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Explore the shifting dynamics in Canadian public administration, reflecting on past reforms, modernization efforts, challenges posed by new environments, rules, and players, and strategies for moving forward effectively.
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The Present and Future of Canadian Public Administration Week 11
“The Precarious State of the Federal Public Service” (Zussman, 2010) • New People • New Environment • New Rules • New Players
How did we get here? • “The past 50 years have been characterized by waves of reform through both legislative changes and new government-wide policies to respond to those pressures that existed at the time of the reforms” (Zussman, 2010: 221).
Public Service Modernization • Public Service Modernization Act was passed in 2003 (Inwood, 2012: 272, 311).
Streamlining Public Sector Governance • Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer was created in 2009. • News Release: “Prime Minister Harper announces changes to streamline human resources management in the Public Service of Canada” February 6, 2009.
New People • New hires • Individuals working in new jobs inside the public service • Loss of knowledge and experience due to retirements
New Environment • Impact of new technology • Increasingly a culture of risk aversion • Impact of new media • Centralization of power
New Rules • More scandals lead to more rules.
New Players • Centralized decision-making in government • Significant increase in the influence and importance of political advisors (relative to non-partisan civil servants)
Moving Forward (Zussman, 2010) • Not enough is being done for new employees • Employee feedback needs to be followed • Deputy Ministers are a key constituency • Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer needs to provide leadership • Talent management remains a challenge • Need for greater stability among Deputy Ministers and Associate Deputy Ministers • Need to improve human resources management within departments
The Service State (Dutil et al., 2010) • “The service state has not lived up to its mission” (Dutil et al., 2010: 148). • “The service state must ask new questions to achieve its vision” (Dutil et al., 2010: 154). • “Asking the right questions and working towards innovative solutions will keep public servants motivated to create their own culture of service” (Dutil et al., 2010: 158).
Budget season • Ontario budget, Tuesday March 27 • Federal budget, Thursday March 29 Students should at least observe the media coverage of the budget speeches. Even better, you should watch the speeches.