26.06.14
Beyond buzzwords
Source: Public Sector Executive June/July 2014
At the most recent meeting of PSE’s editorial board, when the discussion turned to ‘transformation’, one member remarked how fed up they are with that word and how it’s impossible to get away from.
There’s some truth in that, of course, and the term probably is over-used to describe some changes in service delivery of a relatively pedestrian and uninspiring nature. Others worry that the focus on transformation takes focus away from the need to push the government for more funding for cash-strapped services and for devolution of powers and budgets so local authorities and agencies can make the necessary changes in the way they think best.
But when the substance matches the spin, transformation can be a genuinely exciting thing to see in action, improving outcomes, creating opportunities and cutting costs.
To ensure that large-scale change projects in public services delivery are backed by evidence and not just gut feeling, the Public Service Transformation Network (PSTN) has set up a panel that’s gathering evidence of what’s working from around the UK to report back later this year.
Our interview with panel co-chair Pat Ritchie, chief executive of Newcastle City Council, on page 27, makes clear that the scope is limited to the best of what’s happening now, not grand but untested ideas or those needing fresh injections of unavailable cash. PSE will be following the panel’s work over the next few months.
Not to overdo the buzzwords, but another topic focus this edition is collaborative working. We’re focusing here not so much on horizontal partnerships across agencies and local authorities, sharing services or estates or even chief executives, but more the ‘vertical’ collaborative working of supply chain management and better contractor relationships.
David Hawkins of the Institute for Collaborative Working (no-one can accuse PSE of sourcing inappropriate contributors!) has a useful update, from page 20, on what collaboration means in practice for the public sector.
Crossrail chief executive Andrew Wolstenholme is another contributor, and our interview with him makes clear just how important collaboration has been in getting to the halfway mark of the biggest construction project in Europe.
Other topics in this edition include the Better Care Fund, fleet management, recruitment trends in the public sector and – our cover story – leadership in public services and how it is ‘taught’. Turn to page 56 for that article, written by Dr Ian Elliott, lecturer in business and programme leader for Public Services Governance at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh. It even has a quote from John Quincy Adams.
I hope you find something to enjoy in this edition of the magazine.
Adam Hewitt
Editor