Kathryn May’s fantastic newsletter, The Functionary, is a must read for those in the Federal public service. But the latest edition had an interesting bit from an advisor to the Canadian Digital Service and public-servant-in-residence at Carleton University, Sean Boots.
Here are Boots’s top 10 ‘wild and radical’ changes to ‘bring on the revolution’ in the public service. Yes, there are only nine. That’s on you, Kathryn May:
1️⃣ Hire people from across Canada, and if they work at a desk, let them work from wherever. ‘Last year’s return-to-office implementation took all the wind out of the sails of every conversation I’ve seen about making a better and more representative future public service. Until we admit that that was a mistake, I don’t think we can call ourselves an evidence-driven public service.’
2️⃣ Give public servants the tools they need to do their work. Word and Excel aren’t enough for 2023. Roll out open-source data science tools to every public servant tomorrow.
3️⃣ Get rid of at least one layer of executives. ‘We have way too many talented leaders that are just stuck acting as mailboxes.’
4️⃣ Let digital experts climb the non-management ranks without becoming managers.
5️⃣ Move Shared Services Canada to the chief information officer and make all of SSC services optional for departments and not mandatory. ‘That will create competitive pressure for their services to actually be good.’
6️⃣ Phase out traditional corporate networks and just start using the internet like the UK did a decade ago and the US is moving to now.
7️⃣ Stop making IT staff work in chief information officer shops. They should be everywhere.
8️⃣ Split the IT classification in two so we can hire senior software developers and cybersecurity experts at competitive market rates.
9️⃣ Make digital experts deputy ministers. ‘Don’t smother them under a layer or two of our longest-serving and most traditional senior public service.’
You can read Boots’ full letter to the clerk of the Privy Council here.
