Government Reform

"In a duty to modernize: Reforming the French civil service" it is outlined the challenges of large scale government reform.

The driving force behind this change is the motto: "do better with less". This change requires structural reforms.

The objectives are i) modernize government ii) improve services for citizens & companies iii) ensure greater recognition for the civil servants iv) promote a culture of results.

Some structural reform initiatives are i) merger agencies ii) implementation of a performance-based funding system for universities iii) acceleration of naturalization process iv) improvements in IT and human resources.

The reason for success are i) commitment of the highest level of the government ii) civil servants understand that in order to truly serve, their duty now is to modernize iii) straightfoward communication to indicate performance iv) visible results quickly v) leveraging communication "champions".

The visions of this reform are i) agile administration ii) resolutely oriented toward citizens and put them at the heart of the administration iii) putting resources into core services - rather than functions iv) better work environment for civil servants v) greater balance between public and private sector skills.

The main difficulties are i) inertia deriving from scope of the program, number of workers, and strength habits and routines ii) communication - limited number of internal channels iii) lack of multidimensional skills - to take initiative, responsibility, and risks.

http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Public_Sector/Government_Regulation/A_duty_to_modernize_Reforming_the_French_civil_service_2780