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Strategy Execution for a More Human Approach to Public Services. Findings from the Roundtable Discussion with Marjan Hammersma, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science (OCW)

On October 14, Turner, in collaboration with Flevum, organized a roundtable meeting for administrators and executives in the public sector. Public organizations are facing pressure to maintain a human touch in the services they provide. Marjan Hammersma, Secretary-General at the Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science (OCW), delivered an inspiring presentation on how to navigate the tension between politics, policy, and implementation. Together, the more than 30 participants discussed the dilemmas involved in Strategy Execution. What is needed to effectively achieve the shift toward a more human-centered approach in service delivery?

Roundtable Discussions on Strategy Execution at Werk aan Uitvoering

Public service providers are under social and political pressure to improve their services. By organizing roundtable discussions, Turner aims to help public organizations put their strategic plans into practice. On the one hand, by facilitating discussions on this topic. On the other hand, by offering insights and inspiring real-world examples. For example, Christiaan Gort, Public Sector Practice Leader at Turner, shared the highlights from his recent research on the effectiveness of Strategy Execution in public organizations.

The digital roundtable on October 14, during which Marjan Hammersma delivered an inspiring presentation on how to navigate the tension between politics, policy, and implementation, was a follow-up to two roundtables held in the spring. In February, Hans van der Vlist, author of the report *Werk aan Uitvoering* (WAU), discussed what is needed to strengthen implementation. In May, Tof Thissen, director of UWV WERKbedrijf, shared insights on how the UWV is strengthening the human touch in its services. Participants engaged in a discussion about what is needed to actually bring about change.

Marjan Hammersma, Secretary General at the Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science

A shift toward a more human-centered approach is needed for some services

For the most part, public services in the Netherlands are of high quality. However, due to a combination of digitization, budget cuts, and increasingly complex legislation, some citizens are getting stuck in the system. These are often vulnerable citizens who have to navigate multiple—and sometimes conflicting—regulations. For them, current services are inadequate. This calls for a shift that allows more room for a human touch and customized service. The following three aspects emerged during the discussion about what is needed to achieve this in an effective manner:

1. Better define the relationship between politics, policy, and implementation

The links between policy and implementation have been neglected over a long period of time. Policy departments and implementing organizations have grown increasingly distant from one another. Policy determined the “what,” and implementation determined the “how.” This worked well until politicians began assigning increasingly complex tasks. Extensive digitization led to budget cuts in implementation. Implementation has come under pressure, with less room for the human touch. Participants indicated that current challenges require a better balance within the triangle of politics, policy, and implementation. In this regard, policy should not act as a “fur collar” for the minister—filtering what comes from implementation—but rather as a buffer for implementation against the short-termism and “social engineering” mindset of politics. Politics must have realistic expectations of what is achievable at the implementation level. This requires policy departments and implementing organizations to present a united front to the political sphere. A stronger connection between policy and implementation is needed, with greater information sharing and increased transparency regarding dilemmas. Many signals from the implementation level do not reach policy departments due to all the hierarchical layers in between.

2. A more human-centered approach requires several interrelated changes

During the discussion, several bottlenecks emerged that hinder the human touch in service delivery. The change is complex because multiple factors must be addressed simultaneously—in a coordinated and balanced manner. For example, privacy laws make it difficult for service providers to share the information needed to deliver more personalized care. At the same time, frontline professionals often fail to take advantage of the existing leeway to provide personalized care. On the one hand, this is due to a reluctance to make independent decisions, which is often caused by a culture that leaves little room for error. On the other hand, because that leeway has been restricted by additional policy rules or through automation. Or professionals are not given enough time to provide customized services. In addition, public service providers usually have to deal with outdated IT systems. The IT Portfolio is often a bottleneck for change. This calls for innovative solutions in service delivery. “The human dimension is primarily a collaborative or organizational issue,” says Peter Schreuder, program manager for Strategy Execution at Turner. “Monodisciplinary service delivery—which accounts for over 80%—generally runs smoothly. The human dimension is particularly challenged when citizens have to deal with multiple departments or service providers. By better organizing and facilitating Multidisciplinary collaboration, most problems can be prevented.”

3. Effective change requires setting priorities and making tough choices

Turner’s research revealed that 84% of public organizations believe they have too many change initiatives. They feel overwhelmed by the accumulation of initiatives. On the one hand, this stems from internal ambitions and changes needed to maintain service quality. On the other hand, they result from changes in policy and legislation driven by politicians and government departments. It was noted that changes often do not get the chance to be properly completed because new changes are already being introduced by policymakers. This is also the risk associated with the “Werk aan Uitvoering” program. Due to the many well-intentioned actions, implementation risks being overwhelmed by initiatives that effectively stand in the way of decisive change. Choosing is difficult because much is imposed by politicians, and public organizations find it hard to say “no.” “Prioritization is necessary to decisively improve service delivery with a more human touch,” says Christiaan Gort. “This requires politicians to give frontline staff more leeway to do what is necessary and to set clear priorities. Effectiveness demands tough choices within a well-supported change portfolio that is both ambitious and achievable.”

Work in Progress

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