Leading the Public-Sector Organization

Content Structure

It is clear that the concept of public management has changed radically in the last decade. Deficit reduction and government restructuring have affected the public sector in Canada and most other OECD countries. The old public-sector paradigm of carefully defined roles, reliance on rules and procedures, and central agency oversight is becoming obsolete in favour of a more client-focused, service-oriented system.

This new type of government promotes competition between service providers, measures performance based on output, defines clients as customers, and energizes all sectors – public, private, and voluntary – to solve community problems.

In this new framework, public-sector executives face a challenge: On the one hand, they are expected to deliver results measured against political targets. On the other, they are increasingly being asked to incorporate private-sector business practices into public-service models.

The Program examines this tension, and focuses on the use of modern management tools in today’s public-sector organization.

Growing requirements for coordination between government and its partners demand more extensive consultation to ensure that stakeholder interests are incorporated into objectives.

Increasingly, public-sector executives find themselves redesigning organizations and procedures to incorporate this new accountability, while applying new human resource management techniques that include delegation of authority and joint responsibility.

Public-sector managers have a new focus on developing accountability frameworks, devolving responsibility to NGOs, and learning how to structure accountability to get commitments from partners.

To accomplish this, senior public servants must be able to use a broad set of management tools commonly associated with the private sector. The Program will introduce these private-sector tools in a public-sector context. The session leaders have extensive experience in the application of these tools to the public service, and understand how private-sector concepts need to be adapted to work in the public sector.

Leading Strategic Management

• Shortening implementation time frames
• Deploying programs and initiatives in an efficient and effective manner

Leading the Institution and Managing the Organization

• Management and organization effectiveness
• The challenge of institutional leadership

Changing Media and Public Policy

• Integrating public opinion polling into the policy planning process
• Creating public communications strategies aligned with the policy plan
• Developing interdepartmental and cross-jurisdictional communication coordination strategies

Financial Analysis

• Understanding accrual accounting
• Using Activity Based Costing to develop or enhance cost efficiencies
• Understanding the financial considerations of Alternative Service Delivery
• Measuring quality, client service, and productivity

Today’s public service is in flux. Still tied to traditional values while embracing new technologies, it must incorporate private-sector innovation and public-sector best practices, national goals and local political priorities.

Another challenge that confronts public-sector leadership is one shared by private-sector leaders – how does an organization harness its resources to manage and capitalize on opportunities?

To do all this, today’s public service has a critical need for strong and ethical leadership. Attrition, political change, and hiring freezes have thinned the ranks of senior public servants. As a result, many of today’s younger managers must fill the gap as the current generation of senior managers begins to retire.

A key focus for these new managers will be the concept of public service. Is it eroding in this era of efficiency-based management? New managers in the public sector must be committed to the service of the Canadian public, not simply to improving efficiency. Accountability demands that senior managers have a responsibility to restore the values of public service that are so important to a motivated and committed government service.

Performance Management

• Building and sustaining a positive work climate through the creation of teams of committed employees
• Developing contemporary performance-enhancing initiatives
• Using the lessons of successful coaches to enhance employee performance and increase organizational effectiveness

Leading Change

• Developing strategies for renewing organizations
• Creating strategies for building alignment and commitment
• Managing change on a continuous basis
• Creating the high-performance workplace
• Rebuilding morale in the public sector

Ethical Leadership

• Restoring the concepts of pride, duty, and service to the public sector
• Developing ethical guidelines
• Coping with the pressure to facilitate, consult, and work with citizens