From the classroom to the boardroom

Participation in the research and development of new services for a large urban rehabilitation hospital offers an opportunity to explore the progression of organizational expansion through the framework of management and leadership theory. This project examines management decision making by utilizing the conceptual approach of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. Because decisions for groups and organizations are made by individuals, these decisions, as indicated by Maslow, will reflect the progression from meeting basic physiological needs to safety, social and esteem needs, and finally, the need for self-actualization.

This project will examine the decision making process of leadership to assure quality of pre-existing services while focus is shifted to the development of new services. In addition, this work will address the core management functions of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling from a viewpoint of approaching organizational growth, and how the various disciplines of public health play a role in sustaining this growth.