"Enhancing Service Quality in the Public Sector through Evidence-Based Management" Workshop presented by Prof. Dr. Bowen McBeath at UEH

From September 28, 2023 to October 9, 2023, a series of workshops with the topic "Enhancing Service Quality in the Public Sector through Evidence-Based Management" organized by UEH College of Economics, Law and Government (CELG) in coordination with Portland State University (PSU), USA took place at UEH with a presentation by Professor. Bowen McBeath - Professor of Economics, School of Business, PSU.

Professor Bowen McBeath is currently working at the School of Social Work and the Department of Public Administration, Portland State University. He has received international and national awards and honors for his scholarship and research, co-edited the journals in Human Service Organizations, served on the editorial boards of other journals, and consulted for human service organizations at the international, national, state, and local levels.

From September 28, 2023 to October 9, 2023, Professor Bowen McBeath attended workshop activities with the topic "Enhancing Service Quality in the Public Sector through Evidence-Based Management" at UEH within the framework of the MOU between UEH College of Economics, Law and Government (CELG) and Portland State University (PSU) on student and lecturer exchange and cooperation in sharing academic resources. The workshop series included the following activities:

Moderating the parallel session at the annual international conference of CELG - UEH (ELG 2023).

Sharing organizational models to improve service quality, research and development (R&D) and innovation in the public sector.
Sharing developing mixed-method research
Visiting and working with the Social Security Center, Thu Duc City.
Meeting and supervising graduate students and PhD candidates.
Discussing public sector involvement in research and development (R&D) and innovation.

In particular, at UEH Vinh Long Campus, the seminar on “Organizational models to enhance service quality and evidence-based management" took place on October 1, 2023 with the participation of 40 students of the Master of Public Policy Senior Executive. In the framework of the seminar, Professor Bowen McBeath shared three models to help managers and employees participate in organizational change, with the basic goal of improving public services. This model includes the evidence-based practitioner model, the associate officer model, and the performance management model. Through the sharing session, learners would have an overview of each model so they can apply the appropriate model for each organization.

The next lecture would take place on October 3, 2023 with the topic "Mixed method: project-based lecturing approach" held at Campus B (279 Nguyen Tri Phuong, District 10) with the participation of nearly 30 lecturers, PhD candidates, graduate students, and undergraduate full-time students at UEH University. The professor introduced the project-based teaching approach, provided an overview of the policy program, described the methodology and key findings of the evaluation process, and offered implications for policy practitioners as well as researchers seeking to develop their own mixed methods evaluations.

Prof. Bowen McBeath sharingmixed methods research with lecturers and students on October 3, 2023

Overview of the classroom on October 3, 2023

On October 5, 2023, Prof. Bowen McBeath and a delegation of lecturers from the School of Government visited and worked with the Social Security Center, Thu Duc City. Here, the Professor shared practical experiences on the application of research and development (R&D) and innovation in the public sector. On October 6, 2023, Prof. Bowen McBeath met and supervised graduate students and PhD students on their research topics.

The conference "Seminar on public sector engagement in R&D and R&E" was jointly organized by UEH and PSU on October 7 at Campus B with the participation of more than 80 UEH lecturers, graduate and undergraduate students. Professor Bowen presented a paper on research and development (R&D) and innovation in the public sector. The professor identified key barriers to engaging in R&D and R&E and different types of strategies to address these barriers. Participating faculty and institutions would then be invited to consider how realistic and useful each strategy was for their own organizational context.

Dr. Nguyen Van Du - Vice Dean of the School of Government, CELG - delivering the opening speech at the Workshop "Seminar on public sector engagement in R&D and R&E"

Dr. Nguyen Le Hoang Thuy To Quyen - Lecturer at School of Government, CELG - and Prof. Bowen McBeath hosting an interactive Q&A session with attendees

The workshop series "Enhancing Service Quality in the Public Sector through Evidence-Based Management" with activities contributing to improving knowledge, research skills and academic exchange between UEH and PSU ended successfully. This important series was within the framework of the cooperation agreement between UEH and PSU, and within the framework of the project "Enhancing provincial capacity" by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

UEH lecturers and students taking photos with Professor Bowen McBeath

With the role of a Multidisciplinary and Sustainable University, University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City has been constantly expanding domestic and international cooperation through promoting training cooperation, organizing international scientific conferences, and integrating university communities around the world to serve the community and build a sustainable community.

News and photos: CELG General Department, UEH Department of Marketing and Communication