In this episode of Leading Question, recorded with a live online audience, a panel of Global Government Forum experts delve into the findings of its research into the key characteristics needed for a modern public service. The Making Government Work report identifies five key pillars of a modern civil service, which are:

·       Strong leadership with mutual respect and alignment between ministers and senior officials

·       Building a highly skilled, inclusive and thriving public sector workforce.

·       Fostering an agile, digital, and risk-taking culture focused on delivery.

·       Implementing working structures that transcend organisational silos.

·       Cultivating a service trusted by its users and the public.

The report is the culmination of interviews with 12 senior civil service leaders from around the world, and comes in response to requests from leaders at Global Government Forum’s annual Global Government Summit for a comprehensive “blueprint” for government that could consolidate and expand key knowledge shared over the past decade.

In the conversation, report authors Richard Johnstone, Siobhan Benita and Lord Gus O’Donnell discuss the elements of each of these pillars, setting out the findings from this unique research. Listen now for an unprecedented primer on the key issues that governments around the world are facing. For civil servants looking to understand how to cultivate a service trusted by individual users and the public at large, this discussion is essential listening.

Read our Making Government Work report here.

Thank you to the leaders who took part in this study:

·       Glyn Davis, secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Australia

·       Donna Cadogan, head, public service, Barbados

·       John Hannaford, clerk of the Privy Council and secretary to the Cabinet, Canada

·       Taimar Peterkop, state secretary, Estonia

·       Henrik Haapajärvi, former state secretary to the prime minister, Finland

·       Claire Landais, secretary general of the government, France

·       Haryomo Dwi Putranto, acting chair, Indonesian National Civil Service Agency, Indonesia

·       John Callinan, secretary general of Department of Taoiseach and Government, Ireland

·       Folasade Yemi-Esan, head of the civil service of the Federation, Nigeria (retired 14 August)

·       Leo Yip, head of civil service and permanent secretary (Prime Minister’s Office), Singapore

·       Simon Case, cabinet secretary and head of the civil service, United Kingdom

·       Dustin Brown, deputy assistant director for Management, Office of Management and Budget, Executive Office of the President, United States (at time of interview).

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