Course 2007-2008 a.y.

Course Objectives

The issues of organizational structure and management have been quite neglected in the traditional approach to the study of International Institutions. In the current scenario, the increasing diversity of tasks, the scarcity of resources, the critiques posed by governments and civil society underline the need of a deep reform of International Institutions. Students in this class will be confronted with political aspects as well as managerial tools that are strategic in rethinking international organizations, according to four specific dimensions: international public sector policies; the management of international institutions; managing development projects; policy and management in the European Union.

Course Content Summary

Part I: the politics of the international public sector

• Power and politics in the global political arena
• The role of state actors: evolution and current challenges
• The role of international institutions: governing a changing world
• The role of NGOs: between representation and implementation

Part II: the management of international institutions

• International Institutions: Institutional setting and key implications for management
• The management of development banks
• UN System and UN institutions

 Part III: the management of development projects

• International institutions and NGOs
• Program management and Project Cycle Management
• Practical management issues in deploying field projects

 Part IV: the politics and management of the European Union

• The European Union: history and developments
• The European Union: institutions and political functioning
• Implementing EU policies: the EU Commission and the EU decentralized agencies
• The managerial reform of the EU Commission
• The EU and foreign aid
  

Detailed Description of Assessment Methods

Learning assessment is a key component of the course pedagogic. For this reason, it relies on an array of methods including:

• partial and final course written exam
• one group assignment
• one individual assignment.

Textbooks

Students are required to prepare a variety of reading materials, including a selection of chapters from the course textbook:

• DIJKZEUL, DENNIS, BEIGBEDER, Yves, (eds.), Rethinking international organizations: Pathology and promise, New York and Oxford, Berghahn, 2003.
  
• Additional, required reading materials are to be prepared and retrieved as specified in the course syllabus and/or throughout the course.