Review the attached assignment on the Aftermath of the BP Oil Spill. In this case, managers had to decide whether reorganizing could prevent a future oil spill.
Reorganizations are a tool managers turn to often – but do they work? As you consider how to respond to the assignment, reference Cohen’s Chapter 1 and consider whether the management tool “reorganization” really works in this case.
The book we will be using:
The Effective Public Manager: Achieving Success in Government Organizations, 5th Edition By: Steven Cohen, William Eimicke, Tanya Heikkila
Include your responses to the first two questions.
1. Identify the reasons for breaking the Minerals Management Service into three separate entities. What regulations or management reforms could have prevented the
BP oil spill under the Minerals Management Service?
2. What are the roles of each entity under the new structure? How are the
responsibilities split differently from before the restructuring?
You will also be assigned to respond as either Group A (defend the reorganization) or
Group B (reject the reorganization).
Group A: Make a case that the restructuring will prevent another oil spill. You will be
asked to explain whether you believe the new bureaus are regulated enough to make oil
drilling safer. Do you think the restructuring prevented the industry from capturing the
regulating body? Why or why not?
Group B: Make a case that the restructuring will not prevent another oil spill. You will be
asked to explain why the new bureaus are already regulated enough to make the
practice safer. Does it matter that the bureaus will all remain in the same department?
Will the restructuring prevent the regulating body from being captured by industry? Why
or why not?
My last name starts with F so we are in group B
MODULE ONE ASSIGNMENT
BP Oil Spill Aftermath: Restructuring for Management, Oversight, and Enforcement
The 2010 BP oil spill (Deepwater Horizon) in the Gulf of Mexico was the worst environmental
disaster the United States had seen since the Dust Bowl of the 1930s.
One element of the review determined that the management structure of the U.S. Department of the
Interior’s Minerals Management Service led to too much freedom for the oil drilling companies and
too little oversight on the part of the agency. In 2011, the Minerals Management Service was
replaced by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental
Enforcement, and the Office of Natural Resources Revenue, with the purpose of better
accomplishing three goals: locating appropriate drilling sites, safety oversight, and revenue
collection.
To prepare for class:
Review the History of the BP Oil Spill (Deep Water Horizon). You will assume the role of deputy to
Ken Salazar, who was then the secretary of the interior.
Secretary Salazar has asked you to conduct an analysis of the effectiveness of the restructuring of
the Minerals Management Service into the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the Bureau of
Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and the Office of Natural Resources Revenue. You do not
need to review the BP Oil Spill – but rather, offer your assessment of the impact of using a
reorganization to bring change to the EPA and the oil industry.
Everyone must answer the following two questions –
1. Identify the reasons that made it necessary to break the Minerals Management Service into
three separate entities. What regulations or management reforms could have prevented the
BP oil spill under the Minerals Management Service?
2. What are the roles of each entity under the new structure? How are the responsibilities split
differently from prior to the restructuring?
After answering these two questions – respond to the assignment below
Groups are assigned based on the first letter of your last name). My last name starts with F
If you last name begins with the letters P through Z – you are in Group A
If your last name begins with the letters A through O – you are in Group B.
Your response should be 1 to 2 pages, double spaced. Reference any material from
Chapter 1 that supports your response.
Group A: Make a case that the restructuring will prevent another oil spill. You will be asked to
explain whether you believe the new bureaus are regulated enough to make the practice of oil
drilling safer? Do you think the restructuring prevented the regulating body from being
captured by industry? Why or why not?
Group B: Make a case that the restructuring will not prevent another oil spill. You will be asked
to explain why the new bureaus are already regulated enough to make the practice safer? Do
you think it matters that the bureaus will all remain in the same department? Will the
restructuring prevent the regulating body from being captured by industry? Why or why not?