I decide an issue in the face of highly emotional and conflicting interest groups?
How do I deal with a boss who is embarked on what I think is a highly destructive course of action?
When do I tell the Congress the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth about a failing program that has far-reaching economic and political impacts?
The collection is made up of five stories about boss-subordinate relationships; two involving interest groups; one each on dealing with the press, with the executive, and with Congress; and one that econmpasses all of the above:
A separate document, Notes on Classroom Use (1755.2), written by Dan H. Fenn, Jr. provides overall context for the cases and helpful insights for faculty using the cases in the classroom.
See what faculty are saying about this outstanding case collection.
Purchase the case collection here.
 Dan H. Fenn, Jr. is Adjunct Lecturer in Executive Programs at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard. He has been a teacher and a practitioner throughout his long career--he began teaching at the Harvard Business School in the late fifties and has been at the Kennedy School since 1980. In addition, he has taught or is teaching at Tufts, University of Massachusetts Boston, American University, Georgetown, Baruch College, and in executive programs around the country. Much of his work in classrooms has been simultaneous with his career in government which includes service as Staff Assistant to President Kennedy in the White House (1961-1963), Vice Chairman and Acting Chairman of the U.S. Tariff Commission (1963-1969), and the Founding Director of the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum. In addition, he has served in many elected and appointed offices in his home town of Lexington, Massachusetts. He is the author or editor of several books and numerous articles, holds five Honorary Degrees and was the winner of the 2003 Keeper of the Flame Award from the American Society for Public Management for his activities in support of the public service since his formal retirement in 1986.
*With the exception of The Case of the Disgruntled Employee (334.0) prepared by David H. Jernigan under the supervision of Stephanie Gould, all cases in the collection were written by Dan H. Fenn, Jr.
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