Category: Digital
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ADMs and the Weight of Responsibility: Culture, Accountability, and the Need to Decide
The Tightrope of ADM Leadership Assistant Deputy Ministers (ADMs) live at the critical juncture where government policy meets organizational reality. Unlike Ministers and Deputies, you are not setting the political agenda. Unlike Directors General (DGs), you are not solely responsible for operational delivery. Instead, you occupy the middle ground where policy intent must be translated…
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Leadership at the Summit: Ministers and Deputies as Catalysts of Cultural Accountability
At the Peak of the Pyramid Ministers and Deputy Ministers stand at the summit of Canada’s public service and political governance structure. While the operational machinery of government depends on Directors General and Assistant Deputy Ministers, the tone, pace, and cultural priorities of the system are ultimately set at the very top. In the Westminster…
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Everyone Nods But Nothing Moves: The Hidden Drag on Government Transformation
Transformation in government is never about technology alone, nor about bold political vision in isolation. At the highest levels of leadership—where Ministers and Deputy Ministers carry responsibility for both vision and execution—the challenge is subtler and more insidious. It’s the silent drag on change that arises when everyone around the table nods in agreement but…
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AI Will Probably be a Productivity Bust
Before we get to the bold productivity prediction, know where I’m coming from… I am of two minds on Artificial Intelligence: the large language models of Chat GPT and so forth. Like some of those eminent in the field, I think AIs may represent a mortal threat to humanity. Even if the computers do not…
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Productivity: the no. 1 digital transformation shortfall
I have nothing against digital transformation imperatives or the millions of dollars and hours put toward it over the past decade. It was and remains an essential foundation of 21st-century value production. Picking up on a recent post, I will say that if anything the job is not done. Productivity Recognition: Digital Transformation’s final frontier…
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Failing Productivity? What About All That Digital Transformation?
The Canadian character lends itself to millennialist productivity flagellation (e.g., recent Globe & Mail-only: Canada’s declining productivity streak adds to inflation problem, The productivity problem in Canada’s economy is really a marketing and sales problem, Canada has a productivity problem. The solution is training, not factories, one expert says, Canada’s productivity lag could be helped…
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What’s Next for Government Transformation?
Government and public administration transformation typically involve efforts to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and responsiveness of government services and operations. Efforts usually aim to leverage technology and modernize administrative processes to better serve citizens. Often, it’s a generational effort to clear the accretion of process, policy, and regulatory barnacles. Recent Government Transformation Focus Areas…
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“Fear” of Transformation Outcome is Powerful
Do people fear transformation? Some yes, some no; but by-and-large people do not fear transformation. They may, however, dread imagined outcomes of a transformation. Even if they understand the need. Transformation and change are inevitable in any organization. Whether due to market conditions, technological advances, or internal restructuring companies must adapt to remain…
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How Work Will Transform for Better or Worse…?
A big question mark hanging over the plans of executives, workers, commercial property managers, and hospitality venues/retail around business districts is: “What is the future of (office) work?”[1] We have some thoughts, mostly on the employee-driven side of change. This gets the most airtime—as though office workers suddenly have excess leverage. Maybe they…
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Transformation is not just a buzzword anymore
I’m often asked—told, really: “Transformation’s just a buzzword.” (You have to imagine the rising intonation and modifier before “buzzword” yourself.) Typically, it’s right after I disclose what I do to a middle ranking corporate or government manager. I have no choice but to say, “It certainly can be.” Digital transformation got us started… …
