THE MUNICIPALITY AND ADMINISTRATIVE PRACTICES: COORDINATION IN A SOCIAL ASSISTANCE OFFICE IN THE AMAZONIAN CONTEXT

Abstract

The state of Pará has the worst municipal development indicators. In this sense, the municipality of Alenquer in the State of Pará has presented political and economic instability which can compromise the coordination of organizations in the execution of public policies. The objective of this research is to analyze intra-organizational relationships and how they impact the coordination of the Municipal Secretariat of Social Assistance of Alenquer (PA). This study contributes to the understanding of the phenomena that occur in the context of public organizations and to the improvement of studies about public policies. The field of study was the Secretariat of Social Assistance. The methodology used was mixed, by means of interviews and questionnaires. The results point out that the management is effective, showing leadership and encouragement in the search for organizational objectives; the employees, in their majority, feel satisfied with the management and internal relations; however, conflicts of interest are evident within interpersonal relations. Moreover, coordination is compromised by the inefficiency of the organizational structure, lack of qualification and specialization of collaborators, instability in the organizational climate and culture, and by the interference of inter-organizational relations from the external environment. Therefore, although Social Assistance actively presents the execution of its activities its coordination is affected by internal and external factors.