ABSTRACT
The increased influence of managers, managerialism and the development of the social work business occurred during the rise of neoliberalism under Margaret Thatcher's governments 1979-1990 and subsequently endorsed by governments. The rise of managerialisation is linked to the neoliberal reconstruction of managerial power in the 1980s which included the reduction of trade union rights and powers together with the extension of managerial control over how to use workers. The discursive perspective offers a more optimistic view of the encroachment of the managerial tide. Here, there is not a distinct break from bureau-professionalism to managerialism, with instead a continuation of professional concerns and practices being able to operate, albeit in conjunction with an increasingly powerful managerial discourse. John Harris (2003), in his seminal text, The Social Work Business, shows how social work has been deeply affected by the imposition of a culture of managerialism.
