Governance capabilities of government organizations by analyzing experts' attitudes

IntroductionGovernance is a term that lacks a precise and clear definition due to its broad scope and evolving nature. It can be broadly defined as the capacity to effectively manage a society through productive engagement with various sectors. For a public organization's governing body to fulfill its responsibilities effectively, it must possess and institutionalize the necessary capabilities within the organization. Given the significance of good governance in today's intricate societies and its substantial impact on organizational outcomes, it is crucial to have a governance framework capable of fulfilling its role competently. This framework should be able to establish the organization's objectives, vision, and trajectory, steer its subordinates towards achieving these objectives, and enact essential reforms through timely evaluations of goals and stakeholders' conduct. Failure to possess these essential capabilities and execute its role effectively will lead to program inefficiencies and the inability to attain set objectives, eventually resulting in discontent among stakeholders. Therefore, the objective of this research is to identify and categorize the essential governance capabilities required. The methodology involved literature reviews, surveys, and interviews with experts. Through qualitative content analysis, key capabilities for effective governance were delineated. The expert panel consisted of ten seasoned researchers and managers specializing in organizational management within an Iranian government entity. The research timeline spanned from 2020 to 2022, focusing on one of Iran's ministries.Methodology The thematic analysis in this research followed the Brown and Clark method, which involves three steps: analysing the interview texts and coding them, creating a network of themes, and extracting categories. For qualitative interviews in this study, the semi-structured interview method was chosen due to the subject's nature and the necessity of obtaining exploratory information while minimizing research bias. The interviews were conducted until theoretical saturation was achieved. To reach theoretical saturation, the researchers adopted a gradual approach to analysing the interviews. After each interview, the complete process of coding and thematic analysis was carried out, instead of analysing all interviews at once.Results and Discussion In general, it can be inferred that the governance level within government organizations must possess a range of capabilities to effectively manage their responsibilities. These capabilities encompass ethical considerations, systemic understanding, attention to complexities, and leadership skills within the governing team. The integration of all these capabilities is essential for ensuring effective governance. Ethical governance entails key characteristics that define the individuals involved in governance. These characteristics, identified through literature review and interviews, include commitment, determination, openness, critical thinking, honesty, and accountability. Organizational structures should be designed to promote these characteristics as standard behaviours, minimizing the likelihood of breaches. Systemic governance involves capabilities linked to managers' awareness of the organization's systemic aspects and insights derived from human experience. Neglecting these capabilities can lead to systemic issues and eventual failure. Subcategories within this domain encompass foresight, holistic thinking, attention to complexities, and creativity. Competent governance behaviour encompasses leadership and managerial skills necessary for guiding subordinates towards goal attainment and creating a conducive environment for their success. This category includes subcategories such as organization and leadership, policy formulation, fostering a conducive culture, creating opportunities, and facilitating processes. Each of these categories comprises four dimensions, identifying a total of 59 minor capabilities essential for effective governance.Conclusion This study has comprehensively identified governance capabilities ranging from overarching dimensions to minute routine behaviours, a level of detail not previously explored in existing research. The findings of this research not only contribute valuable insights to the existing literature on governance capabilities but also offer practical policy recommendations for policymakers and managers to enhance governance capabilities within their organizations.