Policy information
Public Service Reform Plan
From Department of Public Expenditure and Reform
Published at
Last updated
The Public Service Reform Plan aims to make the work of the public service more transparent, decision-making more accountable and service delivery more effective. Two Public Service Reform Plans have been delivered since 2011. These have led to the current Reform Plan, which was launched in December 2017: Our Public Service 2020.
The government’s framework for development and innovation in the public service, Our Public Service 2020 contains 18 actions, including new initiatives and actions focused on building on reforms already in place.
There are 5 actions under the Delivering for Our Public pillar:
- accelerate digital delivery of services
- improve services for our customers
- make services more accessible to all
- significantly improve communications and engagement with the public
- drive efficiency and effectiveness.
There are 6 actions under the Innovating for Our Future pillar:
- promote a culture of innovation in the public service
- optimise the use of data
- build strategic planning capability
- strengthen whole-of-government collaboration
- embed programme and project management
- embed a culture of evidence and evaluation
There are 7 actions under the Developing Our People and Organisations pillar:
- embed strategic human resource management in the public service
- mainstream strategic workforce planning in the public service
- continuous and responsive professional development
- strengthen performance management
- promote equality, diversity and inclusion
- increase employee engagement
- review public service culture and values
Key achievements of the Public Service Reform programme, as noted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD ), include the Civil Service Renewal Plan; the establishment of the Office of Government Procurement and the National Shared Services Office; one-stop-shops such as Intreo for jobseekers and Local Enterprise Offices for businesses.
