Drivers of compensation of heads of procurement units, supervisors, and materials managers in the public sector
| Pages | 1-21 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JOPP-04-01-2004-B001 |
| Published date | 01 March 2004 |
| Date | 01 March 2004 |
| Author | Mohamad G. Alkadry |
| Subject Matter | Public policy & environmental management,Politics,Public adminstration & management,Government,Economics,Public Finance/economics,Texation/public revenue |
JOURNAL OF PUBLIC PROCUREMENT, VOLUME 4, ISSUE 1, 1-21 2004
DRIVERS OF COMPENSATION OF HEADS OF
PROCUREMENT UNITS, SUPERVISORS, AND MATERIALS
MANAGERS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR
Mohamad G. Alkadry*
ABSTRACT. This article examines the determinants of salaries of heads of
public procurement units. Specifically, it investigates the effect of gender,
budget size, supervisory responsibilities, experience, authority level, education,
certification, age, cost of living and labor market competition on the
compensation of purchasing supervisors and heads of purchasing units. The
article uses multiple linear regression and analysis of variance to conclude that
drivers of compensation of public procurement executives and managers in the
public sector are different than those in the private sector or in other industries.
INTRODUCTION
Lack of resources and stakeholder confidence are becoming
increasingly important for public agencies (Martin & Kettner, 1996, p.
1). In the 1990s, growing economic pains and public hostility toward
non-elected officials are creating new pressures on public organizations.
Public organizations are expected to do more for less (Germond &
Witcover, 1993). This need to do more for less translates into a need for
economic efficiency and quality management of public services at the
same time. Public purchasing managers face this need head-on. They are
the head of the spear when it comes to service and product acquisitions.
Therefore, it is extremely important that these managers be compensated
appropriately.
Compensation studies are important for two main reasons. First, they
increase the ability of agencies to recruit quality managers through
-----------------------
* Mohamad Alkadry, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor, Department of Public
Administration, West Virginia University. His current research focuses on
public participation, organizational behavior, and theories of democracy in an
age of globalization.
Copyright © 2004 by PrAcademics Press
2 ALKADRY
assigning competitive compensation (Igalens & Roussel, 1999). Second,
compensation studies provide current purchasing managers with a
benchmark of compensation for their professional cohorts.
Investigating the determinants of wages and levels of compensation
is essential to the development of fair and competitive wage systems.
There are many studies that deal with different drivers of wage
determination. However, most of these studies deal with the private
sector, and are often associated with stock performance and profits
collected by firms. Such studies rarely deal with the public sector, which
is consistent with Thai’s (2001) and Carter and Grimm’s (2001) charge
that public procurement is neglected in procurement research.
This article examines the determinants of salaries of heads of
procurement departments and purchasing supervisors and materials
managers in various public sector agencies. Specifically, it investigates
the effect of gender, budget size, supervisory responsibilities, experience,
authority level, education, certification, age, cost of living and labor
market competition on the compensation of purchasing supervisors and
heads of purchasing units. The article first examines the literature
surrounding each of these determinants. Second, it develops a model to
be tested. The third section explains the methodology that is used to test
this mode. The fourth section deals with the results of the data collection
and analysis. Finally, the article discusses limitations and implications of
the findings of this study.
LITERATURE REVIEW
The type of work and the level of authority assigned to managers
help to a great extent in determining their compensation levels. Studies
across different occupations, industries, and levels point to different
compensation drivers. Business discipline, possession of a doctoral
degree, and academic rank are the main determinants of salaries of full-
time professors at public universities (Yeh, Sawanakul & Lim, 1998).
Yeh, Sawanakul and Lim reached this conclusion after their study of 209
instructional faculty members at public universities. Several other
indicators, such as years of service, race, gender, and college from which
they graduated, had less effect on faculty salary determination.
Affiliation with other networks of hospitals seems to affect the salaries of
chief executive officers of hospitals (Santerre & Thomas, 1993). Size of
To continue reading
Request your trial