Public Sector Leadership & Ethics Flashcards
7 cards from real CPM practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Public Sector Leadership & Ethics flashcards as text
A city department head learns that a vendor who just won a large contract donated to the mayor's reelection campaign. The most ethical response is to:
Answer: Disclose the relationship to the ethics officer and request an independent review
Even when procurement rules were followed, potential conflicts of interest must be disclosed and independently reviewed to protect integrity.
Which model of ethical decision-making asks managers to test a decision by imagining how it would appear on the front page of a newspaper?
Answer: The newspaper front-page test
The newspaper front-page test is a practical heuristic that asks whether a decision could withstand public scrutiny if reported by the press.
In the context of public sector leadership, 'upward communication' is important primarily because it:
Answer: Gives leadership accurate information about operational realities and staff concerns
Upward communication channels ensure leaders receive unfiltered feedback from the field, improving decision quality and organizational health.
A public manager faces pressure from a city council member to hire a specific applicant for a vacant position. The manager should:
Answer: Evaluate the applicant through the standard merit-based process and document all interactions
Merit principles require fair evaluation; the manager should document political pressure and proceed with a standard, defensible process.
Which leadership competency involves understanding one's own emotions and how they influence behavior and decision-making?
Answer: Self-awareness
Self-awareness, a core component of emotional intelligence, is the ability to recognize one's own emotions and their effect on others.
When a public manager uses 'participative leadership,' they primarily aim to:
Answer: Involve employees in the decision-making process to improve buy-in and outcomes
Participative leadership engages employees in decisions, increasing commitment and drawing on frontline expertise for better results.
A newly appointed public manager inherits a team with low morale and poor performance. The best initial leadership approach is to:
Answer: Assess root causes of low morale by meeting with staff before taking action
Effective leaders diagnose root causes through listening before prescribing solutions, building trust and gathering accurate information.