The Administrator's Guide

Getting into the civil service is the tough part. A good educational background, tough examinations, committing the regulations to memory and satisfying the background checks.

Once in, it is practically impossible to be fired. Some try hard. Very hard. Serious pecuniary embarrassment. Alcohol. Drugs. A gambling addiction. Obstinate insubordination. Apathy. A menace in the workplace. Even then there will be numerous warnings, counselling sessions and attempts at rehabilitation.

It is possible to mark time. A good excuse is that seniority, not merit, is the basis for promotion. Salaries are paltry, but there will be a pension and gratuity, decent medical care, and car and housing loans.

So why join?

First the time servers. Meet the basics for five years and spend the next thirty doing exactly the same thing. Punch in and warm a chair. Stay out of trouble. In a bloated service this is achieved with ease.  

  Then there are the high fliers. They are not concerned about job security or benefits. They don't ask about work life balance in the interviews.   

They want frontline jobs dealing with critical policy matters, emergency and crisis management, long term planning and diplomatic and security issues. The experience is invaluable.

Dealing with recalcitrant politicians and demanding citizens takes finesse. Maneuvering through challenges and negotiating with the private sector, without upsetting colleagues, takes skill and a calm temperament.

Getting things done can bring indescribable satisfaction. Projects involving flood mitigation, rural electrification, rail and road connections or food security, involve technical, financial and commercial expertise that will challenge the most ambitious.

Administrators will have to deal with the dark side of public service. An ever expanding regulatory framework justifies the growth of an already bloated bureaucracy.

 Additional discretionary powers can be employed to benefit vested interests while stifling competition.

Poor performance, a reluctance to provide full disclosure, a lack of accountability, rising operating costs, and frequent project failures, all result in higher levels of hostile public scrutiny.

Failure resulting from incompetence has the same outcome as failure resulting from corruption. The penalty can always be surreptitiously transferred to the consumer, ratepayer and taxpayer.

These thirty two poems, each of thirty two lines, looks at the hurdles faced by a public administrator, who has to meet political realities, satisfy citizen demands, and still get the job done.             

Whereas THE VOTER'S GUIDE looked at politics through the lens of a voter, and THE POLITICIAN'S GUIDE had empathy for the politician, this guide is intended to provide a beam of light for the civil servant, who has to navigate a path between politicians and voters.