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Acknowledgements

The task of preparing a training manual on Agricultural Research Institute Management began with the FAO Expert Consultation on Strategies for Research Management Training in Africa, held at the International Livestock Centre for Africa (ILCA), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 12-16 December 1983. Following the recommendations of the consultation, and on the basis of the curriculum design adopted, FAO embarked upon the preparation of this manual. In the process of its preparation, many agricultural research managers and management specialists have contributed. Besides the two main consultants, namely Dr Ronald P. Black, Denver Research Institute, University of Denver, USA, who prepared the first draft, and Dr V.N. Asopa, Professor at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, India, who prepared the current version of the manual, the contribution of the following specialists in various fields must be singled out: Ramesh Bhat, J. Casas, A.K. Jain, F.S. Kanwar, V. Martinson, Gopal Naik, P. Nath, R.K. Patel, T.P. Rama Rao, S.K. Sharma, E.S. Tayengco, and J.S. Woolston. FAO expresses its gratitude to them all.

Special thanks are due to the International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR), which has willingly made available its valuable experience and relevant materials throughout the preparation of the manual.

FAO also thanks all those authors and publishers who have allowed the use of copyright material from their publications, and the courtesy is recognized in each case.

This manual has been prepared under the responsibility of the Research Development Centre, Research and Technology Development Division, FAO, with the guidance of: Mohamed S. Zehni, former Director; and J.H. Monyo, E. Venezian and B. Müller-Haye, past Chiefs of the Research Development Centre. Scientific supervision was provided by G. Beye, Senior Officer, now Chief, Research Technology and Development Service.

ORGANIZATIONAL PRINCIPLES AND DESIGN

Beginning with a discussion on various organizational theories in Session 1, during the next two sessions the module covers issues of design and change in the organizational structure. These concepts are applicable to problem solving in the two case studies presented in the fourth and fifth sessions. The resource person might wish to discuss various organizational theories in this module if not discussed fully in Module 1, where some of these theories are also mentioned.

If time is a constraint, the resource person might wish to simply circulate to participants the note on 'Structure of an Organization,' and conduct a plenary lecture-cum-discussion session around that. The other two notes would then serve as background readings for the resource person. During the session, as well as in the sessions on case discussion, issues in organizational design and change should be discussed at appropriate places, applying the theoretical concepts given in the reading notes. Of the two case studies, the resource person could choose to use either or both.


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