Policy Workshop Series:

The world in which public servants operate is one of increasing complexity and is more unpredictable than it has been for decades. An aging population, globalization, new information technology and a series of horizontal issues such as crime, homelessness and climate change are making it much more difficult to make effective decisions and manage new programs.

In addition to the above challenges, the public service is facing its own well-known demographic crisis. It has more employees over 45 than under, and is facing the imminent retirement of a generation of employees. Government must renew its workforce quickly at a time when a strong labour market creates tough competition from all sectors for the top graduates of universities and colleges. What the government must do is create a public service that can effectively advise ministers and deliver programs but will also be more creative in its thinking, efficient in its work processes, effective in risk management, and fully accountable for its performance.

In order to meet growing expectations the public service of Saskatchewan will need to have a strong plan for recruitment, strong leadership and a commitment to developing talent within a clear regime for human resource development. What is also needed is to invest in the pool of leaders that will ensure strong guidance is in place as well as having the right skills and the required specialized expertise in the workforce to meet the many contingencies. The Public Executive Development Program will help the Government of Saskatchewan meet these objectives.

Please contact us at js_training@uregina.ca with any questions or concerns.