1. Public Sector Modernisation How do governments learn?
Alex Matheson
Manager, Budgeting and Management Division
Public Governance and Territorial Development
OECD, Paris
05/12/2018

2. First Generation Reforms:
Opened up comparative learning
Across countries - and across disciplines
Necessary response to affordability crisis
Put public management on the political agenda
05/12/2018

3. But First Generation Reforms..
Were generally instrumentalist rather than systemic
Sometimes had perverse impacts in longer run
Analysis and evaluation was weak and short-term
And new kinds of problems for governments emerged
05/12/2018

4. For New Generation Modernisation:
Affordability remains critical for many countries
But strategic adaptivity now top priority
Need for better and longer run comparative information
And for analytical tools which take account of national culture, analyse national risks, and guide modernisation priorities and sequence
05/12/2018

5. Key points Important to consider whole-of-government perspective
“Reform” is not an objective in itself
Administrative arrangements also about good governance
Culture is critical to successful public management
Important to deal with the real
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6. OECD “Best practice” was not best for developing countries
Hierarchy of needs: constitutional  legal  compliance  performance
Problems of sequence
Problems of culture
05/12/2018

7. lessons from experience
Learning Government
The problem is:
How to adapt to new internal and external circumstances
while maintaining connectedness, continuity and values?
The process is:
Data information knowledge wisdom
lessons from experience
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8. Learning strategies so far fall short
Best practices
Training and development
Blanket “reform” programmes
Excessive attention to formality and process (as opposed to actual behaviour)
05/12/2018

9. Possible learning strategies
Leadership
Performance orientation
Knowledge management
Accountability and Transparency
Attention to culture
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10. OECD work in progress Governing for performance
What is happening to civil services
The learning government
The changing role of the centre
05/12/2018

11. Governing for performance
Assist members...
produce strategy for result-oriented culture in national context
assign costs to plans and results
better integrate evaluation and impact information in decision-making
assess potential/ limits of target setting, measurement & differentiated incentives for organisations/ individuals
05/12/2018

12. KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT SURVEY
a broad definition of KM:
Organisational arrangements
Personnel development and management of skills
Transfer of competencies
Managerial changes and incentives for staff to share knowledge
A large interest in the survey:
20 countries
132 ministries/departments/agencies of central government (84% participation rate of pre-identified organisations)
High-quality responses
05/12/2018

13. A more vertical hierarchy--at least in theory
KM AS A MODERNISATION CHALLENGE: WHAT IS DIFFERENT IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR?
Weaknesses
A more vertical hierarchy--at least in theory
Difficult focus on outcomes
Large extent of tacitness in knowledge and practice
Resistance to change
Strengths
Traditionally, a more knowledge-intensive business
The effect of critical mass
Traditional transparency
Whole of government perspective
Low risk in sharing knowledge
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14. KM HAS BECOME A REALITY IN TERMS OF PRIORITY
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15. ORGANISATIONAL CHANGES ARE TAKING PLACE  INTERNALLY
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16. Results of the KM indicator by country and sector
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17. REAL CHANGES ARE TAKING PLACE  EXTERNALLY
05/12/2018

18. THE RESULTS OF KM STRATEGIES ARE NOT ENTIRELY SATISFACTORY
73.1% say their organisation has been very/fairly successful with KM practices
KM practices have been successful/very successful
at improving work efficiency and productivity: 63.2%;
at releasing information more rapidly: 75,4%
at improving transparency 56.4%
at improving working relations and sharing of knowledge with other ministries: 51.9%
But, NOT
at promoting lifelong learning: 27.9%
at making organisations attractive to job seekers 36%
making up for loss of knowledge: 34.2%
increasing horizontality and decentralisation of authority: 40.8%
minimising duplication of efforts between divisions and directorates: 37.5%
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19. The learning government challenge
New capacities to understand own system
Better thinking about sequence
Better information on behaviour and culture
Systemic and better connected interventions
05/12/2018