Driving the Fake Out of Public Administration : Detoxing HR in the Canadian Federal Public Sector

Paquet Gilles, Ruth Hubbard

Description

Much of the waste in public administration is ascribable to the displacement of the primary concern for performance and coordination by a primary concern for redistribution. In each sphere of activities, it has led to unreasonable rules inspired by egalitarianism that have triggered permanent allocational malefits.

The failure to confront the progressivist ethos and culture has rendered any action on the managerial front ineffective. First, the authors underscore the seemingly unanimous diagnosis of waste and dysfunctions in Canada’s federal public service and show that efforts to correct the situation have failed. This failure is ascribable to a fundamental incapacity to deal concurrently with the ill-advised managerial decisions of governments and the perverse progressivist philosophy inspiring them. Second, an MRI of the human resource (HR) regimes has been sketched as a guide to the detoxing and modernization of the HR regimes.

It was used to spell out some guidelines for the modification of management structures and competencies, and to probe the cultural underground of moral contracts that would need to underpin the new arrangements.

Sujets

• Personal Management
• Human Resources
• Gestion et management
• Canadá
• Public Service
• Public administration
• Economics
• Business
• Canada

Informations

• Publié par: Les Presses de l'UniversitÈ d'Ottawa/University of Ottawa Press
• Date de parution: 10 août 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 1
• EAN13: 9780776638355
• Langue: Français
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

(1936–2019) was Professor Emeritus at the Telfer School of Management and a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre on Governance of (1936–2019) was Professorat the Telfer School of Emeritus the University of Ottawa. He was also Edit in Chief of www.optimumonline.ca, Management and a Senior Research Fellow atthe CentreGovernance of on an electronic journal on governance and public managem nt, reaching 10,000 the University of Ottawa. He was also Editor in Chief of www.optimumonline.ca, subscribers an electronic journal on governance and public management, reaching 10,000 subscribers

Ruth Hubbard and Gilles Paquet

Driving the Fake Out of Public Administration

Detoxîng HR în the Canadîan Federal Publîc Sector

I N V E N I R E I N V E N I R E

| Collaborative Decentred Metagovernance Series hîs serîes of books îs desîgned to deine cumuatîvey the T contours of coaboratîve decentred metagovernance. At thîs tîme, there îs stî no canonîca versîon of thîs paradîgm: ît îsen émergence. Thîs serîes întends to be one of many ‘constructîon sîtes’ to experîment wîth varîous dîmensîons of an effectîve and practîca versîon of thîs new approach. Metagovernance îs the art of combînîng dîfferent forms or styes of governance, experîmented wîth în the prîvate, pubîc and socîa sectors, to ensure effectîve coordînatîon when power, resources and înformatîon are wîdey dîstrîbuted, and the governîng îs of necessîty decentred and coaboratîve. The serîes învîtes conceptua and practîca contrîbutîons focused on dîfferent îssue domaîns, poîcy ieds,causes céèbres, functîona processes, etc. to the extent that they contrîbute to sharpenîng the new apparatus assocîated wîth coaboratîve decentred metagovernance. In the ast few decades, there has been a need fet for a more sophîstîcated understandîng of the governîng of the prîvate, pubîc and socîa sectors: for ess compartmentaîzatîon among sectors that have much în common; and for new conceptua toos to suggest new reevant questîons and new ways to carry out the busîness of governîng, by creatîvey recombînîng the toos of governance that have proven successfu în a these sectors. These efforts have generated experîments that have been suficîenty rîch and wîde-rangîng în the varîous aboratorîes to warrant efforts to pu together what we know at thîs stage. Thîs twefth voume deas wîth the fake at the orîgîn of much unwarranted waste and îneficîency în the Canadîan federa pubîc admînîstratîon. The authors propose that ît has îts sources în the progressîvîst cosmoogy that has dîspaced the prîmary concern of government from coordînatîon to dîstrîbutîon. They probe the word of human resources (HR) as an îustratîon of the maeits entaîed by thîs dîspacement of focus whîch occurred dramatîcay în 1967 when the Government of Canada decîded to care ess about performance and more about beîng a ‘mode empoyer’. An MRI of the HR systems heps to guîde a process of modernîsatîon of the HR regîmes. But the reader îs sharpy remînded în the concusîon that one cannot detox the HR regîmes wîthout tackîng the progressîvîst cosmoogy. Interested partîes are învîted to joîn the Chautauqua. – Edîtorîa Board Other tîtes pubîshed by I NVENIRE are îsted at the end of thîs book.

Ruth Hubbard and Gilles Paquet

Driving the Fake Out of Public Administration

Detoxîng HR în the Canadîan Federal Publîc Sector

I N V EN IR E

Ottawa, Canada 2016

The University of Ottawa Press (UOP) is proud to be the oldest of the francophone university presses in Canada and the oldest bilingual university publisher in North America. Since 1936, UOP has been enriching intellectual and cultural discourse by producing peer-reviewed and award-winning books in the humanities and social sciences, in French and in English.

www.Press.uOttawa.ca

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Title: Driving the fake out of public administration : detoxing HR in the Canadian federal public sector / Ruth Hubbard and Gilles Paquet. Names: Hubbard, Ruth, 1942- author. | Paquet, Gilles, author. Description: Reprint. Originally published: Ottawa, Canada : Invenire, 2016. | Includes bibliographical references. Identifiers: Canadiana (print) 20220399050 | Canadiana (ebook) 20220399085 | ISBN 9780776638348 (softcover) | ISBN 9780776638355 (PDF) | ISBN 9780776638362 (EPUB) Subjects: LCSH: Civil service—Canada—Personnel management. | LCSH: Public administration — Canada. Classification: LCC JL108 .H85 2022 | DDC 352.6/30971—dc23

Legal Deposit: Library and Archives Canada, Third Quarter 2022 © University of Ottawa Press 2022, all rights reserved.

This book was initially publishedby Invenire Books in2016 in the Collaborative DecenteredMetagovernance Series. The cover design, layout and design were produced by Sandy Lynch. The University of Ottawa Press reissued this book thanks to the support of Ontario Creates.

Invenire Invenire Books, an Ottawa-based idea factory that operated from 2010 to 2019, specialized in collaborative governance and stewardship. Invenire and its authors provide creative practical and stimulating responses to the challenges and opportunities faced by today’s organizations. The list is now carried by the University of Ottawa Press.

Profession: Public Servant The Entrepreneurial Effect: Practical Ideas from Your Own Virtual Board of Advisors La flotte blanche : histoire de la compagnie de navigation du Richelieu et d’Ontario Tableau d’avancement II : essais exploratoires sur la gou- vernance d’un certain Canada français The Entrepreneurial Effect: Waterloo The Unimagined Canadian Capital: Challenges for the Federal Capital Region The State in Transition: Challenges for Canadian Federalism Cities as Crucibles: Reflections on Canada’s Urban Future Gouvernance communautaire : innovations dans le Canada français hors Québec Through the Detox Prism: Exploring Organizational Failures and Design Responses Cities and Languages: Governance and Policy – An International Symposium Villes et langues : gouvernance et politiques – symposium international Moderato Cantabile: Toward Principled Governance for Canada’s Immigration Policy Stewardship: Collaborative Decentred Metagovernance and Inquiring Systems Challenges in Public Health Governance: The Canadian Experience Innovation in Canada: Why We Need More and What We Must Do to Get It Challenges of Minority Governments in Canada Gouvernance corporative : une entrée en matières

Tackling Wicked Policy Problems: Equality, Diversity and Sustainability 50 ans de bilinguisme officiel : défis, analyses et témoignages Unusual Suspects: Essays on Social Learning Probing the Bureaucratic Mind: About Canadian Federal Executives Tableau d’avancement III : pour une diaspora canadienne- française antifragile Autour de Chantal Mouffe : le politique en conflit Town and Crown: An Illustrated History of Canada’s Capital The Tainted-Blood Tragedy in Canada: A Cascade of Governance Failures Intelligent Governance: A Prototype for Social Coordination Driving the Fake Out of Public Administration: Detoxing HR in the Canadian Federal Public Sector Tableau d’avancement IV : un Canada français à ré-inventer A Future for Economics: More Encompassing, More Institutional, More Practical Pasquinade en F : essais à rebrousse-poil Building Bridges: Case Studies in Collaborative Governance in Canada Scheming Virtuously: The Road to Collaborative Governance A Lantern on the Bow: A History of the Science Council of Canada and its Contributions to the Science and Innovation Policy Debate Fifty Years of Official Bilingualism: Challenges, Analyses and Testimonies Irregular Governance: A Plea for Bold Organizational Experimentation Pasquinade in E: Slaughtering Some Sacred Cows

The University of Ottawa Press gratefully acknowledges the support extended to its publishing list by the Government of Canada, the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and the Canadian Federation for the Humanities and So cial Sciences through the Awards to Scholarly Publications Program, and by the University of Ottawa.

“To fake: to contrîve so as to deceîve.” Webster’s Encycopedîc Dîctîonary

|  Table of Contents

PreambleîThe Storyîne: It Is A a Matter . . . . . . . . . . . . .  of Coordînatîon  Gîes Paquet Introduction. . . . . . . . 1 The Prîorîty Shoud Be Performance,  Not Beîng a Mode Empoyer  Ruth Hubbard  Cuture governance shîft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2  HR as a crucîa arena . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4  Fîfty years ago the HR regîme went . . . . . . 7  off track: the mode empoyer conceît

PART I Chapter 1 Chapter 2

PART II Chapter 3

Cleansing the Augean Stables. . . . . . . . . . 15

Tînkerîng Can No Longer Sufice . . . . . . . . . . 19 Ruth Hubbard & Gîes Paquet Introductîon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Vîgnettes of dîagnoses and cures . . . . . . . 23  from dîfferent perspectîves Evasîve thînkîng . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Tackîng the probem head on . . . . . . . . . . 39 Faîure To Confront . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 Gîes Paquet The degradatîon of the common . . . . . . . . 54  pubîc cuture Faîure to confront în actîon. . . . . . . . . . . . 60 The case for more gumptîon . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 An MRI of HRM în the Pubîc Sector: . . . . . . 91  A Prototype Intent on Compîcatîng Matters Ruth Hubbard & Gîes Paquet Preîmînarîes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 Genera sources of hîgh performance . . . 102 In praîse of hybrîd forms of governance . . 110

PART III Prototyping. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 Chapter 4. . . . 127Socîa Archîtecture and Competencîes  Ruth Hubbard & Gîes Paquet  Boards of management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133  Competencîes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142  Kîck-startîng the înnovatîon process . . . 157 Chapter 5An Agenda for Cutura Change în . . . . . . . 169  the Federa Pubîc Servîce  Gîes Paquet  In search of a new covenant. . . . . . . . . . . 170  The transformatîon of the pubîc . . . . . . 176  servîce cuture  From here to the new covenant în. . . . . . 186  sîx dîficut steps ConclusionKîîng Two Bîrds wîth One Stone: . . . . . . . . 207  a Menta Prîson and a Cosmoogy  Gîes Paquet  Progressîvîsm and the . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209  age of unreason  Contaînîng the Pearsonîan conceît . . . . . 217  Harnessîng the progressîve deceît . . . . . 218  The revoutîonary phîosophy . . . . . . . . . 220  of equabîîty Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229 About the Centre on Governance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231  of the University of Ottawa

P R E A M B L E | The Storyline: It Is All a Matter of Coordination

Gilles Paquet

“L’assocîatîon, a coopératîon, toutes es formes de ’assurance offrent des ressources sans in.” Aaîn

hîs short book îs about coordînatîon. It argues that when coordînatîon ceases to be the prîmary concern în T organîzatîons, and îs dîspaced by another domînant guîdîng prîncîpe (egaîtarîanîsm, absoute hîerarchy, etc.), a debace foows: îneficîency and îneffectîveness ensue, fake creeps în, and toxîc behavîour, structures and habîts crystaîze. As a resut, performance deterîorates, and dîstrîbutîve coaîtîons împose noxîous practîces în the name of theîr own înterest. Then, these practîces have a tendency to persîst and to crîppe wîder and wîder zones of our socîo-economy. Over tîme such practîces become habîtuated, and come to be regarded as norma. The fear of such a dîsastrous cascade may sufice to entîce coaboratîon, but ît may aso not. The Great Depressîon, Word War II, and the chaenges of vîctory (and defeat) în dîfferent countrîes – wîth the need for reconstructîon – have put a good dea of pressure on most natîona economîes în

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DRIVING THE FAKE OUT OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

the second quarter of the ast century. But the foowîng 30 years of seemîngy effortess extensîve growth ed many Western, so-caed advanced socîo-economîes to become somewhat “aged and arterîo-scerotîc” – runnîng out of steam and overtaken by the vîrus of egaîtarîanîsm and înternecîne redîstrîbutîon. Redîstrîbutîon concerns came to dîspace the more chaengîng coordînatîon concerns. Thîs cutura shîft has had a phenomena împact on a aspects of the modern socîo- economîes (Kîndeberger 1978; Oson 1984). Some socîo-economîes recognîzed eary the need for a fountaîn of youth to dîssove the socîa arterîo-scerotîc structures of the body poîtîc – as Kîndeberger woud put ît – but most experîenced “gaopîng senîîty” after 1973. It transated înto a wordwîde decîne în productîvîty. The way în whîch the human resources have been handed în the federa pubîc sector în Canada, în partîcuar after 1967, îs an echo effect of thîs cutura shîft. The guîdîng prîncîpe în the human resources management (HRM) of the federa pubîc sector became the prîncîpe of the mode empoyer. Even after unîonîzatîon had begun to permeate the pubîc sector, the empoyer remaîned determîned to regard îts roenotas havîng to extract as much vaue-addîng and înnovatîon as possîbe from îts abour force, but to act wîth cupabe benevoence and însoucîancevîs-à-vîsthe pubîc sector workers – thereby gîvîng a very bad exampe to a other sectors of the natîon. Thîs resuted în some 50 years în whîch the eected oficîas betrayed the iducîary roe entrusted to them by the cîtîzenry, enabîng and aowîng the unîonîzed federa pubîc servîce (and aso the super-bureaucracy that routîney emerged from ît) to extract încreasîngy more generous and unwarranted pay and frînge beneits for the provîsîon of rather poor quaîty servîces. Why has thîs been aowed to happen? Thîs book suggests that ît îs the resut of the new ‘progressîvîst’ ethoswîth poîtîcay-învented socîa rîghts – of a sorts, and undue deference to compassîon-ordaîned precedence of egaîtarîan goas over any productîvîty and înnovatîon concerns. Thîs materîaîzed through the demîse of