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HUMAN SERVICE ORGANISATIONS REVISITED: STILL A USEFUL CONCEPT IN THE 1990S?
Author(s) -
Martin Elaine Wilson
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
australian journal of social issues
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.417
H-Index - 30
eISSN - 1839-4655
pISSN - 0157-6321
DOI - 10.1002/j.1839-4655.1997.tb01289.x
Subject(s) - service (business) , human resources , business , accountability , vulnerability (computing) , corporate governance , project commissioning , human resource management , publishing , public relations , process management , knowledge management , management , marketing , political science , computer science , computer security , economics , law , finance
Recent changes in the circumstances and operations of human service operations demand a reappraisal of the use of the term ‘human service organisation’. The definitional statements offered a decade ago are re‐examined here; and revisions are proposed for all of them to reflect changes in the purposes, value base, resources, accountability, methodology and consumer relations of human service organisations. An additional definitional statement is proposed to refer to the vulnerability of their situation in the present environment. As an alternative to separate categories of organisations, it is suggested that each can be assessed in relation to two criteria, related to their auspices and resources, and the purpose of their operations. On this basis some organisations can still be designated human service organisations, with important implications for their management and governance.