public sector

Open public services: experiences from the voluntary sector

The first part of this report shares the experiences of voluntary organisations, and one local authority, involved in the transformation of public services. There are some learning points from the Work Programme and Community Budgets but its main focus is on sharing best practice and innovation. This includes coproduction in commissioning, large and small organisations working in consortia, and the use of open-data to increase accountability.

Partnership working (Third Sector Research Centre Research Report, 88)

Working paper that summarises the findings of a research project into third sector partnerships for public service delivery.

The research was based on five case studies of organisations involved in public service delivery in different policy fields including housing, welfare, and employment services, preceded by a period of scoping research with national interviewees.

The opportunities and challenges of the changing public services landscape for the third sector in Scotland: a longitudinal study year three report (2009-2012)

Report that outlines findings from the first three years of a longitudinal research project examining The changing public services landscape in Scotland: opportunities and challenges. This work was commissioned by the Scottish Government and, using qualitative case studies and focus groups, has been tracking the way in which a selection of third sector organisations (TSOs) have responded to the changing opportunities and challenges over a period of three years starting from 2009/2010.

Leading culture change: employee engagement and public service transformation

Report that explores the views of chief executives and HR directors in a range of local service organisations to gauge how public service leaders are striving to re-engineer the way public services are delivered.

What is clear is that this cannot be achieved without significant behaviour change on the part of managers at all levels and employees on the front line.

Culture change in the public sector (IRISS Insights, No. 17)

Evidence review that focuses on the topic of organisational culture change in the public sector. It examines definitions and approaches to organisational culture and how they relate to the public sector; the type of change that identifies as cultural; what the enablers are to culture change; and describes some of the challenges to changing cultures in the public sector.

Simple things, done well: making practical progress on digital engagement and inclusion

There is a growing body of understanding about how technology can be used to support job seekers: providing responsive pathways that help establish (and extend) the job seeker’s connections; supporting the development of new skills; providing access to new markets and new forms of employment, and of course searching for, and applying for jobs more easily.