This book looks at the nature of management in the human services sector and examines the prevailing issues affecting both the UK and USA.

Contradictory forces affect the act of management, such as the imperatives driving the introduction of new control systems which exist alongside the requirement to cut resources. In this book, contributors present both the problems and opportunities associated with the growth of management in the social care sector. They cover key topics including the implementation of change in the childcare sector; diversity - looking at the ways in which care managers can more effectively serve a growing multicultural and global society; performance measurement; the impact of electronic technologies and telecommunications; risk and safety in the workplace; and ethics in making personnel decisions, managing finances, planning and maintaining key relationships.

This will be essential reading for social workers and human services managers, and students in health and social welfare internationally.

This is a timely book, useful to students and practitioners who are interested in social work management. -- British Journal of Social Work
For the UK, this publication is timely and relevant to the new developments in social work Post Qualifying training where a new Leadership and Management pathway has been established. -- Social Work Education (Routledge)
The topics covered range from managing change and the impact of new technologies to ethical issues for social workers and managers to consider. Case histories are used liberally to help illustrate the main themes and points about management. -- Professional Social Work
The material is presented in a way that makes the book an easy read. Theory and practice is very well linked. Although the cases and frameworks are from the USA and UK, the issues raised in this book should be relevant to a broader international audience. -- Health and Social Care in the Community

Wendy Rose is Senior Research Fellow in the Faculty of Health and Social Care at the Open University, UK, and works on national and international child welfare research and development projects. She was previously a senior civil servant advising the government on children's policy.