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Council and Administrator Perspectives on the City Manager's Role

Conflict, Divergence, or Congruence?

North Carolina State University

The conflict in role perceptions held by council members and city managers has been reported frequently in the literature on urban politics and administration. In this view, the city manager has emerged into a policy leadership role but must confine that leadership to safe areas because the council continues to view the manager as an administrative technician. This thesis needs to be reexamined to better understand city managers and their relationship to elected officials. The manager's policy role is not new, and a review of evidence in existing studies as well as new surveys do not support the conclusion that the council and manager have conflicting definitions of the manager's role. There is some divergence which reflects differences in values and background between elected officials and professional administrators. The general congruence of attitudes and acceptance of the manager s policy role, however, indicates that the city manager can be a leader in the governmental process.

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