Document Type : ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE
Authors
1
Department of Islamic Management, Institute for Islamic Studies in Humanities, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
2
Department of Management, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Organizational effectiveness is the core criterion for assessing how well public organizations fulfill their mandated missions. Despite successive reform initiatives, the overall effectiveness of Mashhad Municipality remains contested among citizens, experts, and policymakers. This study aims to identify the deep‐rooted obstacles that undermine the organizational effectiveness of Mashhad Municipality, as perceived by senior and middle managers, professional staff, and urban governance experts.
METHODS: The study adopted a multi-phase exploratory qualitative design. Strategic documents, performance reports, audit findings, and prior studies were first reviewed to identify 26 macro-level problems. A 30-member expert panel then prioritized the problems through 12 focus-group sessions, producing ten core macro issues. Next, 17 thematic focus-group sessions, with 5–8 participants per session, were conducted around these issues. Transcripts were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis following Braun and Clarke’s six-phase procedure. Finally, deductive conceptual analysis, informed by public administration theory and the politicization literature, translated the empirical diagnosis into a conceptually derived transformative framework.
FINDINGS: The analysis revealed the "politicization of Mashhad Municipality" as the central, cross‑cutting phenomenon that links and amplifies diverse organizational problems. Four interrelated macro-dimensions of ineffectiveness were identified: managerial instability and short-termism, collapse of meritocracy, marginalization of expertise, and regulatory opacity—all rooted in a persistent pattern of politicization. Politicization manifests through partisan influence over appointments and promotions, short‑term populist decision‑making, fragmentation of accountability, erosion of professional norms, and the weakening of evidence‑based planning and control systems. These dynamics aggravate long‑standing managerial issues such as unclear strategic priorities, duplicated structures, excessive bureaucracy, and poor coordination across departments and with external stakeholders.
CONCLUSION: Sustainable improvement in the effectiveness of Mashhad Municipality requires tackling politicization as a systemic governance problem rather than as a series of isolated managerial shortcomings. The study proposes four interdependent transformation paths: strengthening data-driven governance and evidence-based decision-making; institutionalizing merit-based and transparent human resource systems; consolidating systematic transparency and accountability; and promoting human resource excellence through empowerment, capability development, and professional ethics. The conceptual framework developed here may guide diagnostic assessments and reform agendas in Mashhad and in other municipalities facing similar politicization challenges.
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