Invest, adapt and reform: this was the message to the Scottish public sector
from delegates at the Public Sector People Management Expo.
The key watchwords were delivered at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference
Centre in Glasgow, as delegates debated how to initiate change in the sector.
After six years of devolution, Scotland’s public sector is now made up of
200 bodies, ranging from the Scottish Executive through to local authorities
and health boards, spending a total of more than £20bn a year.
Hot topics at the two-day event held at the end of last month were training
and recruitment – especially how to recruit and manage staff in the face of an
evolving modernisation and reform programme.
Scotland’s First Minister Jack McConnell told delegates to rise to the
challenge. "Our public services play a central part in our lives," he
said. "An ever-changing modernisation and reform programme places an
increasing demand on our public services.
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"A key challenge is how to how to recruit, equip, train, retrain and
motivate the many public sector workers in Scotland."
To do this, an increasing number of Scottish public sector organisations are
forming partnerships and working with initiatives such as the 21st Century
Government, the Joint Future Programme and the Agenda For Change.
