Study title

The survey charted municipal managers' perceptions of their own jobs. The data were collected as part of the European UDITE Leadership Study aimed at local government Chief Executive Officers. The project includes fifteen countries: the Netherlands, Australia, Belgium, Spain, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, France, Sweden, Denmark and the United States. The respondents were asked about experiences of stress in the job and the importance of different aspects in daily work. These aspects included creating ideas and visions, guiding employees in daily duties and providing the chairman of municipal executive board with political advice. It was also canvassed which sources have contributed to their development as managers, for example, other municipal managers, magazines and publications in their field or interaction with the Association of Finnish Local Authorities. The respondents also assessed the importance of different factors in the organisational change process. These factors were, for example, wide participation of employees, the speed of reorganisation and securing the support of trade unions. The respondents evaluated how the attractiveness of municipal manager's job has changed during past ten years. Opinions on the activities of the chairman of municipal executive board and leading local politicians as well as the interrelationship between the chairman and politicians and division of duties between them were probed. The respondents were asked about the time that the chairman had held the chair continuously, his/her membership in municipal council and chance of being re-elected. They also rated the status of the chairman within his/her own political party and answered to different attitudinal statements about the chairman's activities. These statements included his/her participation in managing administrative duties, relations with residents and ways of policy making. They evaluated how the important leading politicians should consider...