In September 2024, Apolitical published the insights from the ‘Public Servants’ Learning and Skills Trends Survey’, in which we surveyed over 2,000 public servants to understand the state of learning in governments globally.

As governments race to meet the growing demands of the 21st century, it is essential that we continue developing public service capacity to progress towards long term objectives. Providing public servants with the skills development they need to thrive support governments to actualise their policy objectives and drive meaningful change.

In this article we outline how public servants across a variety of professional areas are seeking to improve their skills, along with access to practical resources to support these goals. You can see an infographic visualisation of the data used to inform this analysis.

Operational staff seek effective project management skills

As administrative and operational public servants navigate the variety of challenging projects set by governments, it is essential that they are proficient in project management. Public servants tasked with managing administration should be equipped with the necessary soft skills they need to meet deadlines, report progress and communicate effectively with their teams.

Practical resources:

Public servants in tech look to improve data literacy skills

Charged with meeting the increasing demands of our digital age, every government is striving to equip more public servants with the technical competencies they need to interpret and analyse data. By successfully utilising digital capabilities to analyse qualitative and quantitative data, public servants will be able to use contemporary research to institute meaningful policy outcomes.

Practical resources: Become a Data-Confident Public Servant Presenting Data Effectively Empowering the digital journey: Building digital proficiency in the public sector

Policy and strategy professions search for futures and foresight training to achieve lasting outcomes

Intentionally and skillfully planning for the future is a must for public servants in the policy and strategy space. In times of change and transition, public servants are tasked with implementing difficult policies while mitigating risk and potential damages. Ensuring their capabilities with future and foresight thinking is essential for successful policy implementation.

Practical resources

Public servants are the backbone of any government. Equipping them with the skills and knowledge they need to do their vital work is fundamental to addressing the most pressing issues facing our societies.

As governments rise to tackle climate change and transformational technologies, Apolitical will continue supporting the 250,000+ public servants in our community to develop their skills and address the most pressing global issues.

Image credit: Christina Morillo, Pexels

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