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

CHAPTER THREE: GOVERNING THE CITY STATE:“ONE ACT GOVERNMENT – ONE ACTPS”IntroductionA traditional bureaucracy, divided into vertical silos, in which most of the authority forresolving problems rests at the top of the organisation, is not well-adapted to supportthe kinds of process necessary for addressing the complexity and ambiguity of wickedproblems. Bureaucracies tend to be risk averse, and are intolerant of messy processes.They excel at managing issues with clear boundaries rather than ambiguous, complexissues that may require experimental and innovative approaches. 36Structural change is not a panacea for the problems facing the State sector today,and it can be a blunt and expensive instrument. 37The capacity of the ACT Public Service (ACTPS) to “support the government of the day withstrategic and direction-setting advice” and its “effectiveness in delivering governmentpolicies and objectives” are central to the Review’s Terms of Reference. This Chapteranalyses the broad governance framework within which the ACTPS operates, followed by areview of contemporary academic thinking about and leading practice of other jurisdictions inpublic administration.Against this backdrop, the Review’s recommendations for how the ACTPS should bestructured are then presented. The detail of possible reform options and a finer-grainedrendering of the proposed allocation of functional responsibilities are set out in Chapter 4.The Chapter concludes with a discussion of the role of Government Boards and Committees,and Statutory Office Holders in the ACT’s governance framework.OverviewTraditional public service departments and hierarchies are not well suited to dealing with thecomplex and interrelated issues to which governments around the world are increasinglybeing required to turn their minds, but structural change alone is a blunt instrument forimproving their performance. The ACTPS is nevertheless uniquely (and fortunately) placedto be a leader in innovation in public policy design and service delivery. The size of theACTPS, the size and contained geographic scope of Canberra, the presence of leadingacademic institutions, and collocation of the Australian Public Service (APS) create fertile36 Australian Public Service Commission (2007a) Tackling Wicked Problems: A Public Policy Perspective. Canberra, p.13.37 State Services Commission (2001) Report of the Advisory Group on the Review of the Centre. New Zealand Government,Wellington, p.27.Governing the City State: 53