There is an old saying that poor leaders can be summed up with the phrase ‘Do As I Say, Not As I Do’ meaning that leaders who do not ‘walk the walk as well as ’talk the talk’ are not likely to be successful in the longer-term.
Perhaps nowhere is this more true than in the public (government) sector.
Productivity has been rising very slowly, if at all in many developed countries - almost as if there is a collective belief that productivity has plateaued, rising to a level that cannot be improved upon with current approaches and technologies.
Whether this is true or not (Spoiler: This is not true) is not then point of this post. I have another argument to make.
The new UK government is striving for economic growth - and has made growth its main mission. There is plenty of rhetoric but, so far, little action.
They are urging companies to invest and to improve their productivity.
Meanwhile over the last 10 years, under all governments, the productivity of the public sector has plummeted. Public sector workers are now being paid at a premium over private sector employees and they have much better pension arrangements - yet they continue to respond to inducements, exhortations and rewards win lower and lower productivity.
If government cannot stop this slide and. Indeed, reverse it - the nation is doomed to lower productivity on the wider scale. More and more of the economic wealth of the nation will be used to shore up public sector pay snd pensions - with little positive impact on the economy.
So, I urge this government to DO something - to back up their avowed commitment to their mission with action that will start to turn up the dial on public sector productivity. Lead by example, not by rhetoric - ands before its too late!
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