DOI: 10.36347/sjahss.2016.v04i11.004

Pages: 1381-1387

The study sought to establish the effectiveness of management strategies in local authorities in Zimbabwe: A case study of Harare City Council. The representative sample consisted of thirty (30) participants who included both female and male employees of the Harare City Council. A qualitative research case study design was employed to guide the methodology. Data was collected using the interview schedule guide. Qualitative data analysis with narrative description was used in the presentation, interpretation and analysis of data. Findings from the study showed that effective management strategies in local authorities in Zimbabwe where present on paper. The implementation of the strategies was a major challenge due to various factors. Some of the factors noted were that there was a lot of political interference in the running of affairs in local authorities especially at the Harare City Council, lack of stakeholder participation in the strategic planning processes, lack of financial resources to fully implement effective management strategies to the benefit of residents and lack of clear policy direction. There was also a finding that there was lack of trust history between managerial staff and general employees based on political affiliation.