Neale -

I'm not aware of what is happening in Fiji, but I think I can imagine.  I retired almost two years ago from almost 37 years of US Federal service.  Perhaps it is just an illusion, but I felt there was a better attitude toward public service, both by the public and the 'servants,' years ago, than there is now.  That is just an impression, and not from a study, and anecdotes can be misleading.   But I think it common sense to expect less when people are treated with less respect.

The Federal government seems to think that a private sector type of business model is to be admired, but I always felt it better that I, and some others, felt it important to do what was necessary to get a job done, and not point out that some work was not in my yearly "standards," like a contractor may say their contract does not force them to do a good job.  Before I retired I was dismayed at a meeting that told us doing such work would not count on our evaluations, so don't bother.  What kind of attitude is that? 

As long as attitudes toward public service by the public are bad, it is hard to motivate a lot of people, and if those public servants are not going to be encouraged to be innovative, even punished for it, and budgets are tight, you can expect low morale. 

Of course, like teachers, there will always be some civic minded people who will take a great deal of abuse, and still try hard, but that is untenable, and not sustainable.  People won't take but so much bad treatment, and shouldn't. 

Jim

Dear James,

As I read your response to my question, I note the symptoms....NPM still attempting to take root and generate fruit; reduced budgets; constrained decision-making, low staff moral. It is difficulty to motivate and engage staff in terms of public sector reform.

Kind regards

Neale

Hi Neale,

These papers may help

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/301501696_Labour_Market_Reforms_for_enhancing_Public_Sector_Productivity_in_Jamaica

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/299604127_Human_Factors_Affecting_Productivity_in_Jamaica_Technical_Report_on_Preliminary_Findings

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/299747565_Towards_a_talent-driven_outward-oriented_globally-competitive_SME_framework_Discussion_Paper

Technical Report Labour Market Reforms for enhancing Public Sector Productivi...

Technical Report Human Factors Affecting Productivity in Jamaica: Technical R...

Technical Report Towards a talent-driven outward-oriented globally-competitiv...

Dear Silburn,

Thank you for providing the informative publications.

Kind regards

Neale

Neale - 

I was just thinking about 'sharing' your question with highly competent, motivated people I know or have known, old or relatively young, who have worked or work in the US Federal Government.  Going through a list in my head, I then realized that almost every one of them who is not likely dead or retired has moved to 'private industry,' even the younger ones.  That's just my anecdote, but I found it interesting. 

Also, several years ago I saw a story in the newspaper, a letter to the editor, I think, by a contractor working for NASA, as I recall, who lamented the fact that he felt that the only people left around who knew what they were doing were a few old "Feds" (Govt employees), who had not yet retired. 

The future does not appear to look good for public service in the US, at least, as far as I can imagine, at this time.  I expect that that is true in most places in the world.  

Best wishes - Jim

Dear Jim,

Thank you for your anecdotal information and further comments. The challenge for all of us in the public service is - "How do we motivate public service employees?" 

Kind regards

Neale

Unfortunately, there is a large element of society today that, as I believe Paul Krugman noted, think that only fools work for a living.  That is, I'd say that having ever done anything useful ... especially for society as a whole ... is not held in esteem, but garnering a great deal of money through trick or deceit - 'getting one over' on someone else - is consider clever and held in high esteem.  Since 2008, when such attitudes finally took their economic toll, it has illogically only made that attitude worse, and perhaps more widespread, in my opinion. 

As long as that is true, public service is going to suffer, and there is no grand fix.  If this were more widely recognized, however, such awareness might help, I think. 

The only other help I can imagine would be less emphasis on a so-called 'business model,' and also less power, in government and private industry, to uninformed managers, as every organization suffers from the fact that those in charge generally arrive at such a position for the wrong reason: they sought the power, and doing a good job lies somewhere between secondary and unrelated.  I think that afflicts nearly every organization of any type, throughout history, and it particularly hurts us now.  But it is human nature.  (Consider how W. Edwards Deming was unable to impress the 'captains of industry' in the post-WWII US of the need for scientific insight, but then went on to greatly help quality of Japanese products.) 

If public servants were allowed to have more influence regarding the work they are trying to accomplish, that would be immensely helpful.  There is little more frustrating than to have a job to do and not have the authority to do it.  

Dear James et all,

I apreciate very much all the answers. To motivate people they must be reward for good perfomence and they must have the freedom to be responsible in order to acheive their best  and to profit all the others. To motivate is a heath behavior .

Have a nice time

Helena

, 

Here is practice from Serbia. 

Bureaucratic Behavior: A Review of the Theory and its Application to Serbian Public Administration !

"A professional and competent public administration is necessary for successful transition from a socialist, centrally planned economy to a functioning market democracy.The difficulty lies in building an organized and effective civil service sector. This paper gives a brief overview of formal bureaucratic reasoning, beginning with Niskanen’s theory, followed by the principal-agent model. The “Weberian state hypothesis,” which provides an alternative view of bureaucracies in less developed countries, is subsequently explored. Finally, the currant state of Serbian public administration is described, along with a discussion of challenges to be addressed in the future...

Other important features of Serbian civil service include widespread problems of motivation, a shortage of administrative equipment and infrastructure, weak mechanisms for inter-ministerial coordination, a rule-oriented, risk-averse administrative culture, and strong centralization of decision-making authority..."

http://www.doiserbia.nb.rs/img/doi/1452-595X/2007/1452-595X0702235Z.pdf

Dear Helena,

Thank you for your comments. Such is appreciated.

Kind regards

Neale

Dear Ljubomir,

I found it very interesting reading your comments re the Serbian civil service. Thank you also for providing a very informative publication...it provides me further incite into the challenges faced in Serbia. 

Kind regards

Neale

Dear @Neale, let me bring some more resources regarding the practice of public servants in Serbia.

http://www.doiserbia.nb.rs/img/doi/0038-0318/2011/0038-03181104433J.pdf

http://www.digitalnaagenda.gov.rs/media/docs/Serbian_Electronic_Government_Development_Strategy)2015-2018_and_AP_2015-2016.pdf

http://www.undp.org/content/dam/serbia/Publications%20and%20reports/English/UNDP_SRB_Report_on_the_Round_Table_Introducing_a_EurocratsScheme_for_Serbia_-_Gathering_New_EU_Member_States_Experiences_&_Discussing_Available_Options.pdf

http://www.bep.rs/documents/news/Analysis%20of%20agencies%20in%20Serbia.pdf

http://suk.gov.rs/global/pdf/strucna_literatura/Civil_Service_Sistem_in_the_Republic_of_Serbia.pdf

Dear Ljubomir,

Thank you greatly for providing the assortment of publications.

Kind regards

Neale

Hello again Neale:

Having served in the public sector I am aware that raises and promotions can be few and far between. I also realize that there are few, if any, non-monetary motivators that are built into the HR system. Therefore, I have attached a simple (but unfortunately not referenced) document. It may, however, be useful to you if you search some of the "motivational currencies" in your library.

Enjoy the journey.

Neale, et.al. -

Glancing at the last attachment from Ljubomir, it reminds me that for likely any civil service, or perhaps large organization of any kind, there is an attempt to standardize policies by adding more and more descriptive material, often resulting in the infamous "red tape."  The problem is that the behavior that this is designed to control is perpetrated by people willing to ignore the work they should be doing, and just expending their efforts finding their way around these paperwork rules.  People best at that, not at doing anything useful, may sometimes end up running the organization.  Trying to write down all of these rules does not help enforce the spirit of good rules. 

I think that the civil service is essential, and some things can only be done by large organizations, but fostering good attitudes toward the work can not be produced by fiat. 

It is necessary, I believe, to have government regulations to try to modify bad behavior by some private organizations - Enron, for example.  And there may be need for detailed language and lawyers to be involved.  But when an organization tries to write handbooks with many pages of self-regulation, you are already hopelessly in trouble.  

A civil service will attract good people, but the idea is how to encourage the good behavior and intentions that many bring with them, and not just let bad management and attitudes dominate and wear down these good people. 

So, Jay has the right idea:  What can be done, in a low budget situation, to properly motivate?   I think that perhaps the best single motivator is to at least let someone know that their good work is noticed and appreciated.  Many may have the attitude that no one should be given a kind word for doing a good job, thinking it is trivial and expected and you should only criticise to 'motivate,' but I think that is very wrong.  (I have a t-shirt from a vacation that says "The beatings will continue until morale improves.")  But I think that paying attention to those doing a good job, recognizing it, and even saying "What can I do to help?" is perhaps far too rare.  Personally, I found that getting good work done for which I should have been rewarded was sometimes done without the approval or even knowledge of some ruthless managers, for no reward, often after hours, just so they would not have the opportunity to arbitrarily stop me from getting it done.  And I am certain that I cannot be the only one who has had this experience. 

Many younger people are starved for concerned leadership, and I have found the good ones are very grateful for it. 

Everyone has personal anecdotes, and I know I should not make too much of mine, as a statistician knows you cannot scientifically generalize that way.  But I think there is enough common sense involved to let one know that positive motivations are important, and a 'slap on the back' is not meaningless.  -  Another anecdote: In decades of civil service, the best work I saw, in general, was done by people under a particularly knowledgeable AND concerned manager, though he was given a hard time by his "superiors."  But his group really got good work done.  He was even able to get good work out of someone considered hopeless by others.  The second best manager was similar, but the situation not as extreme. 

Cheers - Jim

Dear Jay, 

Thank you for providing another interesting article.  Neale

Dear Jim,

Thank you for providing your comments and anecdotal information.  Neale