Browsing by Author "Muinjangue, Esther Utjiua"

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    Essential management tasks executed by social workers in the Directorate of Developmental Social Welfare Services in Namibia : an ecological systems perspectives
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2020-03) Muinjangue, Esther Utjiua; Engelbrecht, Lambert Karel; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Social Work.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Management in social work is an area of growing scholarly interest but it is seldom understood in the context of developmental social welfare services. Management is mostly associated with the fields of business and marketing. Moreover, there is little evidence about the managerial tasks executed by social workers in their day to day activities and why some of these managerial tasks are essential in social welfare service delivery. The literature that exists in management tasks is primarily derived from business and management in general which is a different field from that of managing social services. The body of knowledge that exists on management focuses primarily on business management and not on management tasks of social workers at different levels in organisations. Furthermore, the execution of these tasks is also influenced by the organisational environment in which social workers operate. Additionally, social workers are no longer working in isolation but they see themselves more and more as part of multi-disciplinary teams. Contemporary social workers are professionals who manage their work to ensure quality service to their service users. With constant change in the needs and demands of communities served by social workers, research and more research on management in social work and especially on management tasks needs to keep abreast in order to highlight essential management tasks executed by social workers as it directly impacts the services offered by social workers. The study explored and described some essential management tasks executed by social workers at the frontline and middle levels of management in the Directorate of Developmental Social Welfare Services (DDSWS) in the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MOHSS) in Namibia. The study was based on a qualitative study with 20 frontline social workers and 7 middle level managers as participants. The empirical study and the findings were analysed in line with the data categories as identified in some essential management tasks, namely: workload management, time management, information management, risk management, change and transformation management, supervisory management, programme and project management and monitoring and evaluation (M & E). Subthemes and categories were identified from the empirical data in line with the practice and narratives of the research participants. The findings indicate that social workers at frontline and middle levels of management executed management tasks. The study further revealed that although social workers are functioning in different divisions and at different levels, they seem to have adopted an integrated approach to management tasks. Specific recommendations, based on an ecological systems perspective are offered in the current study, which may be applicable to diverse organisational contexts. This was done by synthesising some essential management tasks from literature and how they are implemented in practice by social workers in the Directorate. Recommendations were made along the literature categories, with specific recommendations under reach category. Mostly, the main recommendations were linked to the need to provide in-service training to social workers on management in social work in order to create more awareness on their managerial tasks and for them to be more appreciative of their roles. Other recommendations were in terms of the working environment and the centralisation of the fragmented social welfare services.