As cuts loom, clarifying uncertainties needs to be New Year's resolution for senior ranks of public service | Opinion

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s plan to shrink the size of the public service while also demanding that the government move fast on his priorities will be like requiring executives and managers to rebuild the plane in midair while flying it at greater speeds than ever before.

Leading the federal public service during times of workforce adjustment requires thoughtfulness, compassion and a capacity to mobilize people in challenging circumstances. Workforce adjustment is a process through which permanent employees are told their positions may longer be needed past a certain date. It can lead to an opportunity to compete for their jobs or switch places with those who want to leave.

Not surprisingly, staff contemplating the prospect of unemployment are sometimes less than fully engaged employees.

For 1,000 executives and even more managers, there will be a further complication. They will be asked to lead their staff at the same time that they, too, will be subject to workforce adjustment. This means that there will be executives and managers who will be supporting staff while contemplating their own imminent departure from the public service. For many, it will represent a final demonstration of their public service professionalism.

Good leadership in times of workforce adjustment is in many respects the same as good leadership in other situations. Sharing information when it becomes available, being authentic and maintaining open lines of communication are good practices at all times, including during workforce adjustment.

What may be different from the last round of comprehensive workforce adjustment during the government of then-prime minister Stephen Harper is the operating context in which messages are received and sent. As demonstrated by the contentious return-to-the-office discussion, this round of workforce adjustment is occurring in a social-media hot house environment, where public service networks on Reddit and other platforms are already amped and humming in real time.

There is a lot of noise out there and communicating the facts within the organization is going to take more than all-staff emails.

Uncertainty can create conditions rife for controversy and, right now, it is fair to say that things are a bit betwixt and between. Some federal organizations have initiated their workforce adjustment processes while others have signalled their intention to move forward this month.

Importantly, the specifics of the early retirement incentive announced in Budget 2025 are pending the passage of the legislation. Endeavouring to clarify remaining uncertainties needs to be a New Year’s resolution for senior ranks of the public service.

In the face of some staff engaged in incessant doomscrolling and others who find themselves in workforce adjustment limbo trying to compete for their jobs, executives and managers will need to work harder than ever to create a trusted information space with staff. It could get quite bumpy. And centrally provided organizational speaking points (which will no doubt be provided) are, at best, only the starting point for discussions with staff.

Very few of those affected are going to believe that outcomes affecting them are either fair or just. Still others may have survivors’ guilt. Many will conclude correctly that they are victims of an uncaring numbers game with potentially significant consequences for them and their families.  Understandably, it is going to be very difficult for staff to accept the outcomes with equanimity. Managers and executives will need to be ready to be on the receiving end of venting as they seek to strike a balance between supporting staff with compassion and humanity, while advancing their organization’s workforce adjustment objectives.

Amid this disruption, executives and managers need to band together to provide a structured, professional workplace. There is a job to be done and the prospect of workforce adjustment must not be allowed to consume all of the oxygen in the room. The plane must fly faster.

Ultimately, executives and managers have a duty to the organization, the citizen and the taxpayer.  Over the course of their careers, each permanent public servant represents a $4-million investment when salaries, benefits and office supports are added up. Especially in challenging fiscal circumstances, every investment needs to count.

The workforce adjustment process currently underway is not just about the overall numbers; it’s also about improving the public service itself, making it more fit for purpose going forward. Tough decisions are required.

Few executives and managers joined the public service for the explicit purpose of guiding staff reductions. That said, facilitating the transition of some staff to roles outside the public service is part of the job.

That, too, is leadership.

Allen Sutherland is president and Chief Executive Officer of the Ottawa-based Institute on Governance.

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