UNIVERSITY OF VAASA FACULTY OF PHILOSOPHY Jenni Köpman EXPECTATIONS AND ROLES OF TODAY’S MUNICIPAL MANAGERS A content analysis of the requirements and management roles of municipal managers in job advertisements Master’s Thesis in Public Management VAASA 2017 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS page LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES 2 ABSTRACT 3 1. INTRODUCTION 7 1.1. Former research 11 1.2. Research questions 13 1.3. The structure of the study 14 2. MANAGEMENT AND MANAGEMENT ROLES 16 2.1. The concept of management 16 2.2. Functions of leadership and management 18 2.3. Management roles according to Mintzberg 19 3. RECRUITMENT PROCESS 23 3.1. Human resource management 23 3.2. HRM in the public sector in Finland 25 3.3. Recruitment 26 3.3.4. Job advertisement 28 3.4. Recruitment in municipalities 30 3.4.1. Recruiting municipal managers 31 3.4.2. Problems in the recruitment process 35 4. MUNICIPALITY AND MUNICIPAL MANAGER 37 4.1. Municipality: system, tasks and the dualistic management system 37 4.2. Municipal manager 41 5. METHODOLOGY AND DATA 47 5.1. Qualitative content analysis 47 5.2. Research data 50 2 6. REQUIREMENTS OF MUNICIPAL MANAGERS AND MANAGEMENT ROLES IN JOB ADVERTISEMENTS 54 6.1. Requirements in the two research 54 6.2. Management roles 64 7. CONCLUSIONS AND DISCUSSION 68 7.1. Main findings 69 7.2. Discussion 73 7.3. Future research 76 REFERENCES 78 3 LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES Figure 1. Areas of human resource management 24 Figure 2. Organisation of the city of Helsinki 40 Figure 3. Competence profile of a municipal manager 44 Table 1. Management roles 20 4 5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ UNIVERSITY OF VAASA Faculty of Philosophy Author: Jenni Köpman Master’s Thesis: Expectations and roles of today’s municipal managers: A content analysis of the requirements and management roles of municipal managers in job advertisements Degree: Master of Administrative Sciences Major Subject: Public Management Supervisor: Esa Hyyryläinen Year of Graduation: 2017 Number of pages: 87 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ABSTRACT Municipalities have undergone remarkable changes in recent years. Along with these changes, the post and role of municipal manager has changed. This thesis investigates the requirements and qualifications of today’s municipal managers. Furthermore, this thesis studies what kind of management roles municipal managers are expected to perform. The theoretical framework of this study consists of management and management roles, recruitment process as well as municipality and the post of municipal manager. The concept of management as well as functions of leadership and management are explained accordingly to Fayol’s theories. The theory of management roles will be explained according to Mintzberg. Human resource management in the public sector in Finland as well as recruitment will be explained according to Viitala and other scientists. Furthermore, Finnish municipality system, municipality’s bodies and functions are explained as well as the post of municipal manager, especially from the point of view of legislation. The method of this study is qualitative content analysis. The research data consists of 40 job advertisements of municipal managers gathered in 2015–2016 and two recently published research on municipal managers. The 40 job advertisements will be analysed according to Minztberg’s management roles. Municipalities’ demands for today’s municipal managers are high and requirements set for municipal managers are versatile. In a nutshell, municipalities are looking for a co-operative multi-talent with large networks. Previous work experience in several areas is one of the most essential requirement. Especially knowledge of municipal administration and industry are highlighted. Likewise, previous management experience and experience in demanding management posts is desired. At the same time, municipal manager is expected to develop municipality strategically and possibly bring new ideas and to have good co-operation skills. The management roles that stand out in the job advertisements are entrepreneur, leader, liaison and negotiator. These roles belong to decisional and interpersonal categories. Entrepreneur develops the organisation and leader is the manager of the personnel whereas liaison manages networks. Negotiator represents his/her organisation in different kinds of negotiations. This study shows that municipalities tend to have too narrow perspective in their job advertisements. More attention could be paid to the features and desired personal attributes in the job advertisement. Strong experience in municipal administration and economy refer to abilities to manage municipality effectively and successfully and the meaning of networks and collectiveness is emphasised in the job advertisements. The features of the New Public Management and New Public Leadership can thus be seen in the requirements and management roles of municipal manager. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- KEYWORDS municipal manager, management, management roles, recruitment 6 7 1. INTRODUCTION In recent years, municipalities have faced difficulties in recruiting municipal managers. It can be seen as a decline in the amount of applications. As a result of this, recruitment process is often prolonged. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 35–36.) Reasons for challenges may be many. A problem may lie in the recruitment process or in the reputation of a municipality. All in all, municipalities are not seen as an attractive employer as they did some decades ago. On the basis of this problem, an idea to investigate job advertisements of municipal managers arose. Job advertisement is an important aspect in the recruitment. It is the channel between the organisation and the applicant. Job advertisement is also part of the organisational image to its readers – this may be a fact that organisations forget. As municipalities are not anymore seen as an attractive employer, job advertisement plays an important role in attracting competent applicants. This study will especially investigate the requirements set for municipal managers in the job advertisements. The aim of this study is to map out the requirements. In order to find out what kind of requirements are set for today’s municipal manager, a content analysis on job advertisements will be conducted. Content analysis will be applied on 40 job advertisements gathered between years 2015–2016. As I am looking for requirements set for the applicants, the job advertisements are ideal to investigate for this purpose. The requirements in the job advertisements will be compared with two research that investigate the demands of municipal managers. The University of Tampere and the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities conducted a study called New- generation municipal chief executives – Local leadership today and tomorrow: the perspective of young chief executives in 2015. The study investigates the municipal management with role and demands of local leadership as a focus. The second research is also conducted by The University of Tampere and the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities in 2013 and it is called Municipal Managers as Interpreters of Change – Stories of Local Management. This research describes the changes in the work of municipal managers from 1970’s to the present day. 8 As the municipalities are undergoing remarkable changes and there has been a generational change, a further aim is to study what kind of management roles municipalities expect from their municipal managers. This analysis will be made with the help of the 40 job advertisements. In job advertisements, municipalities communicate, consciously or unconsciously, roles that they expect municipal manager to perform. The requirements stated in the job advertisements will be analysed with the help of management roles that Mintzberg has defined. Municipal manager is a key person in municipality. He or she is the highest official in a municipality. Municipal manager is appointed by the local council and serves under the municipal executive board. His or her duty is to lead the administration, finances and other operations of municipalities. He or she is not a member of the local council. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2015b.) According to Local Government Act 2015, each municipality is in charge of arranging its own internal administration and functions in practice as they like it. Municipalities have self-governance, which gives them freedom to organise their operations and services relatively freely. They are, for instance, in charge of its finances and providing health services and education. However, legislation requires that the services must be provided up to a standard. Management of municipality is influenced by two tendencies that may themselves be contradictory. Leading a municipality is a mixture of leading a corporation as well as an association. This creates an own challenge to the leadership and its development. Municipalities are undergoing some fundamental changes and therefore they are in need of good and innovative strategies in order to succeed. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 16.) On the other hand, the public sector is highly regulated by law and the room for innovativeness is thus much smaller than in the private sector. Moreover, managing municipality is much about politics and different political interests. Municipal manager needs to be able to operate in-between these influences. 9 In a European context, Nordic municipalities are rather large and have strong position. Municipalities in the Nordic countries are responsible for providing the most of health care services meaning that they are also in charge of welfare policy. Structure and political organisation vary between countries. Municipalities in the Nordic countries consist of local government and provinces. Local council that is elected every four years and which has the highest decision-making power is characteristics of Nordic municipalities. However, in Finland there is no federation of municipalities (as an exception Kainuu Federation of Municipalities that was established in 2005). (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2016a.) In Sweden and Norway, an administrational manager is usually the highest official in the municipality. In the Nordic countries, municipal managers exist only in Denmark. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2016b.) Municipalities have undergone remarkable changes in recent years. As a consequence of this, their roles and courses of actions are changing. Global trends, self-governance reform as well as changes in legislation are factors affecting the changes in municipalities. Municipalities must be able to meet residents’ needs. Municipalities also change their operational environment. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2016c.) A merger of municipalities is a strategic choice that aims to match the future needs as one municipality. Benefits of such mergers will not be visible in the short run but the aim is merely in the persevering development in vitality and competitiveness. In order to reach these aims, successful change management and strategic management are prerequisites for a merger of municipalities. During the years 2007–2016, there have been altogether 75 mergers of municipalities and the amount of municipalities has declined by 119. In 2006, there were altogether 431 municipalities whereas in 2016 the number was 313. Reforming the municipality system and mergers of municipalities has been a political debate for some time. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2016d.) The current government is working on a social welfare and health care reform which in the future will have an impact on the municipality sector. The object of the reform is to 10 manage costs and reduce inequalities in well-being and health. The main body behind social welfare and health care (SOTE) reform is the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. According to the reform, social welfare and health care services will be based on autonomous SOTE areas that will be responsible for arranging public social welfare and health care services either themselves or by using private or third sector service providers. This means that the social welfare and health care services will be removed from municipalities’ responsibility. The areas will be larger than a municipality and the regional decisions will be made by elected councils. There will be a maximum of 19 SOTE areas, according to the Government Programme. The reform will progress gradually and the government will be prepared on the implementation of the reform. (Health, Social Services and Regional Government Reform 2016a; Health, Social Services and Regional Government Reform 2016b.) According to the reform, there will be altogether 18 autonomous SOTE areas. Autonomous SOTE areas will be responsible not only for social welfare and health care but other tasks as well. In the future, public administration in Finland will be organised in three levels that are state, autonomous SOTE area and municipality. This will remarkably reduce the amount of statutory organisations that are responsible for organising social welfare and health care services. Along with this reform, the tasks of nearly 190 different authorities will move into the autonomous SOTE areas. The autonomous SOTE areas will be formed according to the provincial division. (Finnish Government 2015.) As providing the social welfare and health care services is a remarkable task of the municipalities, the future role of the municipalities is in transition. The tasks and the budget will change remarkably in the near future. The municipalities are changing from the provider of social welfare and health care services to education and civilisation actors. The focus will as well be on regional development. Resources and implementation will be different in different areas of the country. (Health, Social Services and Regional Government Reform 2017.) The SOTE reform will thus have an impact on human resource management and recruitment in municipalities. 11 Lately, the so called mayor model has aroused discussion as it is an alternative to the municipal manager. Finland is now taking first steps towards the mayor system. Mayor is elected by referendum and he or she is the chair of the municipal board. So far the cities of Tampere and Pirkkala have switched to the mayor model and the cities of Helsinki and Tuusula will get mayor in 2017. A proposal to establish the mayor model by legislation have been made in connection with the revision of the Local Government Act in 2015. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2016e.) Leadership in the municipalities has changed substantially. The role of residents has evolved towards a demanding client. Local politics has become fragmented and municipal boundaries have faded to name a few. Moreover, there are development trends that are changing the expectations and demands set for municipal managers. (Haveri, Airaksinen & Paananen 2015: 13.) Along with the changes in municipalities, a generational change has occurred. In recent years, many municipal managers have retired and the younger generation has taken responsibility. According to Local Government Pensions Institution (Keva), 30 per cent of the municipal managers retired in the years 2012–2016 (Haveri et al. 2015: 3.) Recruitment is vital for organisations as it creates job rotation, brings new competence to the organisation and is part of the development process. Human resources are seen as the most important asset of an organisation. Good management system and working culture attract competent municipal managers, executives and other staff to the municipalities. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 8.) 1.1. Former research A lot of research has been conducted on the municipality sector. However, earlier scientific research on management of municipalities is relatively scarce. Municipalities’ management system has been of interest to some researchers. The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (Kuntaliitto) conducts research on municipality sector continuously. Also some theses deal with dimensions of municipal management. 12 In her article, Pikkala (1994: 74–82) has studied the change of municipal management in 1983 and 1993 on the basis of job advertisements and the requirements stated in them. According to her study, the change in the contents of job advertisements describes a clear change in municipal management from municipal civil servant towards a private sector management style influenced, visionary and dynamic municipal manager. In her thesis, Koivumäki (2013: 60) investigated the recruitment process of municipal managers by interviewing eight chairmen of city boards. One of the aims of her research was to find out what kind of competence is expected from municipal managers. Interviews were held in municipalities that lately had recruited municipal managers. Koivumäki claims that competence required from municipal managers are manifold. Especially experienced multiply skilled person with co-operative skills and know-how on municipality sector as well as industry and commercial trade are appreciated, claims Koivumäki. According to the study conducted between 1996 and 2008, the number of applications to the posts has been under the average already for some time. A statistical analysis was conducted by comparing the number of applications to the open posts as well as comparing them in relation to the municipalities’ geographical location and size. There were approximately 14 applications per post. The numbers of applications varied between provinces; least in Ostrobothnia and Central-Ostrobothnia (7–8), most in Southwest Finland (19), Southern Carelia (17) and Kainuu (16). According to the survey, the size of the municipality did not play a role in the number of applications. Approximately 23 per cent of the recruitment processes were prolonged. The study suggests that the geographical location of the municipality plays a significant role. (Jäntti 2009: 5–6.) Piipponen (2012: 5–18) conducted a study on the basis of Jäntti’s research (summarised above). She investigated the attractiveness of the posts of municipal managers. The focus of the research was on the number of applications per post as well as whether the application time was prolonged or not. The issue has been reviewed by the size of the municipality and province. As for prolonged time of application, the study investigates how common it is in the recruitment processes. As Jäntti above, Piipponen claims that the 13 number of applications has declined from approximately 19 (in 1996–2000) to approximately 11 (in 2001–2011). The number of applications correlated with the size of the municipality – the bigger municipality, the more applications. The situation was opposite before 2006. The decline in the number of applications, according to the survey, is not the explaining factor for prolonged recruitment processes. Piipponen suggests that the year in municipal council’s term is the explaining factor. The recruitment process was prolonged more often on the second and third year of the term compared to the first and last year of term. In 2009–2011, the prolonged recruitment process has been more common in smaller municipalities (less than 3000 inhabitants) the prolonged recruitment has become more common phenomenon in 2009–2011, compared to Jäntti’s study in 1996–2008 (Jäntti 2009: 14). 1.2. Research questions The aim of this thesis is to map out the requirements set for today’s municipal managers. The interest is in whether the requirements are similar to demands described in the two research that describe the post of municipal manager. Further, the aim of this study is to find out what kind of management roles municipalities communicate in their job advertisements. The research questions of this thesis are following 1. What are the requirements set for municipal managers? 2. What management roles can be detected in the job advertisements? This topic is of importance in many ways. It is essential that the best possible candidate is selected. Over the years, municipalities have suffered from lack of applications. The post of a municipal manager is challenging in many ways and multitude skills as well as management roles are needed in changing environment. Management has an impact on the municipalities’ operations and development. (Pohjolan valo 2008: 7.) On the other hand, management is connected with the reputation of the municipality, especially how it is maintained and developed (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 8.) 14 1.3. The structure of the study The second chapter focuses on theories on management and management roles. The concept of management will be explained. Further, functions of leadership and management will be explained accordingly to Fayol’s theory. Lastly, Mintzberg’s management roles that are exploited in the analysis of this study, will be described. Recruitment process is described in the third chapter. Human resources in the public sector in Finland as well as recruitment of municipal managers will be taken a look at. The recruitment process of municipal manager is to some degree regulated by law. Further, a look at job advertisement and recruitment problems of municipal managers will be discussed. The fourth chapter will examine in general Finnish municipality system and the post of municipal manager. All 317 municipalities are equal regardless of certain municipalities are called cities or towns and they are led by a city manager. Municipalities have self- governance and the post of chief executive is statutory; therefore, the Finnish municipality system differs from those of other countries. Municipality’s bodies and functions are explained. The position of municipal manager and how the legislation regulates it will be taken a look at. The special qualifications of municipal manager will be specified in detail. The method in this study is a qualitative content analysis. Chapter five aims to explain the theory behind qualitative content analysis. Further, the research data used in this study will be presented. The research data consists of 40 job advertisements of municipal managers and the study called New-generation municipal chief executives – Local leadership today and tomorrow: the perspective of young chief executives in 2015 conducted and Municipal Managers as Interpreters of Change – Stories of Local Management by the University of Tampere and the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities. The qualitative results of the survey are then presented in chapter six. Lastly, the findings are summarised in chapter seven in the light of theories and other findings. The limitations 15 of this study will be discussed as well. Implications and suggestions for further research will be given. 16 2. MANAGEMENT AND MANAGEMENT ROLES This chapter explains the concept of management and how it is defined. Second, the leadership functions by Fayol will be taken a look at and lastly, the management roles by Mintzberg will be illustrated. The management roles by Mintzberg are applied in the analysis of this study. 2.1. The concept of management Management has been defined in various ways. It has been defined and researched for instance from the point of view of goal-orientation, individual features, behaviour, power relations, interaction, roles as well as from the point of view of manager’s formal status. (Yukl 2002: 2–20.) Management is sometimes divided into process management and human resource management. Process management is focused on processes and procedures whereas human resource management on personnel (Salminen 2011: 86.) Management is generally understood as process management and management skills. On the other hand, human resource management is generally understood as leadership. These two concepts are closely related making it problematic to understand and distinguish. What is management and what is leadership? These two concepts serve more on the theoretical level than in practice. (Ojala 1995: 16–17.) Many Finnish researchers have claimed that the word management itself does not describe management in different organisations. (Nurmi: 2005: 69–72.) Research in public management is relatively young compared to other research on organisation and leadership. Public management has previously been related to political leadership and mainly to research in political sciences. Characteristic to public management is that manager works under political management being accountable for political organs as well as citizens. Public management is based on general benefit and interest, respectively the goals of management are based on sociopolitical objectives. 17 Public management hence includes principles of democracy, objectivity as well as equality. The priorities in public management have changed from so called traditional civil servant model towards New Public Management. (Virtanen & Stenvall 2010: 49– 50.) The New Public Management reform has had a huge impact on the public sector and the 1990’s is known as the era of reforms. Central governance was simplified and bureaus were merged. At the same time accountability became one of the key factors. (Schmidt & Vanhala 2010: 11–13.) New forms of governance and administration require new kind of leadership and public managers will have to meet these new kinds of requirements (Local Government Employers 2006: 9). The traditional model saw management as concrete administrational work, which was based on management functions such as planning, controlling, resourcing, organising as well as budgeting. According to NPM, management is directed towards result-oriented performance. Furthermore, organisation’s success is seen to be dependent on the fact how well manager manages the organisation. NPM requires professional competence in management; strong strategic skills, financial management skills, change management skills, ability to adopt the principles of results and quality management as well as good human resource management practices, such as motivation, remuneration among others. (Virtanen & Stenvall 2010: 49–50.) On the other hand, some critics claim that NPM stresses different mechanical management techniques and tools instead of seeing management as comprehensive performance (Dunoon 2002: 4). Today’s public management is seen as complex and NPM is seen as an old-fashioned collection of different management ideas and models (Brookes 2008: 3, 7). From the point of view of municipalities, the principles of NPM are thought to have diminished municipal democracy (Heuru 2000: 251). Political control seems to have narrowed along with public management reforms. Strategic alignments and development targets are made in position of trust organs, but otherwise political control has narrowed, which has given office holders more decision- making power. NPM aims at distinguishing administration and politics, which means that 18 politicians are pioneers whereas office holders are responsible for the execution. (Leinonen 2010: 328.) Public management model in 2000’s has required new management competencies. Management is not anymore managing a municipal organisation but communities, networks and companionships. Along with this way of thinking, operation environment and ways to operate are getting a new kind of structure. The features of this new administrational managing method are the scope and diversity of the actor field, networks, multi-level operations as well as problem-solving in co- operation. (Karhu et. al. 2007: 137–140.) From the point of view of municipal management, this means controlling functions and organising so that the interests of different actors could be combined as well as possible. Achieving results and solving wicked problems as well as co-operation are emphasised. With the help of co-operation, results can be achieved that single municipalities could not achieve on their own. Management does not culminate only to management of a municipal organisation but it emphasises dialogue and engagement of different actors as well as encourages residents to develop municipal community. (Broussine 2009: 175– 176; Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 14.) According to Brookes (2008: 10), collective leadership, which is referred to as new public leadership NPL, is gaining foothold. The meaning of collective management is emphasised in networks, where collectiveness is even a necessity in order to achieve trust, engagement and common goals. 2.2. Functions of leadership and management According to Fayol (1950: 9–22) there are six types of consistent types of activity in the organisations. These types of activity are necessary for the existence of an organisation. The types of activity are among others technical activities, which means a production- technical functions related to the actual operation of the organisation. Other five types of activity are support activities that enable the technical activities to work out. These are commercial, financial, security, accounting and managerial activities. As this thesis studies the post of municipal manager, the focus is on administrational functions that 19 Fayol calls managerial activity. Managerial activity consists of planning the future, organising responsibilities, filling positions with right people, directing in order to achieve goals and controlling, which includes, measurement of performance as well as information management. Fayol’s description of administrational functions is still current and can be used to describe the tasks of municipal managers. 2.3. Management roles according to Mintzberg According to Ojala (2003: 29) research in management can in the first place be understood as management of management roles. Organisations internal efficiency is the primary goal of management. This, instead, is maximised by efficient coordination. Another central idea of management is executing management actions in operational environment with strategic and goal-oriented grip. The objective of management is therefore ensuring organisation’s operating conditions by forecasting future and modifying the organisation accordingly to the changes around it. Management roles are seen as tools for taking control over operational actions of a particular organisation. With the help of management roles, person in charge of the unit can manage the operations and tasks. Management roles are connected to internal processes of the organisations as well as management of the relations between environments. According to Nurmi (1992: 81), management role is a behaviour set that belong to a certain status or post that the manager is expected to perform. A person performing in role influences to the formation of his/her role. Organisation can be thought as a network of roles, where each of its member has one or more role that is connected to his/her post or tasks. According to Katz and Kahn (1978: 37), people develop complex behaviour models that can be called social constructions. People create social construction by using these behaviour models. Mintzberg has described the basic content of managerial work in terms of ten managerial roles. Managerial roles Mintzberg (1971: 103) sees as “organised sets of behavior belonging to identifiable offices or positions”. According to Mintzberg, management is a 20 set of programs. Mintzberg divides managerial roles into three categories that are interpersonal roles, informational roles as well as decisional roles. (Mintzberg 1971: 97– 110.) The management roles are listed in the table 1. Table 1. Management roles. (Mintzberg 1971: 97–109.) Category Roles Interpersonal Figurehead Leader Liaison Informational Monitor Disseminator Spokesman Decisional Entrepreneur Disturbance Handler Resource Allocator Negotiator Interpersonal roles Mintzberg divides into figurehead, leader and liaison. In the interpersonal category, information and ideas are provided. Figurehead is a ceremonial and symbolic manager. As a figurehead, manager has social, ceremonial and legal responsibilities. Figurehead is a source of inspiration. Leader acts as a supervisor for his/her subordinates by providing leadership. Leader motivates, attempts to develop working milieu and manages the performance as well as responsibilities of subordinates. Liaison acts as supervisor of networks, both internal and external. Liaison communicates in networks efficiently and on behalf of the organisation. (Mintzberg 1973: 166–170.) Manager working in the informational role can operate as nerve center, disseminator or spokesman. In the informational role, information is processed. Nerve center seeks out and collects information that is related to the organisation. Nerve center looks for non- routine information and serves as focal point. Disseminator spreads information in the organisation to subordinates, colleagues and teams. Spokesman transmits information of 21 organisation and its goals to outsiders and speaks for his/her organisation. (Mintzberg 1973: 166–170.) The decisional roles include the roles of entrepreneur, disturbance handler, resource allocator and negotiator. In the decisional role, information is used. Entrepreneur initiates changes and directs them. Entrepreneur solves problems, generates new ideas and implements them. Disturbance handler focuses on corrections and takes charge of them. Disturbance handler is needed when organisation faces unexpected obstacles. Disturbance handler also mediates disagreements. Resource allocator controls the work of subordinates by determining where the organisation’ s resources are best applied and deciding who will do what. Resource allocator determines organisational priorities, designs organisational structure according to priorities and authorises all significant decisions. Negotiator takes part and directs important negotiations. Negotiator represents his/her organisation in activities. (Mintzberg 1973: 166–170.) In municipal manager’s work, interpersonal, informational and decisional roles are all represented. There is not one role that describes the role of a municipal manager; on the contrary, many of Mintzberg’s management roles describe the status of a municipal manager. The factors that define management are in the first place related to the factors of the person acting as a manager (Personal factors), to the organisation (Organisational factors) as well as to the organisations’ relations to the operation environment. This means factors that are related to stakeholders, among others (Environmental factors). According to the role theory, role holder interacts in the organisation, which consists of persons that compromise a role set. By own behaviour, role holder expresses a certain role, which Mintzberg defines as sent role. Persons and the members of the organisation observe in the role system, which Minzberg calls received role. However, role expectations of the role behaviour are not always met. (Ojala 2003: 30–31.) Studying organisation from the point of view of management roles differs from studying it from the point of view of its functions. Salminen (2004: 34–35) claims that social 22 psychological study of roles is in connection to behaviour, behaviour role and on the other hand to role expectations. Expectations on management roles include institutional status in the organisation, management mandates, and the behaviour of the manager. 23 3. RECRUITMENT PROCESS Human resource (abbreviated to HR) is seen as the most important resource of an organisation. Skilful as well as engaged HR is seen as the organisation’s chief asset. Therefore, managing human resources has become more and more important in the recent years and the role of human resource management (abbreviated to HRM) more and more visible in the organisations. (Storey & Wright 2001: 225.) Recruitment is one area of HRM. In this chapter HRM and its different areas will be presented and an insight into HRM in the public sector in Finland will be given. The emphasis is on recruitment and recruitment process, which will be explained in detail as it is the focus of this thesis. Legislation regarding recruitment in the public sector in Finland will be taken a look at. Lastly, problems in the recruitment of municipal managers will be explained. 3.1. Human resource management HRM consists of different areas. These are personnel planning, recruitment, orientation, salaries, training and development, internal communications, guidance and surveillance as well as other personnel administration (Viitala 2006: 224–225.) The different areas of HRM can be seen in the figure 1. 24 Figure 1. Areas of human resource management. (Viitala 2006: 225.) Price’s (1997: 1) understanding of human resource management from a corporate life point of view is as following: “A philosophy of people management based on belief that human resources are uniquely important on sustained business success. An organization gains competitive advantage by using its people effectively, drawing on their expertise and ingenuity to meet clearly defined objectives. Human Resource Management is aimed at recruiting capable, flexible and committed people, managing and rewarding their performance and developing key competencies.” 25 3.2. HRM in the public sector in Finland HRM in the public sector is much less investigated and written about than that in the private sector (Salminen 2011: 87). The public sector in Finland has undergone remarkable changes in recent decades. The recession in Finland in the beginning of 1990’s caused remarkable cutting in costs as well as elimination of services and benefits. During the years 1992–1994, ten per cent of the work force in the public sector was reduced. (Schmidt & Vanhala 2010: 11–13.) Means of reducing staff in the public sector have been prohibition of recruitment and redeployment. Lay-offs and resignations have clearly been lesser than in the private sector (Schmidt & Vanhala 2010: 53–54.) As a result, the efficiency of the public sector has become one of the major issues. Due to the recession, fixed-term contracts became more common. The pressure on efficiency has continued until the present day and can be seen as recruitment prohibitions, outsourcing and fixed-term contracts, to name a few. (Schmidt & Vanhala 2010: 3–7.) Today, the Finnish public sector needs to adapt to the changing environment. The ageing of work population, which can be seen as retirements as well as young educated people starting their careers, creates changes in the organisations. The changing structure of education also causes higher requirements for services. (Local Government Employers 2006: 9.) Managers do not have much room to operate in highly regulated public sector (Salminen, 2011: 91). Operations are under strict scrutiny in the public sector where the public is the observant. Legislation and turnover of civil servants as well as political coalitions, for their part, create challenges on the public sector (Kuotsai 1998 as cited in Salminen 2011: 91.) One fourth of Finland’s labour force works on the public sector. Therefore; it is significant how human resource management works at the public sector: how civil servants are motivated, educated and what kind of roles do public managers play. (Salminen 2011: 96.) 26 3.3. Recruitment Recruitment includes all those actions taken in order to get the staff needed into the organisation (Viitala 2006: 242). Recruitment is generally divided into internal and external recruitment (Kauhanen 2010: 70). Storey and wright (2001: 226) define recruitment process as “identifying, choosing and attracting people to meet an organization’s human resource requirements”. Recruitment is tightly connected to the organisation’s strategy as well as personnel policy and planning. However, organisational behaviour is unpredictable and sudden recruitment needs, such as resignation, study leave as well as maternity and paternity leave may appear. (Kauhanen 2010: 70–71.) Successful recruitment is seen as one of the best practices of human resource management. Recruitment is an essential step in finding skilful human resources but also an important part of the organisational image. (Schmidt & Vanhala 2010: 52.) The key stages of recruitment are defining the vacancy, attracting applicants, assessing candidates and making the decision. Each recruitment is unique and depends on various factors, such as the organisation in question, the vacancy, budget, strategy, legislation as well as government policies. (Storey & Wright 2001: 235.) For the organisation, hiring a new employee can be one of the far-reaching decisions. Unsuccessful recruitment can be harmful both for the chosen employee and the organisation as well as for the customers. (Viitala 2006: 243.) Patterson et al. (1997, as cited in Storey & Wright 2001: 225) suggest that “the acquisition and development of employee skills through the use of sophisticated selection, introduction, training and appraisals has a positive impact on company productivity and profitability”. A balanced age structure is one of the goals of recruitment and part of personnel planning (Viitala 2006: 235). Beaumont (1993: 56) claims that workforce has become less homogeneous due to demographic trends and changes in the labour market. Fairness in selection has therefore become desired. Behaviour and attitude have become more important than the actual requirements. As the strategy of the organisations has become important, are selections also strategic. 27 Earlier a typical recruitment situation was that an employee left an organisation or that the operations grew and additional staff was needed. Nowadays a typical recruitment situation is that a new kind of know-how is needed. Organisation’s vision and strategy define human resources policy in addition to how much and what kind of staff is needed. What kind of know-how is needed and what kind of a person is needed in order to achieve the organisation’s goals are also defined in the strategy. When hiring a new employee, the following facts need to be defined - what kind of tasks and duties the new employee will take care of - for how long time he/she will be employed - what is his/her salary - what kind of know-how he/she should have (education and experience) - what kind of personality is needed in order to succeed at work and at workplace. (Viitala 2006: 243.) Recruitment strategy is an essential part of organisational image. Besides, marketing communications, recruitment policy and recruitment communications are crucial aspects that spread through word-of-mouth. The style and the content of job advertisements and the amount of recruitments, for instance, are external aspects of recruitment that have lots of audience. How the organisation welcomes a new employee and treats him or her, wage level, orientation as well as personnel development and management can be discussed widely in public. Information spread through word-of-mouth is often stronger in creating organisational image than information got through marketing communications. Situation is challenging if there is inconsistency between marketing communication and word-of- mouth-communication. (Viitala 2006: 245.) Recruitment strategy defines the phases and tasks in the recruitment. What kind of work force, work contribution and know-how are desired are defined in the recruitment strategy. Principles and linings as well as whether recruitment is internal or external are also discussed in the recruitment strategy. Recruitment strategy is not a literal guideline as each recruitment process is a unique situation. (Viitala 2006: 246.) 28 3.3.4. Job advertisement TE-services (2015a) suggest that a good job advertisement is informative, of high quality and realistic. In a good job advertisement, the task is described clearly and comprehensively. TE-services list what information should be stated in a job advertisement - name of the organisation - job title - job description - special skills required - educational requirements - working hours - start date and duration of the employment (fixed-term, permanent) - location - salary - contact information - instructions for how to apply Vaahtio (2005: 129–135) emphasises the importance of organisational image in the recruitment as it is actually marketing. Job advertisement may create positive or negative image of the organisation. The type of the organisation defines the style of a job advertisement. Municipalities as organisations are officials. It is thus expected that the job advertisements are official, matter-of-fact and follow the usual structure. However, it does not mean that there is no space for personality. Job advertisement usually begins with a description of a post followed by information on wage. Further information is usually found at the end of the job advertisement. It is in place to present the municipality and even the location of it with a map, if it is not well-known. Instead of listing the duties, it is nowadays popular to describe what the employee will learn by taking care of these duties. (Vaahtio 2005: 129–135.) Grammatical correctness and flowing text is desired. Expressions in foreign language, such as in English, should be avoided unless they are reasoned. Sometimes job 29 advertisements include cryptic language. Especially the public sector often announces pay grades such as “A20” or refers to decrees or statutes when talking about qualifications. There is a risk that readers and applicants do not know what these kinds of expressions mean. It is important to mention practicalities, such as in what form the applications should be admitted and by which date. In case contact information is stated, a detailed job description may not be needed. (Vaahtio 2005: 129–135.) References to age, gender or other distinguishing factor in a job advertisement is prohibited. On the other hand, euphemisms are commonly used. Political background can be understood as a distinguishing factor, although it may play a role in later phases of recruitment. The organisation may, for instance, describe itself as youthful and seek for an applicant who is lately graduated and has few years work experience. (Vaahtio 2005: 136.) Businesslike (2011), which calls itself “a proactive and professional recruitment boutique”, is specialised in helping organisations with recruitment. In their article, Businesslike describes a successful job advertisement. A successful job advertisement has a clear title, is informative and snappy but captive at the same time. It is particularly important to bear the target group in mind and remember that each applicant interpret job advertisement from his or her point of view. Realistic and concrete are words that describe, among others, a good job advertisement. By stating clearly the qualifications and what is expected from the applicant is essential. After reading through the job advertisement, the reader should have a clear picture of the vacancy and the employer. Recruiters also need to think of what they have to offer for applicant and why he or she should choose them. It is certain that everyone appreciates, for instance, good working environment, participative leadership and open dialogue, flexible working-hours, competent as well as supportive colleagues. It is worth to mention these in the job advertisements. However, one must be realistic. Lastly, all relevant information regarding schedule of the recruitment, address of the workplace, contact information, recruitment process and inquiries is desired. Furthermore, a link to the organisation’s website is useful to mention. (Businesslike 2011.) 30 Before starting the recruitment process, recruiters should consider thoroughly professional competence and especially political influence, which is a sensitive issue. Political liaison may narrow down the number of applicants or leave out competent applicants. Degree requirements are a matter that is often left with lesser attention. Degree requirements are often stated in the job advertisements as “suitable Master’s degree”. However, if the desired education is left open to various interpretations it may result in diverse group of applicants or, on the other hand, give an impression that it has not been discussed among recruiters. It is obvious that leadership skills are inevitable in a post of municipal manager. After the qualifications have been defined, a job advertisement can be drawn up. Also a framework for interviews can be formulated, which is important as it ensures that the interviewees are treated equally and consistently. (Ylönen 2004: 6; Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 37.) 3.4. Recruitment in municipalities Recruitment in municipalities and cities in Finland differs from recruitment in the private sector. Recruitment process in the public sector is regulated by general laws and regulations. Regulations concern especially permanent posts and therefore recruitment process follows a specific pattern. (Kuntarekry.fi 2015.) The recruitment process starts by deciding on whether the recruitment will be internal or external. A suitable recruitment channel will be chosen and applications must be sent in writing either on paper or electronically. Competence can be either stated in the law or decided by the employer. They are announced in the job advertisement. In the light of these requirements, the applicant should ensure that he or she is competent to the post. The end of the application period is usually defined specifically with a certain time after which it is not possible to apply for the post. (Kuntarekry.fi 2015.) Municipalities and cities are public employers and thus the applications that the applicants leave are public. However, sometimes at applicant’s request his/her name will not be published. In that case the name of the applicant will be published only if a quarter 31 requests. All the applications are gathered and the facts about applicants’ education, work experience and competence are gathered. The decision is made based on this comparison. The decision will be public and so is the selection criteria and the comparison. The decision is a public document, where the recruitment process, competence requirements, applicants as well as facts on employment are stated. The notification of the decision is given to all applicants. (Kuntarekry.fi 2015.) 3.4.1. Recruiting municipal managers Recruitment in municipalities is regulated by legislation. The most important laws concerning municipal manager’s recruitment are Local Government Act (410/2015), law considering office-holders in municipality (laki kunnallisesta viranhaltijasta 304/2003), law considering collective agreement of the municipality (kunnallinen virkaehtosopimuslaki 669/1970), Act on Equality between Women and Men (609/1986) as well as Penal Code (39/1889). The Local Government Act (410/2015) outlines municipalities’ personnel policy in the section 11. The law considering office-holders in municipality (laki kunnallisesta viranhaltijasta 304/2003: 2§) is applied in the recruitment process. The law considering collective agreement of the municipality (kunnallinen virkaehtosopimuslaki 669/1970) on the other hand regulates the content of collective bargaining contract in section 2. The Act on Equality between Women and Men (609/1986: 7–8§) concerns especially the recruitment process as it calls for equal status for female and male applicants. In the first place, discrimination is prohibited in working life. According to section 11, recruiters and employees are obliged to pay compensation in case they break the law. Penal Code (39/1889: 40§) concerns malfeasance, such as taking bribes and breaking official secret. The vacancy of municipal manager is compulsory unless it is run by a mayor. As the position becomes vacant, immediate actions should be taken in order fill it (Harjula & Prättälä 2012: 404.) The law considering office-holders in municipality (laki kunnallisesta viranhaltijasta 304/2003) regulates how municipal vacancies can be filled. The method of application must be public and the period of application at least 14 days. The period of application can be prolonged if the organisation decides so. The idea is to 32 get as many competent applicants as possible. The appointment can be override in case the method of application is neglected, error is made or job advertisement is incorrect. (Harjula & Prättälä 2012: 405.) Careful and thorough planning before the recruitment is essential for the municipalities. Mapping out the situation of the municipality (economy, development outlook and strategy, for instance) as well as qualifications and desired skills for the candidate should not be neglected. In order to get the best possible candidate, it must be clear what kind of a leader the municipality is looking for; what kind of skills are desired and which of them to emphasise. (Ylönen 2004: 4–6.) Typically, the type of and the possible probation are stated in the job advertisement. According to the law considering office-holders in municipality (laki kunnallisesta viranhaltijasta 304/2003) section 8, the probation can be maximum six months. Recently it has been a trend that municipal managers are appointed to fixed-term employment. (Ryynänen 2001: 16.) Municipality decides the length of the fixed-term employment. Sometimes fixed-term employment is used to emphasise municipal manager’s profit responsibility. The uncertain length of the position may have a negative impact on the applicants and therefore it may be difficult to define the desired salary. It is recommended to appoint municipal manager for a longer period than the council’s term, which is four years. (Harjula & Prättälä 2012: 274–275.) A competent and proficient municipal manager is not easy to find. The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2008) is concerned about the decline in the number of applications. According to them, the following issues should be taken into account when recruiting municipal managers: - the age of the applicant and especially attracting younger applicants - appropriate wage level (in line with workload) - continuation of the employment - exploitation of internal job rotation - quality of cooperation with the political management 33 - quality of cooperation between municipal board and municipal manager - ability to work and work satisfaction. According to Jäntti and Majoinen (2008: 37), special attention in the recruitment process should be paid to interviews, aptitude tests as well as testing public presentation skills. Decision-makers may have little experience on recruitment interviews and recruitment at all, which may become a problem. An inexperienced interviewer may come to conclusions too rapidly. In the interview, there may be many interviewers with multiple questions and different interests. This may result in a situation where the suitability of the applicant cannot be estimated properly. Furthermore, some of the aptitude tests measure intelligence rather than suitability to the field; therefore, adding too much weight for the results should be avoided. Testing public presentations skills in front of residents and media may reduce recruiter’s authority in decision. A matter that has been seen as a disadvantage in the recruitment process of municipal managers is the publicity of it. The names of the applicants are published at the very early stage of the recruitment process. (Ylönen 2004: 4–6.) According to the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2008) this rule should be changed so that the names of the applicants should not be published before the final candidates are known. Some researchers claim that when selecting a municipal manager, municipality should exploit teachings and procedures of private sector. Then the most competent person would be chosen and not the most suitable. Researchers claim that the residents should trust in the decision-makers they themselves have chosen and to their ability to make good choices of the right persons. Moreover, recruitment professionals should be exploited more in the recruitment of the municipal managers. On the other hand, some researchers agree that public recruitment process is necessary in the name of a good method of administration. (Ylönen 2004: 4–6.) According to the law considering office-holders in municipality (laki kunnallisesta viranhaltijasta 304/2003) section 5, a person who has not applied for the post of the municipal manager but has given his/her consent can be selected to the post. This means that those persons who give their consent do not apply for the post with an application in 34 writing but they announce orally or in writing that they are available as candidates for the post. This kind of procedure can be problematic, especially in the light of the publicity of the process. Normally the names of the applicants are published after the application period has ended but this is not the case with those who have given their consent. Principle is however that oral and written consents as well would be publicised as soon as they are given. This procedure initiated in 1927 when its purpose was to enable to search candidates without public pressure; however, nowadays it is not applied as such. Problems arise when persons give their consents on his/her own initiative and not by municipality’s request. (Prättälä 2012: 276; Ylönen 2004: 6.) The civil service system in Finland is not built on career system. This means that there is no official system of political appointment of civil servants. However, hidden political appointments exist. Those appointments exist at the municipal administration as well as at the highest level of the state’s central administration. (United Nations 2006: 11.) Political appointments are a challenge from the point of view of competence requirements. Political appointments are against the Constitution of Finland. According to the Constitution of Finland, section 6 “No one shall, without an acceptable reason, be treated differently from other persons on the ground of sex, age, origin, language, religion, conviction, opinion, health, disability or other reason that concerns his or her person.” The general qualifications for public office are stated in The Constitution, section 125: “It may be stated in an Act that only Finnish citizens are eligible for appointment to certain public offices or duties. The general qualifications for public office shall be skill, ability and proven civic merit.” (The Constitution of Finland 1999.) Based on the report of The Committee for Constitutional Law, this concerns the appointments as well. The question is, is an appointment based on party political merits legal and are those with no party political merits considered as discriminated? (Salminen 2015: 31.) Political appointments create inequality in the recruitment process. As a result, the most qualified person is not always chosen but a person with most suitable political background. According to Salminen (2015: 29) political appointments are a form of structural corruption in case political suitability is emphasised in the recruitment process 35 more than competence. According to Murto (2014: 200–203; 212–215) the motive behind political appointments is to strengthen political power. Murto (2014: 243–247) claims that a party card has been of great benefit when competing of highest posts. The post of a municipal manager is remarkable and therefore political aspects are often discussed in public. Municipal manager is often seen as a political leader even though the Local Government Act (410/2015) does not give municipal manager the status of a political leader. According to the decisions of the Supreme Administration Court, social and political activities may be of benefit in the post of municipal manager. Political activity may therefore be one of the selection criteria, although not the only one. Appeals based on professed favouritism have often been dismissed due to the lack of evidence. (Kaasalainen 2011: 17.) Commentaries concerning these appeals reveal that good explains can always be invented. (Viljanen, 1989: 512). There are several severe problems that political appointments cause. When hiring on the basis of political background it may not be necessary for the applicant to be familiar with the field he/she is appointed to. (Kaasalainen, 2011: 26.) The job advertisement may not be advertised as widely via different channels as it should, which results in decline in the amount of applications. (Kaasalainen 2011: 60.) The best posts are given to those that have the better political contacts and the right party affiliation. As a consequence of this, applicants with good competence seek jobs elsewhere. (Rothstein 2010.) 3.4.2. Problems in the recruitment process According to the study by the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (Kuntaliitto) in 2008, the number of applicants to the vacant posts of municipal managers has declined since 2001. The years investigated were 1996–2008. The approximate amount of applications per vacant post was 14. It is often so that the application period must be prolonged. One third of the vacant posts were opened again for application. The size of the municipality does not play as significant role in the number of applications as does the region. However, the vacant post was opened again more often in smaller municipalities than in the bigger ones. The smallest amounts of applicants appeared in the Ostrobothnia and Central-Ostrobothnia region with 7–8 applications per vacant post. 36 The biggest amount of applications appeared in South-West Finland with 19 applications. (Jäntti 2007: 5.) The recruitment problems seem to concern especially medium-sized municipalities with 20 000–55 000 residents. There are altogether 40 medium-sized municipalities in Finland. Smaller and bigger municipalities are expected to receive proficient applicants without problems. Small municipalities attract especially lately graduated whereas bigger municipalities attract experienced applicants. The reason for this may be that managing bigger municipalities contain bigger challenges and usually requires more experience than smaller municipalities that are seen as a good starting point for municipal manager career. In many case, medium-sized municipalities are regional centres. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 36.) Other reasons for small amount of applications may lay in the wage level that is relatively low compared to the demanding post of a municipal manager. The average wage of municipal manager in 2015 was 6 711 euros. Respectively, the average wage of city manager was 9 460 euros. There is large variation in the wages; the bigger the municipality is the bigger the wage generally is. (Local Government Employers 2017.) The post of municipal manager is demanding and stressful. According to a survey called “The wellbeing of municipal managers in 2015”, municipal manager works approximately 49,5 hours per week. Municipal managers feel pressured due to unfinished tasks daily and 63 per cent of the respondents experience stress at least to some degree. Furthermore, according to the survey, municipal managers feel neglecting private life. (Forma & Pekka 2015.) 37 4. MUNICIPALITY AND MUNICIPAL MANAGER This chapter explains the municipality system in Finland and the tasks of municipality. The dualistic management system of a municipality and the post of a municipal manager, too, will be illustrated. 4.1. Municipality: system, tasks and the dualistic management system Municipalities and cities in Finland have local self-government. The central features of local self-government are determined in The Finnish Constitution. The municipal council, which is elected by residents, is the supreme decision-making body and the size of it is proportional to the population. Municipal council has the general decision-making authority in local affairs as well as certain specified responsibilities. Municipal bodies are partly independent of the state and therefore local government is separate from central government. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2015a.) Municipal administration is based on the Local Government Act (410/2015). Local Government Act determines how municipalities may organise their administration, recognises the diversity of municipalities as well as secures the welfare of residents. According to Local Government Act, local authorities have the right to levy taxes and the power to make financial decisions. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2015a.) Local authorities organise municipal administration relatively freely. Each municipality must have  a municipal council  a municipal board  an auditing committee  an election committee  a municipal manager or city manager. 38 The auditing committee audits municipal administration and finance and the election committee is responsible for organising elections. A municipal manager is elected by the municipal council and he or she is not a member of the local council. Other organs, such as equality commissions and human resource divisions can be set up by local authorities. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2015b.) The residents’ will is expressed by the municipal council, which is responsible for deciding on the main objectives and setting the goals for the future. The council works under the municipal board. The municipal council decides on matters that the municipal board has prepared. The council executes decisions and ensures their legality as well. The municipal council sets up committees that handle functions assigned by the municipal board. For instance, education as well as social and health care services are responsibilities of the committees. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2015b.) Municipal board holds a strong administrative position and it is the body that looks after municipal administration and financial management. Municipal board is responsible for more practical matters than those of the municipal council. Due to the gender quota, 40 per cent of the members of municipal organs must be women. Municipal council is an exception as it is elected by residents. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2015b.) The primary task of the municipality is to safeguard welfare to the residents. This means that the municipality is responsible for organising services either providing them themself, in cooperation with other municipalities or ordering them, for example. Furthermore, the municipality is the local arena for democracy, where decisions regarding economy, labour force, environment and safety as well as residents’ welfare are made. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 13.) 39 The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2017) lists the duties of local authorities  running the country’s comprehensive and upper secondary schools as well as vocational institutions  running libraries, youth work and sports services  providing child day-care, welfare for the aged and the disabled, and a wide range of other social services  providing preventive and primary care, specialist medical care and dental care  promoting a healthy living environment  supervising land use and construction in their area  being responsible for water and energy supply, waste management, street and road maintenance Organisations of municipalities and cities follow the same structure. As an example, organisation of the city of Helsinki is illustrated in figure 2. The city manager of Helsinki translates exceptionally as mayor in English. The city of Helsinki will get mayor in the summer 2017. 40 Figure 2. Organisation of the city of Helsinki. (City of Helsinki 2017) The management system of a municipality is dualistic. The dualistic principle means that the municipality’s operations are split into decision-making, preparations and implementation. (Ryynänen 2001: 59.) In practice this means that municipality’s position of trust organisation is responsible for decision-making and its staff for preparation and implementation. The tasks that the both parties take care of are different but of same importance. Leading the municipality is a combination of political and professional 41 management and in order to succeed, it requires good co-operation from all parties. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 11.) Sandberg (1993: 125 as cited in Ryynänen 2010: 28) claims that the relationship between municipal manager and political management is complicated but interesting. In a hierarchy, a municipal manager is on the third place after municipal council and municipal board. However, it is municipal manager who has the actual power. 4.2. Municipal manager The Local Government Act 410/2015 section 41 concerning municipal manager (note: chief executive in the text) goes as follows: “A chief executive shall be elected by the local council. A chief executive may be elected either for an indefinite or a fixed period and shall have a public-service employment relationship with the municipality. If in the election of a chief executive, no-one receives more than half of the votes cast, a new election shall be held between the two candidates who received the most votes. In this election the candidate chosen will be the one receiving the most votes. The chief executive is entitled to exercise the right to be heard on behalf of the local executive and to obtain information and view documents from municipal authorities, unless the provisions on secrecy require otherwise. If a mayor is elected for the municipality or if at the start of a mayor’s term the post of chief executive is occupied, the local council shall decide on transferring the chief executive to another public post or to a contractual employment relationship that is suitable for him or her. A fixed-term chief executive shall be transferred to another public post or to a contractual employment relationship for the remainder of the fixed term. A chief executive transferred to another public post or to a contractual employment relationship shall have the right to receive the benefits pertaining to it in a form that is not less advantageous than the benefits pertaining to the public post of chief executive.” (Ministry of Finance, Finland (2015). Unofficial translation, legally binding only in Finnish and Swedish) Municipal manager holds a public post and is in a key position in the city or municipality. He or she is a civil servant who directs the city or municipality by making decisions on administration and economy. Civil servant is a person who performs public tasks. He or she is obliged to obey the law, fulfil his/her obligations as well as respect the constitutional and human rights. Municipal manager is subordinate to the local council and has the right to speak on behalf of the local council. The municipal manager works 42 as the head of municipal administration, financial management and other functions under the municipal board. Municipal manager is elected by the local council either for fixed or indefinite period. An alternative is the so called mayor model when a mayor is elected by referendum. A mayor is the chair of the municipal board. The role, tasks and election of municipal manager are specified in the Local Government Act. (the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities 2015b.) Municipal council selects municipal manager by electing. A person who is qualified can be selected to the post of municipal manager. In The Constitution of Finland in section 125, it is stated that ”the general qualifications for public office shall be skill, ability and proven civic merit.” Harjula and Prättälä (2012: 406–407) explain that skill mainly stands for education and work experience. Ability is understood as personal attributes that are essential and an asset in a post of municipal manager. Initiative and results-oriented, for instance, are seen as such. Proven civic merit refers to distinguished civic activity and to an upright citizen. Civic merit does not refer to nationality. More specific qualification requirements for a municipal manager are often stated in the municipality’s ordinance. Generally, a Master’s degree as well as sufficient experience in local government seems to be the minimum requirements. Particular degree requirements and language skills may also be set, claim Harjula and Prättälä (2012: 406–407). The law considering office- holders in municipality (laki kunnallisesta viranhaltijasta 304/2003) section 6 regulates that the civil servants cannot be under 18-years-old and that he or she must have specific qualifications that the municipality has decided. However, in the case KHO 1992 A 58, The Supreme Administration Court saw that the applicant was qualified based on his work experience and having held position of trust, even though he/she did not meet the requirements in other areas. (Finlex 2017a.) Municipal manager in Finland differs from his/her colleagues in other countries in two ways. His or her post is statutory and he or she is not chosen by referendum. This means that in the local government in Finland, professional management is emphasised. The same person can work as a municipal manager in two or even more municipalities. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 32.) 43 In a survey executed in 2008, 80 per cent of the municipal managers were over 45 years old. Those municipal managers that held a master’s degree represented 65 per cent. Less than 10 per cent were in a fixed-term post. Women represent around 10 per cent of the municipal managers. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 32.) In her doctoral thesis, Leinonen (2012: 68) describes a typical municipal manager as a 50+ man with a Master’s degree in political sciences, administrative sciences, social sciences, philosophy, economics or technology. Pluralism is a word that can be used to describe the management of a municipality. Managing a municipality is partly political and many of its processes include promoting and conciliating different interests. Municipal manager is in a position where political liaison and local council play an important role. Political liaison has previously played an important role in the recruitment of municipal managers. However, not belonging to any political party is nowadays seen as an asset for candidates. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 11.) Leading a municipality means management on three levels: internal, local and regional levels. Internal, which means inside the municipality, management include professional and political management as well as relations between different sectors and between management, personnel and residents. Local and regional management means operating in co-operation with enterprises, third sector, other public organisations as well as municipalities. (Haveri et al. 2015: 24–25.) The Local Government Act obliges municipalities to advance the affairs of the residents even if sometimes they would be contradictory. Special legislation, too, sets sometimes contradictory goals for municipalities. Another fact that increases pluralism is the diversity of the communities that operate in the area of municipality. Municipal manager aims at society’s public good rather than promotes singular, party political values. Climate change, long-term unemployment and exclusion, for instance, are examples of complex issues. Well-being, vitality and positive future are what municipalities aim at. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 11–12.) 44 Jäntti and Majoinen (2008: 33) illustrate a competence profile for municipal manager. It includes five different areas that are  strategic competence  practical knowledge and know-how  personal attributes  human relations skills  leadership skills. The competence profile of a municipal manger is illustrated in the figure 3. Figure 3. Competence profile of a municipal manager (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 33.) Community leadership is in the core of municipal manager’s competence profile. Managing networks is an essential skill to handle. Municipal manager has to be able to have an influence on networks and organisations where he/she does not have actual Leadership skills - network management - cooperation over municipal borders - promoting competitiveness and vitality - boosting civic society Strategic skills - understanding changes - envisaging - strategic choices - strategy implementation - change management - strategic portfolio management Practical knowledge and know-how - problem-solving, data aqcuisition and analysis - language skills - public economy and law -business skills - media skills Human relations skills - interaction - pedagogic - managing conflicts - negotiation - public relations Personal attributes - ability to tolerate uncertainty - cooperative - trustworthy - ability to lead by example - ability to make decisions - ability to seize on problems 45 command. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 33.) Complex, open and constantly changing are attributes that describe today’s municipal organisation. It is important to acknowledge networks and the importance of team work in order to reach the full potential of the human resources. (Rajala 2001: 249.) Strategic management is a skill much emphasised among municipal managers. As the operational environment constantly changes and develops, municipal manager interprets what kind of changes are needed in order to safeguard the primary task of the municipality. Therefore, taking the strategy into account in different operations and preparations is needed. Municipal manager is also responsible for communicating municipality strategy and the goals related to it credibly to the outside operators. Implementing changes requires change management skills as well as operative management skills. Another important skill is to be able to streamline organisation as well as its business ideas and targets. Orientation to the future, strategic decision-making and the ability to implement strategy are included in strategic competence. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 34.) Practical skills are normally understood as data acquisition and analysing, knowledge of public economy and law as well as sufficient language skills. Moreover, business skills are seen as practical skills as municipalities more and more resemble business organisations. How to manage contract portfolio as a leadership tool is a key question. Lastly, media skills are needed when municipalities are more and more in the media. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 34.) People skills can be thought of as skills that tie all the aforementioned skills together. Many aforementioned skills may be useless without people skills. Ability to interact, to listen, to argument and a respective attitude are highlighted as people skills. Especially in the state of change, people skills become evident as change management is more psychology than jurisprudence. Networking is also nowadays commonplace and which requires people skills. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 34.) 46 Lastly, Jäntti and Majoinen (2008: 34–35) emphasise personal skills. Personal skills include tolerance for stress and uncertainty, ability to adapt to new situations as well as ability to lead by example. When planning a change, municipal manager needs to be able to make decisions by trusting his/her intuition. Participative and coaching leadership, to have courage to tackle problematic situations and creating trust are attributes of a successful municipal manager – also in the state of change. Municipal manager cannot achieve results alone, but through cooperative management. According to Ryynänen (2001: 11, 58), the impressions of a good municipal manager have changed over the years. Previously, a strong and charismatic leader represented the role of the municipal manager. Nowadays the role of the municipal manager is seen more as a chief executive official (CEO) from the private sector and the emphasis is on efficiency and institutionalism. However, municipal manager has not the same kind of status and power than a CEO has. Municipal manager works at a municipal sphere of authority, which is based on democracy and governed by politicians. 47 5. METHODOLOGY AND DATA This section presents the methodology that this research follows and explains how the study will be conducted. The research objective of the study is to analyse what requirements and are set to present-day municipal managers and what kind of management roles can be detected in the job advertisements. The research method is qualitative content analysis and it will be presented in the first section, followed by presentation of the data collection. Further, the case municipalities that were studied in the research will be listed. 5.1. Qualitative content analysis Qualitative method aims at giving a better understanding of the process. It emphasises social phenomenon and aims at explaining communication, culture and social action. The focus in a qualitative study is on investigating the issue comprehensively. The aim of this study is to map out the requirements set for today’s municipal managers and what kind of management roles can be found in the job advertisements. Therefore, qualitative method gives most inclusive answers to the research questions of this study (Hirsjärvi, Remes & Sajavaara 2009: 161–163.) Hirsjärvi et al. (2009: 164) list typical characters of a qualitative research. In a qualitative study, data acquisition is comprehensive and the data is gathered in natural, actual situations. The researcher is the instrument in a study and he or she relies on his/her observations. Inductive analysis is used in a qualitative study, meaning that the aim is to unveil unexpected facts. A starting point is not to test hypothesis but to study the material in detail and intricately. In data acquisition, different perspectives and “voices” are taken into account and the target group is chosen accordingly. The research plan is formed as the study proceeds and the qualitative study is flexible. The cases are treated and interpreted as unique. 48 The weakness of the qualitative research is that the volume of data is enormous, often endless. It is also not possible to collect all the data. As the volume of the data is so vast, it means that a qualitative research becomes a case study. On the basis of the research, generalisations cannot be made but cases are relevant to uncover repetitive and significant features of the topic. Therefore, theoretical generalisations can be created on the basis of interpretations. (Hirsjärvi, Remes & Sajavaara 2007: 177, 212; Eskola & Suoranta 2008: 19, 67.) Content analysis is a textual analysis and a form of discourse analysis. It is used to interpret meaning from the content of text data. Content analysis organises and summarises for instance written texts without losing its information value. By structuring the data, a clear, complete and coherent totality can be formed. The data can be structured by organising it according to themes and types, for instance. The aim is to increase information value and make conclusions on the issue investigated (Puusa & Juuti 2011: 117–121.) In content analysis the data is analysed and structured by looking for similarities and differences. The data analysed can be any written text. Content analysis can be used to connect text content to wider discursive contexts and previous research on the issue. It is this interpretive aspect that makes this research method discursive. The aim is to understand discourse that the text represents and its role in creating social constructions and therefore the text is analysed. (Phillips & Hardy 2002: 9–10.) In a content analysis that is based on written material, the researcher aims to find a logic in the material. After the material has been gathered, a starting point is to make a decision on what kind of information the researcher is after. The next step is to prune irrelevant information without destroying the relevant information. Research material is then summarised and cut into parts according to the research problem and research questions. (Vilkka 2005: 140; Tuomi & Sarajärvi 2002: 102–115.) After summarising and dividing material into parts, the research material is grouped into a new collection. The grouping may be made according to attributes or features that are found in the material, for instance. Next step is to name each new group with a names or conception that describe the group. According to the results, these new groups form 49 concepts, classifications or theoretical models, for instance. According to the results a new kind of meaning of the entirety is formed. (Tuomi & Sarajärvi 2009: 103–113.) Secondary data means data that has been created by someone else. It can mean different kinds of documents, such as official documents, articles, letters among others. Secondary data can be analysed in many ways. For instance, it can be analysed through describing and explaining the content of the data. Adjusting, connection and interpretation are needed when analysing data. Moreover, when secondary data is analysed, it requires healthy critique as well as paying attention to the reliability. (Hirsjärvi et al. 2007: 181– 184.) Content analysis has different approaches that are conventional, directed and summative. These three approaches use different coding system and their sources of codes are different. They also have different reliability threats. The conventional analysis can be applied when the number of previous research is limited. Downside of the conventional analysis is that the previous research does not support the outcome of the conventional analysis. Summative analysis can be applied when one wishes to analyse the appearance and the hidden meanings of the selected words in the data. Summative analysis provides information about the practical use of the words. On the other hand, in summative analysis the wider meanings behind the data may be lost. In this research, directed content analysis is applied. Directed content analysis focuses on the theory and aims to validate a certain framework. The findings in directed content analysis are most likely affected by the framework. This means that the results either contradict or enhance the original theory. This is seen as one of the advantages of this method. Views that support the original theory are more likely to be found than views that contradict the theory, which is the restrictive factor. (Hsieh & Shannon 2005: 1277–1282.) In this research, the material was read through carefully several times. After this, a summary of the relevant information was made. The research concerning young municipal managers and municipal managers of the baby boom generation were summarised accordingly to the research problem. This summary will be presented in the results section. In the job advertisements, irrelevant information was excluded and the 50 summary consists of the requirements of the municipal managers according to the research. The requirements were then moved to an excel file. The analysis of the management roles was made with the help of this excel-file. The ten management roles are figurehead, leader, liaison, monitor, disseminator, spokesman, entrepreneur, disturbance handler, resource allocator and negotiator. These management roles were used as categories when studying the job advertisements. The management roles found in the job advertisements will be presented in the results section as well. 5.2. Research data The research data consists of 40 job advertisements of municipal managers and the studies called New-generation municipal chief executives – Local leadership today and tomorrow: the perspective of young chief executives conducted in 2015 as well as Municipal Managers as Interpreters of Change – Stories of Local Management conducted in 2013. Both studies are conducted by the University of Tampere and the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities. This research material was selected as the job advertisements give an understanding of what the municipalities expect from municipal managers and the two research give an insight into the work and role of municipal managers. In this study, the interest is to map out the requirements set for municipal managers. Therefore, collecting job advertisements, where they are stated gives a picture of them. Job advertisements were gathered from online sources as it is the most popular recruitment channel nowadays. In the research, the information that concerns the requirements and qualifications of municipal managers will be taken a look at. Some general comments about the job advertisements will be given as well. Altogether 40 job advertisements are analysed. Those advertisements concern posts of municipal managers in Finland. Job advertisements were gathered from various online sources: some from recruitment portals, such as Kuntarekry, TE-services and Kuntalehti whereas some directly from the municipality’s webpage. Job advertisements are a random 51 sample gathered between April 2015 and December 2016. They are written either in Finnish or Swedish. The application time in the first job advertisement ended on 17 April 2015 and the application time of the last job advertisement gathered ended on 11 December 2016. The job advertisements of the following municipalities and cities were investigated 1) Kruunupyy 2) Kauniainen 3) Puolanka 4) Keuruu 5) Nivala 6) Äänekoski 7) Hattula 8) Kemiönsaari 9) Hyvinkää 10) Kurikka 11) Kuusamo 12) Tornio 13) Hanko 14) Kankaanpää 15) Siikalatva 16) Vieremä 17) Kokkola 18) Kärsämäki 19) Jämijärvi 20) Pietarsaari 21) Pornainen 22) Sotkamo 23) Honkajoki 24) Enontekiö 25) Hausjärvi 52 26) Karstula 27) Keitele 28) Petäjävesi 29) Kannonkoski 30) Asikkala 31) Eurajoki 32) Rusko 33) Inari 34) Lapua 35) Raahe 36) Heinävesi 37) Reisjärvi 38) Salo 39) Imatra 40) Kouvola The empirical data of the research on young municipal managers was collected in 2014- 2015 by interviewing 20 young municipal managers. The interviewed municipal managers were born in 1975 or after. Of the interviewees, 13 were men and 7 were women. Each represented municipalities and cities of different sizes across Finland. In the research, municipal managers’ appearance in traditional as well as social media was followed. Furthermore, their attendance at seminars and other functions was followed. A hermeneutic-phenomenological municipality paradigm was used to examine this data and inductive analysis was made to examine the work of municipal managers. The focus was on individual experiences and perceptions. The perspective of the research was local community leadership, organisational management, work at the interface between politics and administration, regional networking, publicity and collegiality. (Haveri, Airaksinen and Paananen 2015: 13–14.) The empirical data of the research of the so called Baby Boom Generation municipal managers describes the changes in the work of municipal managers from 1970’s to present day. Municipal managers born between 1945 and 1950 have seen many changes 53 in the role of municipalities and the work of municipal manager. The aim of the research is to outline municipal manager’s role in the changing environment. Altogether 17 municipal mangers were interviewed. Of the interviewees, 13 were men and 4 women. Interviewees were either still working as a municipal manager or already retired. Each represented municipalities and cities of different sizes across Finland. Interviews were conducted with a light thematic approach and the survey applies narrative analysis. Interviewees were encouraged to share their own experiences. As a result, experiences gained over different time periods were gathered. (Haveri, Airaksinen and Paananen 2013: 11–12.) 54 6. REQUIREMENTS OF MUNICIPAL MANAGERS AND MANAGEMENT ROLES IN JOB ADVERTISEMENTS This chapter analyses the research called New-generation municipal chief executives – Local leadership today and tomorrow: the perspective of young chief executives in 2015 and Municipal Managers as Interpreters of Change – Stories of Local Management conducted by the University of Tampere and the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities. Furthermore, this chapter presents the analysis on 40 job advertisements. The section answers to the research questions “what are the requirements set for municipal managers?” and “what management roles can be detected in the job advertisements?” The chapter is divided into two sections. The first section 6.1. analyses the requirements set for municipal managers through the two research that were published in 2013 and 2015. The results are grouped according to the competence profile of municipal manager presented in the chapter 4 and will be listed in the following order: leadership skills, strategic skills, practical knowledge and know-how, human relations skills as well as personal attributes. This section aims to answer to the first research question: what are the qualifications set for municipal managers? The section 6.2. concentrates on finding what kind of management roles can be found in the job advertisements. This section aims to answer to the second research question: what management roles can be detected in the job advertisements? 6.1. Requirements in the two research Municipal management can be understood as working with pluralism. Pluralism, different set of values and interests stem from a community formed by local residents. Working in the resident interface and meeting people require from municipal manager more than organisation management and co-operation skills. Learning to know the local resident interface and understanding it can be seen as the central element in other areas of leadership too. (Haveri et al. 2015: 27.) 55 In order to operate in the local community, municipal manager needs the support of local community. The cooperation of municipal manager and local community is characterised by equality and openness. Instead of formalities, municipal manager is expected to be easily available and accessible. Municipal manager is expected to build interactions and create relationships. (Haveri et al. 2013: 68–69.) Municipal managers operate in networks in order to find support and companionship for municipality’s projects for instance from business life and by co-operating with other municipalities and public organisations of other municipalities. Therefore, the calendar of municipal manager is most of the time booked with meetings. Personal contacts and network skills are needed at this point. (Haveri et al. 2015: 76.) Operating in networks requires understanding of actions and goals of various co- operation organisations. This kind of understanding and interest in other parties are seen as a starting point for reciprocation and respect. Reciprocation and respect is one of the main principles when working with and in networks. (Haveri et al. 2015: 76.) In many municipalities, the networks of municipal manager are larger and more manifold than the co-operation networks directly in the vicinity of the municipality. They have gained locally as well as nationally large networks during their studies and career. Own political activity, participating in organisational activities and friendships also have an impact on networks. Succeeding in creating and managing networks is defined by the ability to find natural as well as suitable networks and new partners to work with. (Haveri et al. 2015: 77.) Local special features and variable needs direct municipal manager’s actions in various networks. The current development directs municipal managers to operate more often with neighbouring municipalities. The traditional local co-operation with business operators has been complemented with co-operation that is focused on development, research as well as international networks. Municipal managers are easily accessible and highlight their position as a resource in industry. (Haveri et al. 2015: 80–81.) 56 Promoting the vitality of the municipality may be personalised to municipal manager’s personality. Municipal managers call for courage and risk-taking. Municipal manager’s role as the promoter of vitality is based on recognition of possibilities and opportunities. This ability can be described as having finger on the pulse. This ability helps to interpret weak signals and nascent development directions. (Haveri et al. 2013: 73.) Some municipalities expect municipal managers to reside in the municipality. It may be seen as a sign of commitment and as an example when municipal manager is marketing the municipality. Sometimes municipalities, especially the smaller ones, expect municipal manager to be a figure that is often met on the streets and is part of the local community. On the other hand, some municipalities do not expect municipal manager to reside in municipality they work for. (Haveri et al. 2015: 30–31; Haveri et al. 2013: 81.) Constant reformation of municipality’s structure takes time and requires invention and commitment (Haveri et al. 2013: 50–51). Municipal manager is expected to demonstrate impartiality and persistency in difficult situations, especially in municipal mergers. As municipalities face structural changes constantly, municipal management has become change management. The desire to seek new openings and ability to receive changes is emphasised. (Haveri et al. 2015: 48.) The importance of communication is highlighted when organisation faces difficulties to see the result or the aim of the change. Managers keep subordinates up-to-date of the different stages of the changes and inform what kind of actions is needed from the subordinates in different stages. (Haveri et al. 2015: 48.) Managing municipal organisation in changes requires understanding of employee’s individual abilities to adapt oneself to changes and to implement them. Steadiness of the municipal organisation may require municipal manager, who is used to fast pace and concrete efforts, to slow down his/her pace in order to make the organisation change. In the middle of changes, municipal manager’s supportive and goal-oriented behaviour is experienced as service for the workplace. (Haveri et al. 2015: 48–49.) 57 Municipal sector is a multidisciplinary sector. As the professional ideas and conceptions are multitude, municipal manager is the person who finds a common understanding and a consensus. In this task, municipal manager may use diverse knowledge: previous work experience as office-holder, knowledge of human nature as well as many data acquisition channels. (Haveri et al. 2015: 35.) Municipal manager is expected to throw him-/herself into work. Residents tend to expect a lot from municipal manager and the expectations on his/her power and influence may be unreal. When residents’ expectations cannot be fulfilled, it is essential that municipal managers try to influence residents’ ideas and images of the municipality’s activities. This can be made by explaining, clarifying and justifying the solutions and the factors behind them. Ability to explain and use plain language as well as ability to influence residents’ conception of the municipality are seen as important skills. (Haveri et al. 2015: 30.) The nature of leadership is believed to change into a situation where superior’s most essential task is to support subordinates in prioritising and organising multitude tasks instead of direct delegation. (Haveri et al. 2015: 47.) Municipal managers see the ability to delegate tasks to knowledgeable and experienced workers as one of the most fruitful abilities. Delegation is seen as a skill: it is not enough to forward an email and give instructions. On the contrary, municipal manager should shape the tasks to be suitable for the recipient. (Haveri et al. 2015: 40.) Municipal managers operate in the interface of politics and persons in position of trust especially with the help of knowledge. They gather knowledge in many ways, process it and aim at sharing it as openly as possible. In data acquisition, municipal managers exploit both new communication technology and traditional face-to-face interaction. Data is gathered from research, administrational documents, other municipalities as well as organisations, ministries and people. When operating with expert knowledge, understanding and perceiving entireties as well as relationships between them becomes essential. Ability to listen arises as one of the central skills when sharing information. It is not enough just to share information: sometimes it is needed that the knowledge is 58 summarised and processed. In these situations, communications skills are in place. (Haveri et al. 2015: 50–51.) Municipal managers shall pay attention to the quality and quantity of interaction. With information overload, ability to crystallise information has become actual. Municipal manager is expected to form clear, almost perfect arguments even though all the effects of the decisions may not be known. Ability to make choices and ability to pick up the most relevant issues are needed nowadays in municipal management. (Haveri et al. 2013: 65.) Young municipal managers describe to be working as informants, information resource as well as interpreters for municipal council and members of local council. Working as an interpreter requires ability to recognise both own and municipal council’s strengths and weaknesses. In practice it can mean understanding municipal manager’s own position; politicians are responsible for local decision-making and municipal manager is responsible for producing adequate and proper information. (Haveri et al. 2015: 59.) Municipal managers use lots of time in social media as well as with different medias. In addition to commenting on local newspapers along with traditional ways of influencing, municipal managers produce material themselves. Municipal managers exploit publicity in their image and media relations. They build consciously their relations to media and understand the logic and different roles of media. It is not enough to manage one means of communication but municipal manager needs to manage multiple means of communication. Rapidly changing information and changes, on the other hand, set requirements for communication skills even higher. (Haveri et al. 2015: 90.) In communication, especially municipal manager’s speaking skills and rhetoric skills play an important role. Exploiting different rhetoric skills is, depending on municipal manager, more or less conscious. Some managers appear as quite charismatic speakers while some utilise scant and factual expression. Both in oral and written communication, it is essential to gather and present solid arguments for one’s claims. It is argumentation skills that are 59 needed when working with media as well as with own position of trust organisation. (Haveri et al. 2015: 91.) The development of the media challenges municipal managers. One cannot control media or publicity but it is possible to coordinate and influence on own and municipality’s public image. It is not enough to communicate municipality’s matters to all the media but the development of the whole organisation to make it more visible and involved. Good relationship to media is seen as an absolute asset and even a prerequisite. Successful relationship with media and journalists is steered by, openness, familiarity with subjects as well as respect to opponent’s workmanship. (Haveri et al. 2015: 96.) The need of being honest and realistic, especially when the news is not good, is appreciated. This is seen as a principle also when marketing municipality. Using superlatives and giving an image of a dream municipality is impossible to implement, not to mention that as a means of communication it is false. By being open, it is possible to gain loyalty trustworthy and credibility in the eyes of the media and local community. (Haveri et al. 2015: 97.) Municipal management requires people skills. People management appears in all operations of municipality from services to democracy. In practice municipal management is working with people, communicating and being with people. Success of a municipal manager is dependent on interpretation skills, abilities to understand and to share information, to ask questions as well as trust. In interaction, understanding and accepting different personalities as well as information bases is relevant. (Haveri et al. 2013: 63–64, 66.) Motivating the organisation and employees is seen as one of the central skills of municipal managers. Clarifying the meaning of the work can be seen as a key for motivation. Clarification may be done by giving justification for why each is in his/her position and what kind of influence they have in the operation of municipality. The fundamental principle of human resource management is clear indication of goals and expectations. (Haveri et al. 2015: 45–46.) 60 Religious and cultural groups as well as other minority groups, for instance, may form the resident interface to be a completely different than in another municipality that has a similar industry and population structure. Sometimes, contradictions between different objectives require attention. In some municipalities competition between villages need reconciliation of different point of views, which instead require understanding of the local mind set and the role of the leader as the summariser of the overall perspective. (Haveri et al. 2015: 28–29.) Municipal manager contributes to achieve a reconciliation, which happens especially in the preparation of decision-making. A manager who listens carefully as well as patiently and makes room for different viewpoints often present issues acceptably. (Haveri et al. 2015: 41, 50.) Intervention to the problematic situations challenge municipal managers to operate with great sensitivity but also assertively enough to make the situation change. (Haveri et al. 2015: 45.) The amount and meaning of interaction has increased over the years. The increase of interaction can be linked to the development of communication technology. There is quantitatively more interaction than before that is scattered over a larger time span. This means that municipal manager is expected to answer calls during weekends and holidays. The culture has changed and it requires flexibility in separating business and leisure. (Haveri et al. 2013: 65.) Municipal managers work with knowledge-based information that the residents may not be able to express but which defines those actions that are considered good, acceptable and understandable. Municipal managers strive to sense what is essential in decision- making, what kind of atmosphere or mood prevails and how people interpret issues when they are in interaction. When being dependent on instinct and sense, it is necessary to participate in rendezvous and to be open-minded. Municipal manager seeks actively different venues, seeks for inputs and signals as well as is interested in his/her surroundings and environment. Municipal manager needs to be sensitive and humble to be able to use his/her instincts. By using instincts, municipal manager is able to recognise 61 local needs, special features, decision-making culture and hidden motives of decision- making. (Haveri et al. 2015: 52.) Connection and possibility to change ideas and thoughts as well as genuine understanding is seen essential in municipal manager’s work. Some municipal managers consider that municipal manager shall have vision, opinions as well as individual presentations on the basis of them. (Haveri et al. 2015: 74.) Negotiation needs for joint service organisations is increasing due to the economic situation, according to the research. In this kind of situations, municipal managers operate alongside local politicians communicating municipality’s political will. Municipal manager also operates as an interpreter in co-operation networks between the needs and goals of own municipality, other municipalities as well as service organisation. In order to succeed in promoting municipality’s benefits, municipal manager is required to have social sensitivity, negotiation skills as well as ability to be flexible and ability to persuade others to agree with him-/herself. (Haveri et al. 2015: 84.) Discretion is to act and behave in co-operation networks with respect and as if by forgetting population as well as responsibility and power that come along with it. Municipal managers also act as a figure that communicates municipality’s co-operation skills and dispels tensions and confrontation that are seen as a blight in co-operation networks. (Haveri et al. 2015: 86.) Municipal manager is expected to observe organisation’s internal culture (Haveri et al. 2013: 61). Decision-making cultures vary in different municipalities and they shape during many years, in many places and as a consequence of events. Understanding municipality’s culture, especially political culture, enables efficient working methods, spares managers and persons in a position of trust of problems and collisions as well as protects municipality’s reputation. (Haveri et al. 2015: 55.) As the municipalities are manifold, different management styles are required. Municipal managers acknowledge leaders with different management styles and understand that 62 different working methods are needed in different municipalities. Local communities’ attitudes towards municipal managers vary; therefore; ability to adapt and to fit any situation is required. (Haveri et al. 2015: 28–29.) Trust is seen as a central objective in municipal manager’s work. Trust is believed to be built on many factors such as openness, honesty and impartiality. (Haveri et al. 2015: 29). Municipal managers describe that trust is formed by mutual honesty, when municipal manager can criticise employee’s work with propriety without being afraid of employee’s feelings. At the same time, it is recognised that employees need a manager who they can trust. (Haveri et al. 2015: 41.) Trust is an interactive phenomenon which at its best gives leeway for municipal manager to operate. Municipal managers highlight that they are easily available and keep in touch with persons in positions of trust in order to be able to support local decision-makers in data processing. Changing ideas and being open are described to be continuous and as if a natural part of the work of municipal manager. Unbiased treatment of singular members of local council and council groups is a central skill of gaining trust. Inequality and suspicion on bias may destroy co-operation relationships. (Haveri et al. 2015: 52–53.) Especially in smaller municipalities, genuine nature and accessible personality are seen as a great asset. The residents may contact municipal manager in very concrete questions, even though municipal manager is rarely contacted via telephone. Municipal manager is easily available when he/she is part of the local community and the daily life of the municipality. (Haveri et al. 2015: 31–32.) Dissatisfaction with municipality’s services may channel into the requirements set for municipal manager. Sensitive issues may arouse emotions and pointed remarks. When operating in the local community, municipal manager needs to be ready to operate in surprising and unexpected situations, sometimes even in threatening situations. When municipality is met by a crisis or an accident, municipal manager is the person who must take control of the situation. When suffering a setback, crisis communication and community management are the central ways of work. (Haveri et al. 2015: 32–33.) 63 Many municipal managers operate on the resident interface according to low hierarchy. They take part in everyday discussions and tasks as one of the employees. A down-to- earth personality is highlighted with a sense of humour or other personal traits. Most of the municipal managers trust the power of example. By open and updated communication, municipal managers have the opportunity to bring the whole personnel as part of the municipal organisation. Communication that is targeted to the personnel is traditionally practiced in personnel meetings and email newsletters. More and more municipal managers keep in touch with personnel through social media, municipal websites as well as intranet. (Haveri et al. 2015: 46–47.) The post of municipal manager is demanding and therefore knowing one’s personality and its limits is essential. One’s self-esteem is seen to be connected with situational awareness. Ability to admit that an error has been made, publicly if necessary, is seen as an attribute that municipal manager should have. Honesty, openness and humility are seen as the basis for cooperation. As the complexity of environment and busyness grows, ability to allocate time becomes important. Mobiles and e-mails have made interaction easier but at the same time more chaotic. Awareness of one’s own role supports the construction of management. (Haveri et al. 2013: 80, 82.) Hectic environment requires fast and creative responsiveness (Haveri et al. 2013: 78). Municipal managers cherish impartiality and equality despite whether they have been active in politics or not. Openness is a principle for municipal managers. Impartiality can be reached through openness. An honest way of talking about interests and not trying to hide anything is essential in order to create trust and an image of equality. (Haveri et al. 2015: 54–55.) Most of the interviewees gained their university degree in social sciences at the University of Tampere. (Haveri et al. 2013: 57.) 64 6.2. Management roles Altogether 40 job advertisements were investigated in this research. This section presents the management roles detected in the job advertisements. Firstly, general comments on the job advertisements will be given. This will be followed by presentation of the management roles. This section aims at answering the research question 2: What management roles can be detected in the job advertisements? The job advertisements investigated in this study follow somewhat usual pattern and are formal. They start either by describing the post followed by information on wage and how to apply or by describing the organisation that is the city or municipality and then moves on to the description of the post. Further information and contact information is usually found at the end of the job advertisement. Each job advertisement includes the name of the organisation, job title, job description (the length varies though), educational requirements, start date of the employment, duration of the employment relation (fixed- term or permanent), location as well as information on how to apply. Except one municipality, all the job advertisements include information on contact details. This municipality provides contact information only of the recruiting company. References to age, gender, political background or other distinguishing factor in a job advertisement is prohibited and those are not mentioned. Instead of describing what the employee will learn by taking care of these duties, organisations rely on listing the duties, which is the traditional way. In general, the style of the job advertisements investigated in this study is informative yet snappy. The words used are realistic and concrete. Job advertisements state clearly the requirements; however, sometimes they are too scantly expressed. The job advertisements are grammatically correct and text is flowing. There are no expressions in foreign language that is avoidable. 65 The post of municipal manager is manifold and therefore different skills are needed as the previous section showed. There are also numerous management roles that could be used to describe municipal managers’ work and status. Each job advertisement except one listed university degree as a requirement. Some municipalities mentioned just higher university degree and some specified a field of study, such as administrative sciences. The second most often mentioned requirement was previous experience in public service or administration. Some municipalities expected that the applicant has previous work experience as a municipal manager. Many municipalities also expected previous work experience in municipal economy. These requirements refer to practical knowledge and know-how in the competence profile. Municipalities are thus looking for municipal managers with great amount of previous work experience. Reference to great amount of previous experience can be even seen as a euphemism for preferred age. Another fact that was clearly seen in the job advertisements is that municipalities are looking for a strong expert of local business and industrial activities. These aforementioned requirements refer to practical skills in the municipal manager’s competence profile. In addition to the above-mentioned, co-operation skills were often mentioned in the job advertisements. Co-operation skills belong to personal attributes in the municipal manager’s competence profile. Interaction skills were not mentioned as often as co-operation skills, but it stood out clearly from other requirements. Interaction skills belong to human relations skills in the municipal manager’s competence profile. On the basis of the above-mentioned requirements, municipalities are looking for experts in municipal administration and economy as well as local business and industrial activities. The expert shall also demonstrate good interpersonal skills. When taken a look at those skills and abilities in the job advertisements, the three most often mentioned categories are management, development and networks. Previous management experience and management skills was one of the most often mentioned requirements. Some municipalities listed leadership skills as requirement. One of the management roles that municipalities are looking for is therefore leader, who acts as a 66 supervisor for his/her subordinates by providing leadership. In leader’s role, interpersonal skills are also emphasised. As stated in the theory part, leader motivates, attempts to develop working milieu and manages the performance and responsibilities of subordinates. The attribute ‘inspirational’ was mentioned in some of the job advertisements. It can refer to leading by example. Strategic development grip as well as active attitude towards development are requirements that stand out in the job advertisements. Moreover, ability to notice development targets was mentioned in two job advertisements. Some municipalities also listed visionary, innovative, goal-oriented and future-oriented as desired features, which refer to development. Some municipalities specified that they are looking for a manager with change management expertise. Management role that focuses on development is entrepreneur. As stated in the theory part, entrepreneur initiates changes and directs them. Entrepreneur also solves problems, generates new ideas and implements them. Municipal manager works in many networks. Therefore, it is not surprising that network skills stood out in the requirements set for municipal managers. Some municipalities requested existing and large networks. A couple of municipalities requested also internationalisation skills. One municipality listed good corporate relations and one listed ability to see local industry and business as a natural partner as requirements. Furthermore, one municipality listed orientation towards local industrial and business activities as a desired feature. Lastly, one municipality expected municipal manager to be interested in outsourced services. All these above-mentioned requirements give a clear signal of the meaning and value of networks. Management role that is focused on networks is liaison. As stated in the theory part, liaison acts as supervisor of networks, both internal and external. Liaison communicates in networks efficiently and on behalf of the organisation. Some municipalities listed negotiation skills as requirement. Negotiation skills are needed in many instances both inside and outside the organisation. Negotiation skills are in connection with co-operation skills and interpersonal skills that are mentioned above. Management role that focuses on negotiation is called negotiator. As stated in the theory 67 part, negotiator takes part and directs important negotiations. Negotiator represents his/her organisation in activities. Most of the job advertisements focused on practical knowledge and know-how, human relation skills, leadership skills and strategic skills. Few personal attributes were mentioned. Attributes such as extrovert, warm-hearted and encouraging were mentioned once. According to this study, especially interpersonal and decisional roles are represented in the job advertisements. The post of municipal manager is multitude and many of the roles could be used to describe the post. It is impossible to compartmentalise municipal manager to certain roles. In addition to Mintzberg’s management roles, there are many other roles that could be used to describe municipal managers’ roles. Municipal manager may operate in the role of strategist, for instance. Different actors see the role of municipal manager from different point of views and municipal manager him-/herself influences in the formation of role. 68 7. CONCLUSIONS AND DISCUSSION The purpose of this thesis is to find out what are the requirements set for municipal managers and what management roles can be detected on the basis of requirements set for municipal managers. This chapter concludes the thesis, presents a summary of the research, discusses the central findings as well as discusses the limitations of this study and possibilities for future research. This thesis attempts to find out the requirements set for today’s municipal managers with the help of two research conducted in 2013 and 2015 as well as 40 job advertisements that were gathered between April 2015 and December 2016. The research questions were defined in section 1.2. as following: 1. What are the requirements set for municipal managers? 2. What management roles can be detected in the job advertisements? In the theory part the concept of management, functions of leadership as well as management roles by Mintzberg were presented. Furthermore, human resource management and recruitment in the public sector was explained. Recruitment of municipal managers and the legislation concerning recruitment of municipal managers was described. Lastly, municipality system and the post and role of municipal manager were explained and described. The empirical study was conducted with the help of content analysis on the research New- generation municipal chief executives – Local leadership today and tomorrow: the perspective of young chief executives in 2015 and Municipal Managers as Interpreters of Change – Stories of Local Management conducted by the University of Tampere and the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities as well as altogether 40 job advertisements. The two research and the job advertisements were found and gathered from online websites. The directed content analysis was made with the help of municipal 69 manager’s competence profile presented in chapter 4 and Mintzberg’s management roles presented in chapter 2. 7.1. Main findings  What are the requirements set for municipal managers? Municipal manager works on many interfaces and combinations of different co-operation relationships. Municipal manager represents municipality in various networks. One of the most demanding tasks of municipal manager is the countless number of co-operation partners and the encounters with them. On the other hand, municipal manager is tied to administrational, service and political organisation. Municipal manager needs to be co- operative and easily available. Ability to adapt and to fit any situation is required. Openness and impartiality are words that describe municipal manager’s attitude in networks and organisations. Equality, impulses and participation are words that describe present day’s working life. Especially large changes require time and energy to explain and discuss openly with people. Implementing remarkable changes brings together many parties. In order to succeed in the process, openness to inputs, visions and diversity is required, not to talk about communication skills. Understanding of different logics, interests and factors behind the facts come in to use in this kind of situations. It is not possible to operate on different interfaces without getting closer to people and places where interaction happens. When working both with politics and personnel, municipal manager needs to gather information that instead of verbal form shows as habits, routines as well as reactions. Cultural sensitivity is one of the areas of expertise in municipal management. In his/her work, municipal manager is with facts and data but also with knowledge that people do not express with words. Tacit knowledge is intuitive, gained in practice and can be seen in practical work. Even though communication is a natural part of municipal managers’ 70 work, cultural challenges exist. Municipal manager works as an information resource and exploits media skills with expertise. Management in municipalities is primarily change management. Understanding, negotiation, juggling between different interests, reconciliation and throwing oneself into interaction are required. Municipal manager works as an example for their own organisation. Knowing one’s personality and its limits and ability to admit when an error has been made are seen as examples of this. The post of municipal manager is seen as sort of a service occupation. Multitasking and unfinished tasks are everyday life. Prioritising and delegating are skills that superiors appreciate. Facing humans is seen as a natural ability, but charism and ability to please are seen as an asset in succeeded interactions. Genuine nature and accessible personality are seen as desired features. Sensibility to hear and recognise other people’s needs, feeds mutual benefits and maintains co-operation. Trust is seen as a central objective and it is believed to be built on factors such as openness, honesty and impartiality. Especially in a situation of crisis or very severe situations, sensibility and empathy are needed. Interpretation skills, ability to understand, ability to share information, to ask questions are appreciated. What was seen in the job advertisements is that municipalities are looking for experts in municipal administration as well as industrial and business activities. In municipal manager’s competence profile practical knowledge and know-how is thus emphasised. Management skills and interpersonal skills were also seen important as they were mentioned in many job advertisements. The importance of networks and strategic skills, as well, was clearly seen in the job advertisements. In competence profile, human relations skills, leadership skills, strategic skills and personal attributes in addition to practical knowledge and know-how are thus all often represented in the job advertisements. All in all, requirements set for municipal managers are versatile. Previous work experience in several areas was one of the most essential requirement. Especially knowledge of municipal administration and industry was highlighted. Previous 71 management experience and experience in demanding management posts was desired. At the same time, municipal manager is expected to develop municipality strategically and possibly bring new ideas. Good co-operation skills were a requirement and they are needed when operating in numerous networks. Networks are manifold and sometimes even international. Municipality itself can be seen as a network because of its structure. In a nutshell, municipalities are looking for co-operative multi-talents with large networks. Personal attributes, except co-operative, are rarely mentioned in the job advertisements. Attributes that are highlighted in the studies New-generation municipal chief executives – Local leadership today and tomorrow: the perspective of young chief executives in 2015 and Municipal Managers as Interpreters of Change – Stories of Local Management are rarely mentioned in the job advertisements. In these two research, cultural understanding and social sensitiveness, for instance are emphasised. Ability to adapt, listen and be accessible, among others, are not attributes seen in the job advertisements. Moreover, media skills are not mentioned in the job advertisements. It is possible that media skills go under communication skills; however, media plays more and more important role in municipal manager’s work, which should be recognised.  What management roles can be detected in the job advertisements? The requirements stated in the job advertisements were analysed and mirrored with Mintzberg’s management roles. As a result, four management roles were detected. On the basis of this study, it can be stated that municipal managers operate in many roles. Different roles are needed in different municipalities and the role may change depending on the situation. The four detected roles were leader, liaison, entrepreneur and negotiator. This means that interpersonal roles and decisional roles are emphasised in the job advertisements. 72 In the light of this study, the role of municipal manager cannot be described unambiguously. As mentioned in the previous section, municipal manager is a co- operative multi-talent with large networks. This description was made on the basis of the requirements stated in the job advertisements and it describes quite well the nature of municipal manager’s work in general. Municipal manager is responsible for the economy of the municipality and at the same time services provided must be of high-quality. Information comes from many directions and municipal manager filters the relevant information and signals it further. Municipal manager represents municipality in numerous encounters and meetings. In addition, municipal manager is a supervisor for his/her subordinates. It is clear that sometimes municipal manager works in the middle of excessive demands. The role of leader was detected in the job advertisements. In different municipalities, different kind of management is needed and municipal manager is expected to adapt to these needs. As municipalities are in the middle of change, developing services and functions becomes natural. When taken a look at management roles in the job advertisements, the role of entrepreneur was noticed. It seems that strategic performance and strategic management is emphasised in today’s municipal management. Today, municipalities are looking for innovative and visionary municipal managers who look far to the future. Different and various networks are part of the municipal manager’s work. Municipal manager represents municipality in regional, national and international contacts. Municipal manager co-operates with local business-life and associations. Moreover, municipal manager maintains personal colleague relationships with surrounding municipalities. The management role of liaison stood out in the job advertisements. Municipal manager is expected to perform in networks naturally and as a bridge-builder between municipality’s internal and external networks. Operating in networks is directly connected to negotiations skills. In negotiations, municipal manager is responsible for the actions of municipality. Negotiations skills were mentioned in many job advertisements as requirement and the role of negotiator was detected. 73 7.2. Discussion In this thesis, two actual research and 40 job advertisements were studied. This thesis gives an insight into recruitment of municipal managers. The interpretation of the recruitment of municipal managers in this study can be seen as one of the many possible interpretations. On the basis of this study, an understanding of what is expected from municipal managers in theory can be formed. However, in reality the expectations and management roles vary. There are different factors that have an impact on recruitment process of municipal manager. The current situation of municipalities can be seen as a fact that causes decline in the number of applications. Constant reformation and uncertain economic situation do not attract applicants. Moreover, the status of the municipality’s organisation itself has an impact as it is the basis of all the actions in the municipality and it is the municipal council that makes the final decision. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 35–36, 38.) Recruitment consists of different stages. Recruitment begins by defining the vacancy. At this point organisations define some practical issues, such as tasks, period of employment, salary, desired qualities of the applicant etc. before illustrating the job advertisement. Assessment of the candidates is done by evaluating applications, performance in interviews as well as success in aptitude tests. (Storey & Wright 2001: 235.) Municipalities’ demands for today’s municipal managers are high. According to the results of this study all the areas of the competence profile (human relations skills, leadership skills, strategic skills, practical knowledge and know-how as well as personal attributes) were represented in the job advertisements to some degree. The purpose of the competence profile is to describe an ideal situation. However, in reality it is not possible to find a candidate who meets all the criteria. Strong know-how and skills in some sections can compensate weaker sections. (Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 49.) Goal-orientation, efficiency and profitability have been highlighted in municipal management since the public sector reform in 1990’s. These adjectives were not 74 mentioned as such very often in the requirements. On the other hand, strong experience in municipal administration and economy refer to abilities to manage municipality effectively and successfully. Moreover, it refers to comprehensive vision that supports the idea of a results-oriented manager, which Leinonen (2010: 330) calls super manager. Virtanen and Stenvall (2010: 49–50) claim that skills such as strong strategic skills, financial management skills, change management skills, ability to adopt the principles of results and quality management as well as good human resource management practices, such as motivation and remuneration among others are characteristics of the New Public Management doctrine. Many of these skills were visible in the job advertisements. The results of this study are also in line with Karhu et. al. (2007: 137–140) who claim that management is not anymore managing a municipal organisation but communities, networks and companionships. Features of collective leadership can be seen in the requirements and management roles of municipal manager. Collective leadership (New Public Leadership) emphasises the meaning of networks in management. Ojala (2003: 29) claims that with the help of management roles, person in charge of the unit can manage the operations and tasks. Each of the Mintzberg’s management roles could have been used to describe the work of municipal manager. However, there were roles that were highlighted in the job advertisements, such as interpersonal and decisional roles. Those that were not found are informational roles in which information is processed. However, municipal manager surely seeks out and collects information, looks for non-routine information, serves as a focal point as well as transmits information. The reason for not seeing these roles in the job advertisements may be that these are seen as part of person’s other skills and not as separate skills. In the changing operating field, management skills are highlighted and the role of leader is needed. On the other hand, the constant change requires innovativeness and problem- solving skills that the role of entrepreneur provides. The preparation of the social welfare and health care reform, for instance, emphasises networking and organising skills over the municipal borders. Moreover, negotiation skills become essential when trying to find 75 the best possible solutions to organise social welfare and health services. As the operating field is manifold, the role of municipal manager as a network manager is emphasised. Municipal manager is seen as a face of the municipality in different networks. On the basis of this study the job advertisements of municipal managers are somewhat careful and generic. The same sentences are repeated in job advertisements. Either municipalities are careful to list certain type of attributes or they are not sure what they are actually looking for. It is also possible that the requirements are clear for the recruiters but for one reason or another they do not appear in the job advertisements. One of the reasons of not getting enough applications may lay in the job advertisements. Each municipality sure is different and has different working environment and methods; however, this is rarely seen in the job advertisements. As the municipalities are each different and require different kind of management and personalities, this may be a problem. The applications received may not correspond to the needs of municipality. A couple of municipalities came up with a more inventive job advertisement. They listed several personal attributes, such as inspirational and warm-hearted. They listed what kind of knowledge and know-how they are looking for by explaining those tasks that they want municipal manager to focus on. One municipality explained how they would like municipal manager to perform in his/her role. This study shows that municipalities tend to have too narrow perspective in their job advertisements. More attention could be paid to the features and desired personal attributes in the job advertisement. By explaining the priorities, challenges and development targets, applicant is more aware of what the municipality is looking for. On the basis of this study, more personal and informative job advertisements could not go wrong. By taking a look at job advertisements solely does not give a comprehensive vision of the recruitment process of municipal managers. Job advertisements do not include all the criteria for the municipal manager and there are many things that are not mentioned in 76 the job advertisements. Therefore, the results of this thesis cannot be interpreted literally nor taken as a fact. Some of the municipalities gave permission to announce one’s consent, which is legally acceptable. According to the law considering office-holders in municipality (laki kunnallisesta viranhaltijasta 304/2003), the consent must be given before the official decision. As Prättälä (2012: 276) and Ylönen (2004: 6) claim, this procedure is not applied as it should nowadays. This is problematic as it puts applicants to unequal situation and in the worst case it may prolong the recruitment process unjustifiably. A fact that is not mentioned in the job advertisements is the political background. The law prohibits the selection on the basis of political background and recruitment process of municipal manager is public. However, municipal manager’s political background may play an important role in the recruitment process. The political culture in the municipality may define how open the recruitment process will be and what kind of set of values municipal manager is expected to have. On the other hand, municipalities suffer from lack of applications and setting a certain political background as a criterion may complicate the already complicated process. (Kaasalainen 2011: 17; Murto 2014: 200– 203; 212–215; Jäntti & Majoinen 2008: 35–36.) 7.3. Future research This study did not investigate the recruiting municipalities. Therefore, studying what was the size of the municipality, population and where was it located and whether these facts are in connection to the requirements could provide enlightening information. Especially interesting it would be from the point of view of recruitment problems and whether these factors are connected to the scant amount of applications. In light of this study and its results, a statistical analysis of the amount of applications per each job advertisement would be interesting to know. The results of this kind of study could be of help for the recruiters in municipalities. The results could be exploited in future recruitments and especially when planning job advertisements. 77 A deeper investigation about the recruitment process with interviews would, as well, be interesting. The research question in this case could be: Did the municipality get what was desired? Furthermore, it would be interesting to know what kind of person was finally selected to the post. Does his/her skills and attributes correspond with those stated in the job advertisement? 78 REFERENCES The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2017). Functions of municipalities and joint municipal authorities. Available 17.4.2017: https://www.localfinland.fi/expert-services/functions-municipalities-and-joint- municipal-authorities The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2016a). Pohjoismaat vertailussa. Available 13.2.2016: http://www.kunnat.net/fi/tietopankit/ pohjoismainen-ikkuna/pohjoismaat_ vertailussa/Sivut/default.aspx. The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2016b). Ammattijohtajuus. Available 13.2.2016: http://www.kunnat.net/fi/tietopankit/pohjoismainen- ikkuna/pohjoismaat_vertailussa/ammattijohtajuus/Sivut/default.aspx. The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2016c). Tulevaisuuden kunta –ohjelma. Available 13.2.2016: http://www.kunnat.net/fi/palvelualueet /tulevaisuuden-kunta/Sivut/default.aspx. The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2016d). Kuntaliitokset. Available 13.2.2016: http://www.kunnat.net/fi/palvelualueet/kuntaliitokset/Sivut/ default.aspx. The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2016e). Municipal Management system. Available 13.2.2016: http://www.localfinland.fi/ en/authorities/local-self-government/ Managementsystem/Pages/default.aspx. The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2015a). Local Self- government. Available 9.11.2015: http://www. localfinland.fi/ en/ authorities/local-selfgovernment/Pages/default.aspx. 79 The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2015b). Municipal management system. Available 9.11.2015: http://www.localfinland .fi/en/authorities/localselfgovernment/Managementsystem/Pages/default.aspx. The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities (2008). Kuntaliiton yleiskirje 28/80/2008. Suosituksia kuntajohtamisen kehittämiseksi: Kunnallisen itsehallinnon peruskivet. Helsinki: Kuntaliitto. Available 9.11.2015: http://www.kunnat.net/fi/Kuntaliitto/yleiskirjeet/lausunnot/yleiskirjeet/2008/Siv ut/y28802008-suosituksia-kuntajohtamisen-kehittamiseksi.aspx. Beaumont, Paul (1993). Human resource management Key concept and skills. London: Sage. Brookes, Stephen (2008). Responding to the New Public Leadership Challenge. Leadership 2011 7:2, 175–194. Broussine, Mike (2009). Public Leadership. In Public Management and Governance, 261–278. Eds. Tony Bovaird & Elke Löffler. 2nd edition. Oxon: Routledge Abingdon. Businesslike (2011). Hyvällä rekrytointi-ilmoituksella nappaat oikean osaajan. Available 9.11.2015:http://businesslike.palvelut.uusisuomi.fi/2011/11/18/hyvallarekrytoint i-ilmoituksella-nappaat-oikean-osaajan/. City of Helsinki (2017). Organisation. Available 4.2.2017: http://www.hel.fi/www/ Helsinki/en/administration/administration/organization/. Dunoon, Don (2002). Rethinking Leadership for the Public Sector. Australian Journal of Public Administration 61: 3, 3–18. Eskola, Jari & Juha Suoranta (2008). Johdatus laadulliseen tutkimukseen. 8th edition. Tampere: Vastapaino. 80 Fayol, Henri (1950). Industriell och allmän administration: allt du behöver veta om management. Stockholm: Ljus. Finlex (2017). Kunnallisasia - Viran täyttäminen - Kunnanjohtaja - Käytännön kokemus- Päätöksen lainvastaisuus 5.11.1992/3986 KHO:1992-A-58. Available 3.2.2017: http://www.finlex.fi/fi/oikeus/kho/vuosikirjat/1992/199203986. Finnish Government (2015). Government decision on next steps in reform package on healthcare, social welfare and autonomous regions. Available 13.2.2016: http: //valtioneuvosto.fi/artikkeli/-/asset_publisher/hallitus-paatti-sote-uudistuksen- jatkosta-ja itsehallintoalueista?_101_INSTANCE_3wyslLo1Z0ni_groupId=1061 6. Forma, Pauli & Toni Pekka (2015). Kuntajohtajien työhyvinvointi 2015. Keva. Esitelmä kuntajohtajapäivillä Lappeenrannassa. Available 20.2.2017: http://www. slideshare.net/Keva_fi/kuntajohtajien-tyhyvinvointi-2015-52119613. Harjula, Heikki & Kari Prättälä (2012). Kuntalaki – tausta ja tulkinnat. 8th edition. Helsinki: Talentum. Haveri, Arto, Jenni Airaksinen & Henna Paananen (2015). New-generation municipal chief executives – Local leadership today and tomorrow: the perspective of young chief executives. Helsinki: Kuntaliitto. Available 20.11.2016: http://shop.kunnat.net/download.php?filename=uploads/acta261_sisalto_ebook.p df. Haveri, Arto, Jenni Airaksinen & Henna Paananen (2013). Municipal Managers as Interpreters of Change – Stories of Local Management. Helsinki: Kuntaliitto. Available 20.11.2016: https://www.google.fi/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s& source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwifzY77vKTTAhWBCyHZ c6ASoQFggjMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fshop.kunnat.net%2Fdownload.php% 81 3Ffilename%3Duploads%2Facta250_sisaltoebook.pdf&usg=AFQjCNF1To0xB OYEO-2-qZnIvYoycGhp9w&bvm=bv.152479541,d.bGg. Health, Social Services and Regional Government Reform (2016a). Health and social services reform. Available 12.11.2016: http://alueuudistus.fi/en/social-welfare- and-health-care-reform/about-the-reform. Health, Social Services and Regional Government Reform (2016b). Reform of regional government. Available 12.11.2016: http://alueuudistus.fi/en/reform-of-regional- administration. Health, Social Services and Regional Government Reform (2017). Maakunnat ja kunnat edistävät hyvinvointia ja terveyttä. Available 17.4.2017: http://alueuudistus.fi/soteuudistus/hyvinvoinnin-edistaminen Heuru, Kauko (2000). Kunnan päätösvallan siirtyminen. Oikeudellinen tutkimus kunnanvaltuuston vallasta suomalaisen kunnallishallinnon demokraattisten arvojen ja tehokkuusarvojen ristipaineessa. Acta Universitatis Tamperensis 760. Tampere: Tampereen yliopisto. Hirsjärvi, Sirkka, Pirkko Remes & Paula Sajavaara (2009). Tutki ja kirjoita. 15th edition. Helsinki: Otava. Hirsjärvi, Sirkka, Pirkko Remes & Paula Sajavaara (2007). Tutki ja kirjoita. 13th edition. Helsinki: Otava. Hsieh, Hsiu-Fang & Sarah E. Shannon (2005). Three Approaches to Qualitative Content Analysis. Qualitative Health Research 15: 9, 1277–1288. Jäntti, Anni (2009): Kunnanjohtajien saatavuus. Tilastollinen selvitys kunnanjohtajien hakumenettelystä 1996–2008. 1st edition. Helsinki: Suomen Kuntaliitto. 82 Jäntti, Anni & Kaija Majoinen (2008). Kuntajohtaminen 2015 – suunta, sisältö ja välineet. Helsinki: Suomen Kuntaliitto. Available 9.11.2015: http://www.kunnat.net/ fi/asiantuntijapalvelut/tuke/johtaminen/kunnanjakaupunginjohtajat/kunnanjohtaji enkehittaminen/Documents/Kuntajohtaminen%202015.pdf. Jäntti, Anni (2007) Kuntajohtajien saatavuus. Tilastollinen selvitys kunnanjohtajien hakumenettelystä 1996–2007. Kuntajohtamisen kehittämistyöryhmän työpaperi. Helsinki: Suomen Kuntaliitto. Available 9.11.2015: http://www.kunnat.net/ k_perussivu.asp?path=1;29;348;84961; 85390;131388. Kaasalainen, Silvo (2011). Virkanimitysruletti, miksi sopiva voittaa pätevän. Helsinki: WSOY. Karhu, Veli, Aimo Ryynänen, Pentti Siitonen, Ari-Veikko Anttiroiko & Arto Haveri (2003). Kuntien toiminta, johtaminen ja hallintasuhteet. Tampere: Tampereen yliopisto. Katz, Daniel & Robert L. Kahn (1978). The Social Psychology of Organizations. 2nd edition. USA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Kauhanen, Juhani (2010). Henkilöstövoimavarojen johtaminen. Helsinki: WSOYPro. Koivumäki, Veera (2013). Kunnanjohtajan rekrytointiprosessi – Saatiinko hakijoiksi sitä mitä tilattiin? Master’s thesis. Available 4.2.2017: https://tampub.uta.fi/bitstream/ handle/10024/85016/gradu07058.pdf?sequence=1. Kuntarekry.fi. (2015). Täyttölupamenettely. Available 12.12.2015: http:// www.kuntarekry.fi/ApuaTyohakuun/tayttolupamenettely/Sivut/Default.aspx. Leinonen, Jaana (2012). Monelta suunnalta on suitsia suussa, mutta niiden kanssa on elettävä. Johtamisen liikkumavara kunnanjohtajan silmin. Acta nro 232. Helsinki: Lapin Yliopisto, Suomen Kuntaliitto. 83 Leinonen, Jaana (2010): Tehojohtajia, kuntalaisten palvelijoita ja innovatiivisia visionäärejä: kuntajohtajuuden rakentuminen kunta-alan julkaisussa. Kunnallistieteellinen Aikakauskirja 38: 4, 322–340. Local Government Employers (2017). Tietoja kaupungin- ja kunnanjohtajista. Available 20.2.2017: http://www.kuntatyonantajat.fi/fi/ajankohtaista/tilastot/palkat/ kunnan johtajien-palkat/Sivut/default.aspx. Local Government Employers (2006). The Finnish Public Sector as Employer. Available 9.11.2015: http://www.kuntatyonantajat.fi/en/Documents/the-finnish-public- sector-in-brief.pdf. Ministry of Finance, Finland (2015). The Local Government Act 410/2015. Unofficial translation. Available 23.4.2017: http://www.finlex.fi/en/laki/kaannokset/2015/en 20150410.pdf. Mintzberg, Henry (1973). The nature of managerial work. New York: Harper & Row. Mintzberg, Henry (1971). Managerial Work: Analysis from Observation. Management Science 18: 2, B97–110. Murto, Eero (2014). Virkamiesvaltaa? Ministerien ja virkamiesten väliset valtasuhteet Suomessa viime vuosikymmenien aikana. Tampere: Tampere University Press. Nurmi, Raimo (2005). For Management. Hallinnon tutkimus (2005) 4, 69–75. Nurmi, Raimo (1992). Johtaminen kilpailuetuna. Uppsala: Mermerus. Ojala, Ilpo (2003). Managerialismi ja oppilaitosjohtaminen. Vaasa: Vaasan yliopisto. 84 Ojala, Ilpo (1995). Miksi kunnanjohtaja saa kenkää? Tutkimus kunnanjohtajan irtisanomisesta kymmenessä luottamuspulakunnassa. ACTA nro 47. Helsinki: Suomen Kuntaliitto. Phillips, Nelson & Cynthia Hardy (2002). Discourse Analysis: Investigating Processes of Social Construction. Sage University Papers Series on Qualitative Research Methods 50. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Piipponen, Sirkka-Liisa (2012). Kunnanjohtajien virkojen houkuttelevuus. Helsinki: Suomen Kuntaliitto. Pikkala, Sari (1994). Johtajakuvan muutos kunnallishallinnossa. Kunnallistieteellinen Aikakauskirja 21: 3, 74–83. Pohjolan valo (2008). Pohjoismainen johtaminen ja johtaminen pohjolassa. Editor Nurmi, Eeva-Liisa. Helsinki: Kuntien eläkevakuutus. Available 14.4.2017: http://www.kuntatyonantajat.fi/ImportedDocuments/DD693445EDB84551B86C EFA583A3A3F4.pdf Price, Alan (1997). Human Resource Management in a Business Context. London: International Thomson Business Press. Prättälä, Kari (2012). Kunnanjohtajien johtajasopimukset: Näkökohtia de lege feranda. In Julkista- yksityistä; millaisissa rakenteissa?, 282–291. Eds. Helenelund, Jan-Erik, Ilpo Luoto, Niina Mäntylä & Kristian Siikavirta. Juhlakirja professori Eija Mäkisen 60- vuotispäiväksi. Vaasan yliopisto. Acta Wasaensia 265. Oikeustiede 11 julkisoikeus. Puusa, Anu. 2011. Laadullisen aineiston analysointi. In Menetelmäviidakon raivaajat. Perusteita laadullisen tutkimuslähestymistavan valintaan. 114–125. Eds. Anu Puusa & Pauli Juuti. Helsinki: Johtamistaidon opisto. 85 Rajala, Tuija (2001). Henkilöstö kunnan voimavarana. In Kunnat 2000-luvun kynnyksellä. Ed. Paavo Hoikka. 3rd edition. Tampere: Tampere University. Rothstein, Bo. (2010). Det ska vara generaldirektör. Debatt 16.6.2010. Newspaper article. Expressen. Ryynänen, Aimo (2010): Pormestari. Helsinki: Unipress. Ryynänen, Aimo (2001): Kuntayhteisön johtaminen. Helsinki: Kunnallisalan kehittämissäätiö. Salminen, Ari. (2015). Rakenteellinen korruptio, kartoitus riskitekijöistä ja niiden hallinnasta Suomessa. Vaasa: University of Vaasa. Available 13.2.2016: http://www.uva.fi/materiaali/pdf/isbn_978-952-476-619-7.pdf. Salminen, Ari. (2011). Julkisen toiminnan johtaminen: hallintotieteen perusteet. 3rd edition. Helsinki: Edita. Salminen, Ari (2004). Julkisen toiminnan johtaminen: Hallintotieteen perusteet. 1st edition. Helsinki: Edita Prima Oy. Schmidt, Tiina & Sinikka Vanhala (2010). Henkilöstöjohtaminen Suomessa 1992– 2009: tutkimus suurten yritysten ja julkisten organisaatioiden henkilöstökäytäntöjen omaksumisesta ja konvergoitumisesta. Helsinki: Aalto- yliopiston kauppakorkeakoulu. Storey, Julie and Mary Wright (2001). Recruitment and selection. In Human resource management: a contemporary approach. 225–266. Eds. Beardwell, Ian & Len Holden. 3rd edition. London: Pearson Education. TE-services (2015). Report a vacancy. Available 9.11.2015: http://www.te- services.fi/te/en/employers/find_an_employee/report_vacancy/index.html. 86 Tuomi, Jouni & Anneli Sarajärvi (2009). Laadullinen tutkimus ja sisällönanalyysi. Helsinki: Tammi. Tuomi, Jouni & Anneli Sarajärvi (2002). Laadullinen tutkimus ja sisällönanalyysi. Helsinki: Tammi. United Nations (2006). Republic of Finland, Public administration, Country profile. Available 13.2.2016: http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents /un/unpan023307.pdf. Vaahtio, Eeva-Leena (2005). Rekrytointi menestystekijänä. Helsinki: Edita Prima Oy. Viitala, Riitta. (2006). Henkilöstöjohtaminen. Helsinki: Edita. Viljanen, Pekka. (1989). Työsyrjinnästä. Rikoslakiprojektin uuden ehdotuksen tarkastelua. Defensor Legis 70: 494-514. Helsinki: Suomen asianajajaliitto. Vilkka, Hanna (2005). Tutki ja kehitä. Helsinki: Tammi. Virtanen, Petri & Jari Stenvall. 2010: Julkinen johtaminen. Helsinki: Tietosanoma. Yukl, Gary. 2002: Leadership in Organizations. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall. Ylönen, Jorma (2004): Kirjoitus kuntajohtajien hakumenettelystä. Kuntalehti (17.6.2004) 11, 4–6. Helsinki: KL-Kustannus Oy. 87 Legislation Kunnallinen virkaehtosopimuslaki (1970/669). The Local Government Act (410/2015). Laki kunnallisesta viranhaltijasta (304/2003). Act on Equality between Women and Men (609/1986). The Constitution of Finland (1999/731). Penal Code (39/1889).