Public Service Capacity Building: From Capacity to Excellence

Presented at Workshop on“Capacity Building for Improving Performance of

Public Service”Banjarbaru, June 22, 2010

What is Capacity Building?• A process or activity that improves the ability of a person or

entity to carry out stated objectives. In practice, however, capacity building is often equated with strengthening the organizations and the people that enable services to be delivered effectively & continuously through the execution of different functions (Lisanne Brown, Anne LaFond, and Kate Mcintyre, 2001: 5).

• A process by which individuals, groups, organizations, institutions and societies increase their abilities to: 1) perform core functions, solve problems, define and achieve objectives; and 2) understand and deal with their development needs in a broad context and in a sustainable manner (UNDP, 1997).

• Investment in people, institutions, and practices that will, together, enable countries in the region to achieve their development objectives (World Bank: 1997).

What is Capacity Elements?• 3 elements to measure public sector capacity (Polidano, 2000)

– Policy capacity (the ability to structure the decision making process, coordinate it throughout government, and feed informed analysis into it).

– Implementation authority (the ability to carry out decisions and enforce rules, within the public sector itself & wider society).

– Operational efficiency (the ability to deliver those services well, that is to say efficiently and at a reasonable level of quality).

• Government capacity to function its responsibilities (Gross, 1968).– Knowledge, includes general knowledge, technical knowledge,

jobs & organization, administrative concept & methods, and self-knowledge.

– Ability, includes management, decision-making, communication, POAC, evaluating, working with others, handling conflicts, intuitive thought, communication &learning.

– Interest, includes action orientation, self-confidence, responsibility & norms and ethics.

• 4 components of capacity (Acosta, 1991): – Administrative system improvement, resulting in more

flexible, responsive organizational structure, devolved resources, and efficient system and procedures.

– Developing staff competencies, upgrading the knowledge and skills of managerial and technical manpower.

– More effective goal-setting, creating an organizational culture that facilitates the interaction of various sectors in the community, the political leadership and the local bureaucracy in goal setting and attainment; and.

– Internalizing public accountability, inculcating among the local political leadership and the bureaucracy the value of committed, competent, responsive, and responsible public service.

What is Capacity Elements?

What is Capacity Level?

• UNDP (1998: 7) – Individual level– Organizational or entity level– System level

• UNDP: “individual level is the most critical of capacity as a whole”.

• Capacity Level might be perceived as Route of Capacity Building: Individual Organizational System.

• Individual Capacity is the precondition for Organizational Capacity, which is the prerequisite of System Capacity.

Capacity Buildingand Service Excellence …

Model of Service Excellent

• European Excellence Model• National Malcolm Baldrige Quality

Award, US• Deming Prize, Japan• ISO 9004:2000 hybrid

European Excellence Model

INNOVATION AND LEARNING

ENABLERS RESULTS

KeyPerformance

Results

Partnerships& Resources

Policy &Strategy

People

Leadership Processes

PeopleResults

CustomerResults

SocietyResults

Baldrige Quality Award

Measurement, Analysis and Knowledge Management

Focus on Patients,Other Customers &

Markets

Leadership

StrategicPlanning

ProcessManagement

OrganizationalPerformance

Results

Staff Focus