Public service around the world undergoes reforms and influences the future in Brazil

The public service around the world has undergone reforms in recent decades. One of the most emblematic cases is that of South Africa after the end of apartheid, where the government implemented drastic changes to include more black employees in a predominantly white framework.

In Brazil, a constitutional proposal is being processed to change the face of functionalism, which follows the more closed model established in France in the years following the French Revolution (1789).

This is the third article in the series The Public Professional of the Future, which discusses the quality of service in public administration in the 21st century, in partnership with República.org.

In the European country, President Emmanuel Macron is trying to implement an administrative reform to expand the public service to professionals from outside the State, especially in leadership positions. There, prestige career slots are generally restricted to career servers, despite exceptions.

With a public contest that measures general knowledge through written tests and stability, the French model is the great inspiration in Brazil and countries like Portugal and Spain, according to the researcher associated with the New South Institute study center Rafael Leite.

“Anyone who passes a competition is part of a career. To reach the top, you have to remain in public service for some time and pass a performance evaluation”, says Leite.

The researcher explains that, in this scenario, the “concurseiros” in general are people from families with better financial conditions, who manage to dedicate themselves fully to their studies. For this reason, he points out, leadership positions in France are, in most cases, occupied by employees who were able to attend prestigious universities, such as the Sorbonne or INSP (Institut National du Service Public), the former National School of Administration, for the training of senior civil servants.

Something similar happens in the United Kingdom, where public service leaders studied Oxford and Cambridge.

“Whoever went to one of these two universities dominates public service even today. It does not reflect society, and this is the reason for recurring discussions.” The researcher also says that in Great Britain there is an independent commission that makes selections without, in theory, political influence. Jobs in the public sector are filled with open and competitive selection, in the so-called position system.

For initial vacancies, candidates apply and have their resumes evaluated, as in the private sector. The process may include interviews and other dynamics. But for the highest positions a new selection process is opened. The US tended to institutionally differentiate itself from Europe after independence, in 1776, as it considered that career system to be elitist, according to Leite. There, the server does not enter into an initial career with the prospect of being promoted over the years.

“In the US, it is possible for a professional from the private sector to directly assume leadership positions, with high salaries and stability. Any position can be open to candidates from inside or outside the government.”

Chile adopts a mixture of these models, and in the South American country there are several ways to enter the public service, with different evaluation mechanisms, such as analysis of resumes and interviews.

Francisco Silva, 51, responsible for the Legal and Institutional Affairs Division, says that he always had a vocation for public service. Upon completing the law course, in 2000, he already sought work in this area. “I never thought about working in the private sector.” Silva began his career in the Chilean civil service as a lawyer for a body that oversees the fulfillment of labor duties by private companies.

He initially entered the annual contract category and later gained tenure. “When the person has been ‘the hire’ for more than two years [temporário], it is assumed that you are suitable for the position on merits. It gains stability and can only be unlinked if it fails the performance evaluation”, says Silva.

The South African Ivor Chipkin, director of the New South Institute, explains that South Africa broke with the model of entering the public service after the end of apartheid, in 1994, a regime of racial segregation that dominated the country for 46 years. “Before, in a selection, even if a black nurse was more competent than other candidates, she would lose the vacancy to a white one. In the country where the majority of the population is black, public offices were composed of white servers, practically 100%.”

The expert says that despite this, white South Africa had an excellent public system, with competent professionals selected through evidence. “But black people didn’t have access.”

For the black population, bantustans were created at the end of the 1940s, areas where they were forced to live and where there was its own civil service. With the end of apartheid, a movement began with goals to increase the number of black professionals working in the public system.

“Suddenly, Bantustan professionals were part of a single government. There began to be a change in the racial profile. But problems also arose arising from the lack of criteria in the selection of servers, which led to mistakes that cost a lot of money and wear and tear,” says Chipkin.

Brazil is still a more conservative country for reforms, says Leite, and needs to be aware of what is happening in the world. Chile changed the selection of positions of trust to later expand the reform. The United Kingdom, which in recent years has been concerned with increasing race and gender representation, is now targeting class and background diversity. “Everything contributes to a more innovative environment.”

For him, a cultural change is necessary before changing the law, because many aspects of public service are ingrained, and changes need acceptance.

Public service around the world

when did it come up

• Country is cradle of modern public service; in the beginning, public offices were bought or inherited

• After 1789 (French Revolution), many reforms were introduced until reaching the current model, which inspired several countries, including Brazil

How it works

• Public competition for all government positions

• Theoretical and general knowledge tests

• Server has stability

Model

• Organized in rows, ‘closed’

• In general, leadership positions are restricted to career servers, especially the most prestigious positions.

• The starting career server assumes a role and is promoted over the years until reaching the top of the career

when did it come up

• After the country’s independence in 1776, with the tendency to differentiate itself from European models, considered elitist

• Impersonal selections were introduced at the federal level in 1883 after passage of the Pendleton Act.

How it works

• Candidate, from within or outside the public sector, applies for a government position

• Tests of a more technical and less theoretical nature

• It is common to have interviews and analysis of resumes

• Independent bodies oversee the selections

• The number of political appointments is much higher than European models

• Server has stability to exercise office independently; is protected from politically motivated layoffs

Model

• All positions, including leadership positions, are open for applications.

• Servers can be hired for different career stages

• It is possible to apply directly to a position at the top of the civil service

When did you change

• In 2003, the country underwent reform in leadership management

• The selection by competences was adopted for the choice of senior positions

How it works

• Support from recruitment companies in attracting and selecting candidates

• Active search for candidates, analysis of resumes, interviews and other evaluation mechanisms

• Interviews with experts or members of an independent advisor appointed by Congress, depending on the position

• Council chooses from three to five names to compose the final list

• From this list, in order of preference, the choice is up to the Minister

Model

• ‘Open’ for leadership positions, ‘mixed’ for other government positions

• The selection of low- and middle-level positions is based on the application of tests, but there is room for political influence in the hiring of temporary workers

When did you change

• During the 46 years of apartheid, the civil service was mostly composed of white men.

• Closed system: career advancement was determined by length of service; agreeing with the government’s ideology was fundamental

• With the end of apartheid in 1994, public administration underwent profound changes to alter its racial composition

How it works

• An open model was adopted, facilitating the inclusion of more black professionals

• The selection suffers political influence, especially from Ministers of State

• Application of tests, analysis of resumes and interviews are allowed, in some cases they occur independently and transparently

• There is ample room for politicization

Model

• ‘Open’ at all levels of government, with room for political influence on selection and promotion

• More flexible competency assessment can be adopted

• In some cases, professional judgment is used to determine policy choices.

• There is a body to oversee government HR policies, but with no power to punish deviations

when did it come up

• Selection by merit through written tests from the 6th century

• Model inspired the creation of bureaucracies in empires such as Japan, Korea and Vietnam and influenced European diplomats

How it works

• Guokao, test held across the country on the same day, is the main gateway to early-career positions

• Tests include multiple choice questions and essays

• Note can leverage contract chances for more relevant functions

• Examination fills positions in municipal, provincial and national governments

• The exam is annual and there is an age limit for enrollment: 35 years old (except for masters or doctorates)

• Interviews before permanent hire

• Professional evolution depends on performance evaluation or political decisions made by the Chinese Communist Party

• Public servants are not required to join the party; 95% are affiliated

Model

• ‘Closed’, with broad competition for early-career jobs

• Meritocracy is fundamental, but since 1949 the party has been responsible for defining professional advancement

• Choice for higher positions and state-owned companies is carried out by the party

• In general, leadership positions require extensive professional experience in the public service

• The current Chinese model differs from the Soviet model by being competitive and valuing the recognition of party-aligned technocrats

when did it come up

• It began with the country’s independence in 1901, despite having institutional architecture inspired by the British model

• The first major period of reforms took place between 1880 and the First World War, emphasizing independence between politics and administration, more efficient and attentive to scientific principles.

• It underwent subtle renovations over the next few years, which are still ongoing.

How it works

• There are no public tenders

• Hiring takes place in a similar way to the private sector

• There are specific selection processes (interviews and CV evaluations)

• Competitive process open to civil servants and the wider community

• In specific cases and at a lower hierarchical level, it is possible that the vacancy is open only to interested parties within the public service

• For leadership positions, the vacancy must always be open publicly

Model

• The highest levels of the agencies (board) are political appointments of the ministers of the corresponding areas

• Nominations tend to be based on merit and experience within the public service

Sources: Rafael Leite, research associate, Ivor Chipkin, director of the New South Institute, and Flávia Donadelli, professor of public policy and management at Victoria University of Wellington – New Zealand (Government School)