Doing more with Less: Government Global Trends
A summary of KPMG’s latest report
In 2021, IPAA Queensland’s valued partner, KPMG released their “Modernising Government: Global Trends” report.
This report covered seven key trends that are at the forefront of public service in the post-COVID era.
As we have all seen and felt, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a series of impacts – from a social, societal, economic, technological, workforce perspective – just to name a few.
And, as mentioned in the KPMG report, “Governments may understandably be tempted to offset the pandemic’s overwhelming price tag with strict new fiscal restraints that are bound to limit inevitable future investment in technology, new talent, 21st century digital services and economic growth. As governments move quickly to manage the looming debt burden, civil services will of course be under new pressure to do more with less.”
So – what does this report cover? Read more to find out the key takeaways held within the report…
The Future is customer centered…
Governments, despite their stated good intentions for change in the digital era, have considerable ground to cover in their journey to match the private sector’s embrace of digital ecosystems that cater to customers.
Today’s consumers are more informed, connected and demanding than ever. And while they have come to expect the highest standards of personalisation, choice, speed, satisfaction and security in every digital interaction, the pandemic has served to heighten consumer expectations surrounding customer experience; many community members may feel that particular civil processes are lagging behind their private sector counterparts.
The key takeaway from this trend for government to keep top of mind is:
“To thrive in a new era, governments should evolve operations to focus on their stakeholders and position themselves to continuously respond to ever-changing customer needs. Forward looking governments will likely build on the momentum of change that the pandemic has unleashed and continue to transform public service processes and efficiency. Putting people “at the heart” of government policy may also include the need to meet evolving public values and ambitions in areas such as the environment and social inclusion.”
Modern Government is trusted and agile…
As highlighted by KPMG, the pandemic has proven the potential of governments everywhere to dramatically heighten their agility, slash response times and meet public needs. Witness the rapid launch of new services, benefits and emergency processes that include temporary hospitals and digital health solutions, 24/7 call centers and hefty stimulus packages.
The agility, response, and dynamic nature of government of all levels during the COVID-19 hasn’t been seen for a long time. And now the community know how agile government can be during times of crisis and upheaval.
The main takeaway as shared by KPMG with regards to this trend is:
“Governments should embrace agile approaches to working and embed rapid service design into normal operations for policy and services. Greater reliance on placebased solutions can enhance the precision and speed of responses to challenges, issues and disaster scenarios. Modern governments may play a greater role as economic stewards, taking a more active stance to drive economic growth via innovation and initiatives that are closely aligned with industry needs.”
Ultimately, the timeline for policy development and implementation will forever be shortened due to the now expected agility of government from their citizenry.
Looking beyond yesterday’s borders…
The borders and boundaries separating government jurisdictions, while obeyed from a policy point of view, were blurred from a community response and policy learning perspective.
As shared by KPMG, smart, future-focused governments are already looking across borders and jurisdictions to acquire the vision, strategies, informed insights and best practices that other governments enduring similar circumstances can ideally provide in order to turn today’s challenges into tomorrow’s opportunities.
The key takeaway for governments of all levels with regards to this particular trend is:
“Adopting such a global perspective that can utilise new forms of instructive collaboration with other governments and agencies will break through traditional barriers and accelerate reforms. Critical new communication and problem-solving channels will also, as noted, extend into the private sector to enhance policy making, program design and execution via a deep and sustained exchange of thinking, ideation and best practices.”
Embracing the power of technology and data….
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, digital channels became a lifeline to the community in accessing information, products and indeed services.
Within KPMG’s report, they highlighted the reality that modern digital ecosystems that positions government to provide any service to any person or business on any platform using any device will be a key enabling factor for trust in government in the future.
Additionally, that these ecosystems will likely require four key components:
- a centralised data-exchange platform
- secure online identification authentication
- modern legislation governing data use and sharing; and,
- new and upskilled talent who can work with and support emerging technologies that deliver a seamless customer experience to the citizen.
Governments that possess these game-changing innovations will likely position themselves for success in a new era of capabilities, demands and expectations.
From the data point of view, governments have jumped into the deep end of the data pool, compiling an endless array of information related to personal and business taxes, health, employment, benefits, education, immigration, licensing and permits, and beyond.
Governments now know enough about their customers to be more precise and responsive in their policy making and program delivery.
Today’s challenge lies in building public trust in the government’s use of data — particularly the sharing and centralisation of information being held across the multitude of government agencies and departments. While consumers are accustomed to providing personal information to online shopping or entertainment platforms, doubts remain concerning public trust in governments’ data management.
And it is this, therein lies the challenge for government of all levels as we progress towards a post COVID-19 era and beyond.
Attracting and retaining next generation civil servants…
Public commentary around ‘The Great Resignation’ and the global skill shortage have been in the public media for some time now. Several thought leaders in this space have provided their point of views about the mobility of the global workforce and the nature of this shift.
The insights within the KPMG report, whilst not explicitly noting the global workforce shift that has been discussed in other media, they do highlight the importance for government to not only acquire and retain the next generation of public servants, but also to commit to the upskilling and reskilling of existing public servants to meet evolving community demands and changing priorities.
The key insight from KPMG is as below:
“The race is on to recruit the next generation of civil servants. And it’s no secret that today’s young and emerging professionals are raising the bar in their pursuit of meaningful, purpose-led, socially conscious roles and careers that ideally will allow them to have an impact in driving positive social change. Reskilling of current teams for the digital era has become crucial amid new technology and changing organisational priorities.”
This focus on mobility, cross skilling and upskilling of the Queensland Government public service has been a focus for many years, with various initiatives as facilitated by the Public Service Commission.
Modernising risk management in Government…
As shared by KPMG, the pandemic has cut across the status quo and unlocked vastly different ways of working that have been relatively successful and subject to ongoing improvements. In effect, the pandemic has precipitated a new way of “incubating” innovation at an unheard-of pace — and one that governments traditionally have been averse to pursuing.
The pandemic has thereby shown a change in governments’ risk appetite regarding its processes, delivering in the current environment digital technology implementation, real-time results tracking, smart data use and electronic prescribing — all of which have been on government to-do lists for years without substantial progress.
As further detailed in the report, the risk landscape in the post-pandemic new reality will likely be one that has emerged through each phase of the crisis, for instance:
- Many of the actions taken in the initial crisis reaction phase may need to be safely wound down over time, such as support payments, or they will need to be strengthened and moved to a sustainable footing.
- Resilience measures, such as new supply chains, may need to be tested and amended to ensure alignment, and reduced risk, to government outcomes and mission.
Much of this change and the speed of these changes have come from necessity…but may not necessarily be sustainable in the long term. The key insight shared by KPMG with regards to modernising risk is:
“Having assurance frameworks in place to accurately measure the impact of government actions and programs will reinforce agility and enhance future responses. Government can be confident that the impact of its investment or intervention aligns with expectations and decision making.”
The future of government demands a connected enterprise…
The future is about breaking down silos and getting connected. The divisions between front, middle and back offices are collapsing. Future-focused organisations are shaping new operating models in which every part of the organisation, end to end, is working with every other element to deliver against the big picture.
The days of having separate units within and organization delivering separate bodies of work are over.
The KPMG report highlights eight critical capabilities (found on page 28 and 29 of the report here), are demonstrated with case studies and examples of how future focused capabilities have been brought to fruition, with evidence within the report suggesting that those organisations who invest in these eight capabilities are twice as likely to meet customer expectations and deliver return on the digital investment.
Ultimately, the key takeaway from this trend is:
“To thrive in a new era, governments should evolve operations to focus on the public as their customers and position themselves to continuously respond and adapt to everchanging circumstances and needs.”
Inevitably, the entire public purpose community has felt the aftereffects of the policies implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic and may also find themselves in a position where they have to do more with less. For those operating outside of government, but within the public purpose sector, the above trends are likely to apply.
With a growing focus on using digital technology to connect with communities in a meaningful, responsive, and secure way, by public servants with skills to take government policy into the post COVID-19 era; there is an opportunity to take these insights and carry them through the next transformation of public purpose work in Australia.
Like the insights we have covered here? Read the full report here.
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