Canadian Government Executive - Volume 27 - Issue 05

September/October 2021 // Canadian Government Executive / 23 MIDDLE MANAGEMENT those who wait and work with hope for peaceful homes. Homefulness enriches the human condition. Beyond geography, it gives people pride of place. Dr. John Kotter put it in managerial terms in his new book, Change: “We need many more cultures that can facilitate prosperity in an era of speed and uncertainty. We need many more organizations that understand the science of culture change.” Managers rely on evidence to discern setting, context, and culture. Deeper understanding leads to mutual respect and robust strategy. Strengthening evidence Public sector reform is driven by decision- makers who maximize the use of evidence. The United Kingdom contributes to in- country, evidence-informed policymaking under the Department for International De- velopment’s (DFID) Building Capacity to Use Research Evidence (BCURE) program. BCURE shows that investing in the use of evidence achieves better development out- comes. DFID learned how overcoming five constraints strengthens evidence in differ- ent country settings. 1. Limited capacity. One-off, capacity- building interventions rarely lead to sustainable change in policy makers’ use of evidence. Combining longer- term organizational and individual in- terventions based on thorough needs assessment is more likely to impact policy. Sustainability depends on train- ing and expert support that are tailored to decision-maker roles. 2. Political economy. Policymaking lan- guishes when groups with sufficient bargaining power and capacity lack incentive to gather and use evidence. Implementation by design harnesses governance strategies that change who participates in decision-making, trans- form goals and incentives, and shift par- ticipant beliefs. Working in politically- smart ways promotes open, transparent public institutions. 3. Program entry points. Choosing appro- priate countries, sectors, organizations, and stakeholders upfront sets national context. Evidence best informs policy when basic institutions, incentives, and capacities are in place. Fragile, post-con- flict, lower-income states rarely exhibit these preconditions due to shortcomings in systematically testing entry points and trialling stakeholder interventions. 4. Windows of opportunity. Evidence is not always available or current when poli- cymakers need to make decisions. Rec- ommendations can take months, even years, to mature. Windows of opportu- nity for evidence to influence policy may get missed or lose relevance. Decision- making processes must be flexible and responsive to changing political cycles, priorities, and external shocks. 5. Limited coordination. Stakeholder sec- tor priorities are important to centrally managing projects and programs. Ex- pertise in evidence-informed policy- making ensures a firm understanding of the local political context and adds value to in-country portfolio coordina- tion. Projects, systems, and resources for supplying data underpin evidence products like surveys, monitoring, and evaluation. Lessons for managers Reform means “different approaches for different realities”. It is important to know why existing arrangements do not work in a setting before launching change. Many per- formance improvements can be achieved without restructuring. Clearer mandates, advisory bodies, managerial flexibilities, service quality strategies, and robust mea- sures are possible without overhauling insti- tutional form and function. Political, economic, social, and technologi- cal factors deserve careful attention. Innova- tions respond to internal problems or oppor- tunities, as well as to public crises. The context for public well-being changed dramatically with the tragic advent of COVID-19, affecting citizens in different places in different ways. Such events call for a greater understanding of the role and effect of context. The machinery of government reforms manifests every human organizational prob- lem. Methodologies need to contextualize the cultural realities, consequences, and wider impact of people’s behaviour. Some settings favour bureaucratic complexity and detail; others accentuate enabling principles, professional discretion, and managerial in- tuition. Canada’s public service performance culture asserts traditions of moderation, in- crementalism, and diversity in institutional structures, incentives, and capacities. Whether local, regional, national, or global, context matters. Systematic use of evidence by managers contributes to trans- parency in reform processes. It illuminates where and when evidence informs decisions. Managers are obliged to assess data quality and sources and to rectify any deficiencies. John Wilkins is a Teaching Practi- tioner with the School Of Public Policy and Administration at York University. He was a Career Se- nior Public Servant and Diplomat. (wilkins@yorku.ca ) Many performance improvements can be achieved without restructuring. Clearer mandates, advisory bodies, managerial flexibilities, service quality strategies, and robust measures are possible without overhauling institutional form and function.