ABSTRACT
The practitioners involved in leading political management activity are crucially important to its nature and effectiveness; yet there is a dearth of traditional human resources practices and training. Additionally, many practitioners in the political management profession come from traditional business backgrounds and therefore, while political and business management are indeed separate entities, the personnel who work in both universes often overlap. This chapter examines how political management can be characterized by a style of management that is dictated by an environment demonstrating great career instability, little institutional knowledge/memory due to high staff turnover, and little money to be made — especially in the Canadian political system given its stricter political fundraising requirements and less frequent electoral contests.
