Canadian Government Executive - Volume 22 - Issue 8

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October 2016 // Canadian Government Executive / 29
e-commerce has gone from being mi-
raculous to being just the baseline ex-
pectation of consumers. And since most
consumers are also taxpayers, they now
expect that kind of seamless innovation
in their government services.
With everything the digital revolution
has enabled, it is not surprising that the
World Economic Forum has described
it as “The Fourth Industrial Revolution.”
When viewed as part of this revolution,
deliverology suddenly becomes easier
to analyze, at least from the standpoint
of making it a reality. Thinking in digital
terms allows us to see deliverology for
what it really is: the fulfillment of gov-
ernment’s potential as a digitally driven
entity.
Of course, every organization today
wants all the things that are made possi-
ble through digital. But wanting is not the
same as having, alas. A recent IDC Can-
ada study (sponsored by SAP Canada)
showed that 83% of Canadian enterprises
still lack the in-house skills needed to do
battle in the digital economy. They’re still
in need of capabilities around big data
analytics, mobile, IT security and design
thinking. These disciplines are the nuts
and bolts of digital delivery, which effec-
tively makes them the engine of govern-
ment deliverology, too. It is reasonable to
assume that these digital skills gaps are
as much an issue in the public sector as
they are in the private.
And, as daunting as they are, these
technological challenges are just the tip
of the iceberg. In his book Deliverology
101, Sir Michael Barber breaks down his
methodology into key steps, including
developing a foundation for delivery, un-
derstanding the delivery challenge, plan-
ning for delivery and driving delivery. All
of these key steps require the skills of
trained leaders and project managers.
Successfully implementing deliverol-
ogy may call for thousands of these
leaders and project managers. As Bar-
ber explains, the starting requirements
for implementing the methodology
include the creation of a Delivery Unit
for each goal. Each Delivery Unit must
have a passionately involved leader
who will “design, organize and build a
high-performing Delivery Unit to over-
see your delivery effort. This unit will
be the primary source of a new deliv-
ery culture that is characterized by five
words: ambition, focus, clarity, urgency
and irreversibility.”
The attitudinal features described
above are readily found in startups run
by digital natives. But whether public
or private, organizations set up in the
pre-digital era will have more work to
do if they are to adopt the digital way
of thinking. The great irony of the digi-
tal age is that, for all the hardware and
software involved, its achievements still
depend on the abilities of the people
using it. As SAP Canada president John
Graham said, “It’s time for an assess-
ment of what expertise an organization
needs to enter the digital economy and
thrive in it.”
Since the government already has ex-
perienced personnel in place, the most
urgent task is to nurture that talent. And
the best way to nurture talent is with
the kind of training that engenders the
qualities associated with the cream of
the digital workforce: confidence, com-
petence and a secure sense of empow-
erment.
The timing of such training is criti-
cal. In the pre-digital era, the upgrad-
ing of workforce skills typically came
after new technology was deployed.
Today, technology and talent both have
to hit the ground running, and there is
little public tolerance for mistakes. To-
day’s public sector workers have to be
engaged, enabled and empowered to
be accountable for organizational out-
comes. The need today is to plan for
skills upgrading that begins in the plan-
ning process and continues throughout
implementation. Today, the stakes are
simply too high to allow training to be
treated as an afterthought.
There is no turning back. Deliverol-
ogy is here. And for decision makers
in government, the challenge now is to
set up their teams for success. Answer-
ing the challenge will take an approach
that prioritizes skills planning and train-
ing for an ever-changing environment.
Today, government personnel must be
fully prepared to improve existing proj-
ects and deliver on new ones. Those
capabilities will require a range of new
skills, and the training in those skills
simply can’t wait.
Global Knowledge is the world’s
leading provider of training in the
skills most relevant to deliverology,
including IT, project management,
leadership and communications. Visit
us at to
discover how Global Knowledge can
help you make deliverology a reality.
The mandate for deliverology has
arrived, and it will demand more than
ever of you and your teams. For
valuable advice on how to thrive in
changing times, download your free
copy of the Global Knowledge e-book,
Resilient Leadership at
The great irony of the digital age is that, for all the
hardware and software involved, its achievements
still depend on the abilities of the people using it.
Get your free download
of Resilient Leadership