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Catalyst for change:
Interview with Lim Siong Guan
Ten years ago, as Permanent Secretary (PS) (Prime Minister’s
Office), Mr Lim Siong Guan founded the PS21 movement, which has since
left its mark on every aspect of the Public Service. As Head, Civil
Service and now PS (Finance), he has continued to champion the cause
of change in the Public Service. In a recent interview with Challenge,
Mr Lim reflects on the key ideas behind PS21. We bring you the highlights.
(Click to read more)
There was no sudden event which caused the birth
of the PS21 movement. Rather, it was a sense of discomfort
that the Public Service as a whole did not see change
as a way of life. Tomorrow is not like today. Yet
the Public Service did not see the need to change
with a sense
of urgency.
That is the real driver of the PS21 movement: how
do you bring people to the stage where they see the
need for change, are willing to change and want to
change? How do we anticipate
that future?
This is why the objective of PS21 is to “Be in Time
for the Future”; its “burning platform” (the reason
for change) is a future which is both uncertain and
unpredictable.
TOTAL
PRODUCTIVITY
When I became the Permanent Secretary of Defence in
1981, I started the MINDEF Productivity Movement.
Much of PS21 has its origins in my 10-plus years of
experience with the MINDEF Productivity Movement.
This was why I was able to launch PS21 with a certain
confidence —
I knew what worked and what did not work so well in
MINDEF.
Productivity is a total, holistic thing: it is not
just WITS and Suggestions. You have to deal with the
motivation of people, the resources you give to them,
the efficiency of processes and how to get everyone
actively involved.
The task of building a defence force is such that
you don’t quite know how the future will turn out,
but you have to think ahead and act in good time:
how do you build up the systems, how do you train
your people, so that they are ready to take on future
challenges as they unfold.
This is why PS21 has its three pillars of “Anticipate
Change”, “Welcome Change” and “Execute Change”. And
a central idea is that everyone at every level should
be thinking all the time — what we refer to in PS21
as “Everyone an Activist for Change”.
PS21 IS ABOUT PROCESS
I’m not saying all the activities in PS21 were not
there before. WITS is something which people were
already doing from the early 1980s as part of the
National Productivity Movement; suggestions schemes
were already there in the Civil Service, except that
they were never organised for the broad reach and
extensive participation under PS21.
What PS21 did was introduce a framework for thinking
about these change processes, and a framework by which
you can draw everyone in. PS21 is not content-driven.
PS21 is process-driven. The process is never-ending:
you have to keep questioning, keep modifying, keep
improving, keep reaching out. |
It is not enough to have good results. We have to
ensure that we have sustainable good performance.
You can always get good results by taking short-cuts,
by telling people to just concentrate on one area,
and forget about the other things that you are doing.
But if you want sustainable excellence and sustainable
good results, you need to get your processes right,
you need to get people always looking out for a better
way, you need to get your values and work environment
right, to encourage participation and new ideas.
Fundamentally this is what PS21 is about: it is not
about chasing results, it is about values, about organisational
and leadership philosophy, about capacity.
If you have an emergency, then you just go handle
it, and we’re very good at that. But if you are looking
for a continuing capability to deal with things that
may arise which you don’t even know anything about
yet, then you need to build capacity to handle that.
BUILDING CAPACITY FOR THE FUTURE
Why were the rules for training changed? It’s because
of our focus on the future. I’m talking about training
people so that they are in a good position to handle
future tasks and future jobs.
And this is why we changed the rules, to say: everybody
has access to at least 100 hours of learning a year.
Supervisors, you can help your staff make good use
of their 100 hours, but you have no right to prevent
them from getting the 100 hours on the argument that
“they already know how to do their tasks well”. |
The world around you is changing all the time: it
is not something we can stop. Instead, we should see
it as an opportunity to do better. We want you to
be involved in making the change and taking advantage
of the opportunities. Use your initiative. If you
know where change needs to be made, please, we want
to hear from you. If you can do it yourself, please
carry on, do it.
Looking for improvement day by day is very important.
It is a state of mind to always be wondering: “What
can I do better? How can I do better? How can I be
better? How can I improve on what I’m doing?”
Ideas for change can come from anywhere. Your customers
can tell you. If they do not volunteer feedback, ask
them. They may be members of the public. They may
be another government agency. You could get ideas
from reading a book, watching a movie, talking with
your friends, watching your parents or your children.
And the drive for change could come from your boss.
No matter the source, so long as the ideas are sound,
we should all be prepared to welcome the change, support
the change, and drive the change. Change is an integral
part of our lives. Change — so long as it is for the
better — is a good thing. |
All reasonable people want to do well. They want
to succeed and feel good about themselves and their
accomplishments. So help them. Make it possible for
them to try and to learn and to
try again.
How do we get our people actively involved? Through
suggestions: anything that you want changed, any improvement
that you think can be made, we want to hear from you.
What you are inviting people to do all the time is
try. After you try, if it doesn’t work, it doesn’t
work. But if it works, then you would have accomplished
something which you never imagined you could accomplish.
But while each one is invited to think and try, the
leader must draw their thoughts and actions together
towards some worthwhile end. Otherwise a lot of time,
effort and energy will be wasted, and everyone will
be disappointed.
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| Balloon creations
courtesy of Asmah Aziz of Sentosa Development
Corporation |
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HARNESSING IDEAS
What is WITS about? WITS is a mechanism by which people
can contribute their ideas as a team. It is based
on the premise that there is a limit to how many ideas
and how well each one of us can think. When we come
together with others to discuss our ideas, we build
upon one another’s views and the final ideas are better
than when they
first started.
How can we get a group of people to be able to come
together, discuss issues, make everybody feel they
are participating, and find consensus in the decision-making
process? The big strength of WITS tools is that they
help guide discussions, create focus and clarity in
thinking, and strengthen solutions. They are all visualisation
tools which help keep everyone on the same page during
discussions, and help build conviction and consensus.
I am always troubled when people say WITS tools are
an impediment, when they themselves have never used
them.
IMPORTANCE
OF SUPERVISORS
People judge organisations and processes according
to how their immediate supervisor acts and reacts.
So if the supervisor believes “it is really great
that my people are thinking all the time”, that’s
very good. But if the supervisor reacts on the basis
that “every suggestion you make is extra work for
me”, then he will not only kill the spirit of his
people, but he will be like a cancer killing the life
of his organisation. He does not need to say it in
words, he will be saying it clearly enough with his
body language, and the slowness and negativity with
which he looks at his people’s suggestions. |
I see PS21 as absolutely key to having an alert,
energetic, effective and efficient Public Service.
I would summarise PS21 as follows:
| • |
Theme of PS21:
Continuous Change |
| • |
Reason for PS21: Unending
Uncertainty |
| • |
Thrust of PS21: Change as
a Way of Life |
| • |
Means of PS21: Harvesting
Creativity |
| • |
End of PS21: In Time for the
Future |
If I were to boil things down, I would say there are
only two keys to a truly excellent Public Service.
These are: Be in Time for the Future, and Harness
the Creativity of your People.
“Be in Time
for the Future” is the essence of PS21. It takes as
its burning platform the future — uncertain and unpredictable,
but something you have to prepare for. We must do
well in Anticipating Change, Welcoming Change and
Executing Change.
“Harness the Creativity
of your People” is how we can be the best Public Service
possible. We cannot be the best we can be if our people
are not, each, the best they can be. If you want to
get the most out of your organisation, you need to
help your officers be the best that they can be, and
give them the ability to do the best that they can
possibly do. But you have to draw the capabilities
of your people together for a worthy common end to
bring Singapore forward. You must seek synergy even
while you encourage initiative, innovation and diversity.
This is my theory about all organisations. You want
the best performing organisation — do all you can
to Be in Time for the Future, and Harness the Creativity
of your People. |
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