Governing the City State - Chief Minister and Treasury Directorate ...

the past, limitations on external consultation (for example, on taxation issues)hampered the quality of policy advice to government. 357Models of Innovation in the Public SectorAt their best, public services transform people's lives, providing opportunity for alland tackling inequality. But changing people's lives for the better is not only aboutthe policies we develop or the money we spend, it is also about the way we work andhow services are organised to effect change. 358In 1995 the Singapore Public Service created a major change movement Public Service forthe 21st Century or PS21 359 in recognition that change doesn’t just happen. The changemovement was established under the Prime Minister’s Office, is led by Public Service leadersand impacts all officials. PS21 aims to build a Public Service that is ready for change. It is apeople-centred mass movement that encourages public officers to embrace change in theirdaily work in order to keep the Public Service at the leading edge.PS21 aims to build the capacity of the Singapore public service to “anticipate change,welcome change and execute change efficiently and effectively. The success of PS21 lies notwith the number of projects it has spawned, the cost savings it has achieved, or the impact ofits various initiatives, but in the extent to which an attitude of excellence and a culture of360being prepared continuously for change has been internalised in the public service.”.PS21 works within four focal areas:• staff wellbeing – morale, welfare, development and engagement of public officers;• ExCEL (Excellence Through Continuous Enterprise and Learning) - tapping the creativityof each public officer, fostering teamwork and institutionalising training anddevelopment;• Organisational Review - about having robust systems and processes within organisationsto ensure efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability; and• Service Quality - delivering excellent customer service to members of the public –services that are responsive, efficient and courteous.Each of these areas is driven by a senior leadership steering committee and each agency hasan internal steering committee for practical operational improvements. The SingaporeanGovernment actively promotes and encourages a sustainable innovation culture in both thepublic and private sectors. 361 In addition to its efforts to change the software of its service,the Singaporean Government’s enterprise challenge (The Enterprise Challenge - TEC)established in 2000 was a “revolutionary initiative to harness radically innovative ideas that357 KPMG (2009).358Scottish Government (2007), Transforming Public Services: The Next Phase of Reform: Progress Report. Edinburgh. p.5.359 See http://www.ps21.gov.sg/index.html360 See http://www.psd.gov.sg/PublicServiceRole/BuildCapacity/Movement/361 National Research Foundation (2008) Managing Innovation in a Connected Worldhttp://www.nrf.gov.sg/nrf/uploadedFiles/News_and_Events/Speeches/2008/Microsoft%20Word%20-%20Innovation%20Symposium_speech%202008.pdf p.4.Capability, Capacity and Effectiveness: 274