This issue

– loss of capacity in public sector agencies
– design guide for participatory policymaking
– re-opening Australia in 2021
– co-designing Indigenous policy
– innovations in healthcare
– policy podcast for your playlist
Plus what I'm reading.

Research brief: The loss of capacity in public sector agencies 

Budget cuts, organisational reforms and political subterfuge have challenged public sector organisations. A paper in Perspectives on Public Management and Governance discusses how these can contribute to a loss of capacity and the implications of this loss. Read our brief on the paper.

Design guide for participatory policymaking 

A recent research brief looked at using systemic design in policy making to engage stakeholders and citizens. The paper is now supported by an open source guide for practitioners using participatory approaches. 

The guide incorporates knowledge and experience in systems thinking and human-centred design when tackling complex problems. Designed by Emma Blomkamp, the guide covers five domains: principles, place, people, process and practice. Each domain has an overarching question and four key elements to consider.  

Shifting gear: re-opening Australia in 2021

A new report from the Business Council of Australia (BCA) outlines three steps to safely, quickly and permanently reopen Australia in 2021. As Australia embarks on its biggest ever peacetime operation to roll-out vaccines for COVID-19, the national approach to suppressing and containing the virus needs to evolve. 

1. Safely reopen Australia using best practice to drive national consistency, aligned with the vaccine roll-out 

• The BCA argues for a nationally consistent and uniform approach to the way restrictions are eased in line with the vaccine roll-out. This requires all states and territories committing to: 
• applying the Commonwealth’s COVID-19 hotspots definition. 
• implementing consistent risk-based approaches to outbreaks whereby restrictions escalate in response to case numbers. 
• having a common approach to testing, including wastewater testing and post-quarantine testing. 
• improving information sharing between jurisdictions to enable nationally consistent tracking and tracing. 
• ensuring quarantine arrangements reflect the recommendations from the National Review of Hotel Quarantine. 

2. Gradually change the public health narrative 

As the vaccine is rolled out, the way leaders report on COVID-19 needs to evolve. Once a significant number of Australians have been vaccinated the public health narrative should shift to better reflect the environment. 

From reporting on: 

• number of positive cases 
• incidence of community transmission 

To reporting on 

• number of people vaccinated (both initial and final dose numbers) 
• number of current hospitalisations 
• number of critically ill patients 
• demand on health services 

3. Continue targeted support for businesses that remain affected by government restrictions and/or international border closures 

Given that international borders will not fully open until global immunity is achieved, the BCA is calling on the Commonwealth Government to provided target assistance for businesses that rely on international tourists, international students and skilled migrants. 

The Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research has released a discussion paper on co-designing Indigenous policy. The paper surveys the mainstream literature on co-design and collaborative governance. It also analyses Indigenous policy development processes to identify the core design features necessary for the processes to contribute to: 

• creating public value 
• maintaining trust in public policy institutions. 

The Indigenous policy domain 

The Indigenous policy domain comprises complex terrain. It extends beyond Indigenous specific policies and programs at the national level to encompass the policies and programs of state, territory and local governments. It also encompasses the effects of mainstream policies and programs at each of these levels to the extent that they affect Indigenous citizens. 

Effective co-design 

Using case study analysis, the paper identifies the following issues as being central to effective co-design in the Indigenous policy domain: 

• the independence and representativeness of First Nations interests 

• the degree to which the issues under consideration are explicitly or implicitly constrained by governments 
• the levels of transparency and accountability for the outcomes of the processes 
• the acknowledgement within the co-design processes of structural power imbalances between governments and First Nations 
• the nature and effectiveness of decision-making processes within First Nations interests 
• the degree of assurance that negotiations will lead to policy decisions and outcomes consistent with negotiated outcomes. 

The design of any proposed policy co-design process needs to extend beyond a focus on short-term political objectives if the outcomes are to have any credibility and longevity. Key criteria include: 

• ensuring Indigenous interlocutors are seen as legitimate representatives by the wider Indigenous community 
• the terms of the negotiation are open and not closed 
• potential conflicts of interest are avoided 
• transparency regarding the process is maximised. 

Innovations in care for chronic health conditions 

This Productivity Commission report  highlights examples of services that successfully manage chronic health conditions. The initiatives: 

• offer practical examples of preventive health innovations  
• provide insights into overcoming entrenched barriers to implementation of health reform. 

Key points 

• Innovative approaches to managing chronic health conditions are present in all types of health services and in all jurisdictions. They reduce the need for intensive forms of health care such as hospital admissions.  
• The innovations involve: 
  • improved responsiveness to consumer preferences 
  • greater recognition of the skills of health professionals 
  • effective collaborative practices 
  • better use of data for decision making by clinicians and governments 
  • new funding models that create incentives for better management or prevention of disease.

• Innovation often relies on the commitment of individuals and the support of local health service executives.  Unless there are strong incentives for change, entrenched organisational and clinical cultures tend to maintain the status quo. 
• There are few structured mechanisms to encourage the diffusion of innovation. 
• Trials of blended payment models and pooled funding offer a path towards funding reform. These need to be supported by data and models that ensure interventions assist the people who face the highest risks of avoidable hospitalisation. 

Policy podcast for your playlist ​

As part of the 2019 Independent Review of the Public Service, the Federal Government agreed to establish a professions model to build capability. This Work with Purpose podcast features the heads of the HR, digital and data professions together with the Public Service Commissioner discussing the work being undertaken to lift capability. 

1. How can meetings not leave us miserable?

Meetings are the everyday expression of collective intelligence — bringing groups together to think. But often they feel like a waste of time and fail to make the most of the knowledge and experience of the people present. This blog post from Geoff Mulgan offers advice on how meetings can be organised to make the most of the collective intelligence in the room and beyond. 

2. The politician is the malformed monster of our coexistence

An article in Psyche examines the role of politics and political actors in 16th-century France. France was a key setting for intellectual and polemical investment in the role of the political person: a crucible in the process of politicians becoming more prominent and more problematic in Western culture. Then as now, politics was the art of the possible. 

‘Til the next issue

Maria Katsonis