Public policy is a fancy name for what governments have agreed to do or need to do. If you have a degree in public policy, please don’t laugh too hard about the simplification of the concepts [1]. For those without a degree, hopefully this post is just enough to talk about policy and how gRBM supports the public policy process [2].

1. This is Not the Policy You are Looking For
2. Public Policy Big Power Tools
3. Public Policy’s Smaller Power Tools
4. How to Report on this Abstraction
5. Who Builds Public Policy
6. The Hallmarks of a Good Policy
7. Who Manages Public Policy?
8. What Does this Have to with gRBM?
9. Notes and References

Thomas A Birkland’s definition of is that Public Policy is a governing set of principles given force and effect by elected officials in order to meet recognized public needs. Policy is made in the name of ‘the public’ and is interpreted and implemented by both public and private actors. Policy sets out what government intends to do and chooses not to do.

There is a long, medium, and short term dimension to policy. Western democracies tend to careen from one short term policy to another while countries such as China are better at playing the long game.

This is Not the Policy You are Looking For

One of the joys of English is the ability to use the same word for things that are different or only marginally related. Policy is such a word. Outside of government it generally means the set of formal guidelines, principles, and rules established by an organization to govern its operations and guide the behavior of its employees, volunteers, clients, etc.

This is related to public policy but is a very weakened variant. While most employers have a policy on harassment, parking, or who gets to use the lunchroom; this type of policy is more operational and not as far reaching.

Thus, public policy = public strategy.

In other words, this is not the policy you were looking for if you wanted to know where to park your car (to paraphrase Obi-Wan Kenobi).

Public Policy Big Power Tools

For profits use things such as capital, market position, or organizational capacity to enact strategy. They build factories, buy competitors, or research new products. These are available to governments, but they also have a secret weapon, the coercive power of the state. This is the authority and ability to enforce laws and maintain order through the use or threat of force. The classic example are speed limits. The threat of a fine, loss of a driver’s license, or jail time keeps most of our feet off the gas pedal.

Because absolute power corrupts absolutely, this superpower must be kept in check with things such as civil liberties, an impartial judiciary, etc. Laws, regulations, police forces, jails, the military; these are all state instruments to enforce compliance with laws and regulations. There is a balance here. Malcom Gladwell has written about this in his book David and Goliath in which he discusses the legitimacy of power.

Public Policy’s Smaller Power Tools

Not relevant to this blog are the myriads of individual tools used within a government to analyze, propose, and enact a policy. Legislation and regulations fall within the big power toolbox discussed above. Before getting to that point, there were likely Minister reports, briefing notes, etc.

To an outsider, all of this may seem to be unnecessarily bureaucratic. It is and it is not. These analytic tools help a government look at a proposed policy from many angles and (hopefully) eliminate unintended consequences. The worst that can happen if a company chooses the wrong strategy, is bankruptcy. A bad public policy can have lingering effects in society for decades to come.

How to Report on this Abstraction

The electorate, and society, needs to know how public policy is coming along. Is a promised program costing what was initially estimated? How goes the unintended consequences of a policy? When has a government program lost its focus and needs to be revamped?

These questions are where performance reporting comes to play. Over the past fifty years, information on public policy has greatly improved. Technology plays one role in this. Typing out a report and sending it to the printing press could take weeks; online reporting can be nearly immediate. Better access to information through legislation (e.g. freedom of information legislation) or adhering to international standards (e.g. international public sector accounting standards).

Journalism has played a role in exposing public waste, bad policy, or bad policy implementation. Whether social media, without the some of the safeguards developed by the press, can take on this role is open to debate.

Who Builds Public Policy

An election brings in a raft of new ideas. This may result in policy changes. Adding new legislation or eliminating previously enacted laws. The public service has a role to play as well as they tend to be long term players in the government ship.

A policy may be developed to manage a social issue and then languish for months, years, or forever. If there are not the resources or political will, the policy will not be implemented. The policy may still be tinkered with. Further analysis, public input gathered, or consultant reports written.

The Hallmarks of a Good Policy

• The issue being addressed is clearly and concisely defined.
• The nature and cause of the issue have been clearly expressed.
• Links to other government priorities and strategies have been identified.
• Any other government policies that are meant to address the issue have been identified and assessed.
• Stakeholders have been identified.
• The outcomes being sought are clearly stated.
• Local, provincial, national and international context has been considered.

Who Manages Public Policy?

Policy is the domain of the governing party within a country – within the limits set by the constitution, traditions, and the structures of government. In this respect, policy implementation and its subsequent planning and monitoring involves five groups or audiences:

1. Legislative: In Canada, this is parliament, in the US, the two houses.
2. Executive: In Canada, this is the governing party in parliament who form a cabinet and appoint ministers.
3. Judiciary: The courts have a role to interpret public policy through the lens of the constitution, common law, and other conventions.
4. Public Service: Civil servants with management and/or front-line responsibilities. In Canada, these would be the Ministry staff. This also includes specialists in things like Planning and Monitoring Evaluation specialists, supporting IT functions. The Treasury Board Secretariat plays this role.
5. Supporting and Academic: Standards setting bodies such as accountants, lawyers, or project management institutions.

We will return to the above audiences in a subsequent post on the Audiences of gRBM.

What Does this Have to with gRBM?

Part of the policy setting process is identifying early on how its impact will be measured. This is not always the case. For example, a Minister may push through a change because of a campaign promise and in other cases, killing sparrows to increase grain production in China looked good on paper [3].

Now that we know how government is organized, what are its priorities, let’s look at the people to drive the ship in the next post.

Notes and References

1. A degree in public administration or public policy is in many ways a mini-MBA. Fewer business courses but generally studies in economics, and research methods. As usual, Wikipedia to the rescue with an overview!
2. There are many excellent resources on public policy available online. A word of caution, beyond an initial set of common attributions, these resources can very quickly descend into jurisdictional specificity.
3. This is one of the classic cases of an ill conceived public policy. The per Wikipedia, Four Pests campaign (Chinese: 除四害; pinyin: Chú Sì Hài) was one of the first campaigns of the Great Leap Forward in Maoist China from 1958 to 1962. Authorities targeted four “pests” for elimination: rats, flies, mosquitoes, and sparrows. The extermination of sparrows resulted in severe ecological imbalance, and was one of the causes of the Great Chinese Famine which lasted from 1959 to 1961, with an estimated death toll due to starvation ranging in the tens of millions (15 to 55 million). In 1960, the campaign against sparrows ended, and bed bugs replaced them as an official target.