Anatomy of a Professionalization Project: The Making of the Modern School Business Manager

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Public services have been a target for reform in Western-style democracies for more than three decades. This volume documents and examines the case of School Business Managers (SBMs) as an example of a growing but scarcely-acknowledged phenomenon: the government-backed creation of new professions within the public sector for groups of support workers not formally recognised as such. The dawn of the millennium saw the beginning of an unprecedented professional project as the New Labour government set about the systematic creation of a pool of suitably skilled and qualified School Business Managers in England. The Governments stated purpose was to support educational leaders in meeting mounting public expectations for state schools in increasingly complex and challenging circumstances.Although the war stories of lead professionals such as teachers and physicians in the context of reform have been extensively documented, the contribution of the army of less high-status professionals in public service institutions is poorly-understood. Drawing on first-hand accounts of people involved in bringing the SBM professional project about, and those whose professional lives the project sought to target, the SBMs themselves, the book turns the spotlight on an under-recognised group. It explores the purposes and outcomes of the professionalization initiative, comparing the process to the professional projects of SBMs in other countries and to parallel projects within the health sector.

Reviews

Sometimes a book comes along that challenges how you think about the way schools work and the myriad new professionals who now work in schools. Anatomy of a Professionalization Project raises questions about power, influence and praxis in a post-welfare setting where business-led reforms are sculpting what it is to do education. Woods book offers an expert voice and a rare insight into the life and times of those in schools who are charged with financial and administrative responsibility. * Meg Maguire, King's College London, UK *
Anatomy of a Professionalization Project takes a distinctive approach to the emerging research into the school business manager profession. Charlotte Woods timely book delivers critical insights into this up-and-coming profession and is an important contribution to growing discussions about the business aspects of educational leadership. * Karen Starr, Chair in School Development and Leadership, Deakin University, Australia *

Author Bio

Charlotte Woods is Senior Lecturer in Education at the University of Manchester, UK.