PSTAT – INTEGRATING ASSESSMENT AND IMPROVEMENT IN PUBLIC SECTOR ORGANISATIONS by Rosemund R. Warrington The Public Sector Transformation Assessment Tool (PSTAT) was recently developed by the Caribbean Centre for Development Administration (CARICAD) as a starting point in the process of establishing a set of criteria specifically for the public sector. The process of developing a public sector assessment methodology began as a result of the Charter Conceptual Framework for Caribbean Public Services which was introduced by CARICAD in 2015. The Charter Framework and Charter Articles of the Agreement were endorsed in 2017 by the Ministers responsible for Public Administration in CARICAD Member Countries. Simply put, PSTAT is a questionnaire to be completed by a team of public sector officials in which they rate the current status of the public service in relation to the six pillars of the Charter. Comparisons of the same issues every few years will provide a sense of progress or otherwise. The idea for a diagnostic tool, grounded in the six pillars of the Charter namely Governance, Standards, Capacity, Accountability, Openness and Legislation, originated during national consultations held in CARICAD member countries during the period 2016-2017. The main objective of these consultations was to introduce the concepts and principles of the Charter and to solicit suggestions for improvement from stakeholders. Participants, including Public Sector officials and key stakeholders such as the Private Sector and unions, questioned whether there could be an instrument that could be developed using Quality Management concepts relevant to the work of Government. The PSTAT was thus designed following extensive research of international performance excellence diagnostic tools. PSTAT is expected to serve a number of purposes: Provide a method and common language for talking about the public sector and how it can be improved Provide a way to involve stakeholders from all areas at all levels in improving the public sector Help to focus the attention of public sector leaders, managers and employees on the opportunities for improvement Provide a “compass” for public officers to use in navigating the implementation and evaluation of public sector transformation initiatives Provide an integrated systems approach to thinking about the public sector so that public officers view and understand how their work operations impact the operations of the public sector as a whole. The public sector is always changing and is being called upon to be more resilient and outcome-focused. In this environment of constant change, PSTAT will provide a way to examine critical functions and determine best ways to engage public sector employees to identify and implement opportunities for improvement. The ultimate goal of PSTAT is not merely to improve efficiency and effectiveness but also to inculcate a culture of assessment, where continuous improvement is a part of the day-to-day modus operandi of conducting the work of government throughout the public sector. PSTAT is expected to be launched in CARICAD Member Countries early in 2019 and will be accompanied by targeted training in the use of the Tool. Rosemund Warrington is the Assistant Director and Human Resource and Organisation Development and Effectiveness Specialist at CARICAD. 4
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