GLOBAL TRENDS IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

State Of Public Administration Today

The year 2020 brought various crises to the fore, including the rise of climate change, the spread of the
pandemic, natural disasters, and the increasing number of economic and educational crises. No country
was spared from these disasters, and the COVID-19 pandemic was even worse.

The rise of geopolitical instability brought about a shared experience for different nations. This marked the
first time that these issues have affected countries that were previously regarded as stable. These
challenges will continue to affect the world in 2021.

Additionally, political environments and parties in power—which can change through election cycles—can
shift the focus on priorities, from centralized federal oversight, to state and local control of programs. How
budgets are determined, whether contracts for products and services remain under governmental authority
or are privatized, and the level of transparency and citizen engagement in policy development are all
affected by legislative bodies and their leadership.

To address these issues, public administrators must think “outside the box” and employ innovative
strategies to manage not only processes but the people responsible for their development and
implementation. They must be able to adapt to their governments or organizations and the cultures that are
the result of them.

Global Trends

The field of public administration is experiencing a dramatic and rapid change.

Locally and globally, some of the most significant trends that will have an
impact on public administrators for years to come include:

1. Evolving Political Climate

Public administrators frequently employ their talents and skills in multiple scholarly disciplines, including,
but not limited to, sociology, economics, political science, and business to build strong, sustainable
communities. They are constantly identifying and addressing community needs, evaluating available
assets, and prioritizing investments to support infrastructure, economic development, public services and
many other areas that affect their citizens’ quality of life.

Among the biggest challenges in community development is the uncertainty of resources, which can rise
and fall based on the political climates in federal, state and local legislative bodies. In an era of declining
budgets and public employment, especially at the state and local levels, vital government services are
always at risk and public administrators must be able to adapt their policies and practices to provide
necessary services with the funding and personnel available to them.

From public health and safety to transportation, a majority of the expenditures of our governments are
related to community development in some manner and administrators are tasked with ensuring that the
resources to which they have access are managed efficiently and effectively to fairly benefit a majority of
the constituents in their care.

Today’s ideal public administration professional is tech-savvy, communicative, globally minded and
efficiency driven.
GLOBAL TRENDS IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

2. Public Health Policy Changes

Public administration touches every facet of our lives, and as such public administrators have the
responsibility for making decisions in the best interests of their publics’ health. There are few regulatory
decisions that do not affect population health.

Many of the factors that affect health are outside of the healthcare sector. Consider the development of
sanitation systems and the establishment of building codes so that people have clean water to drink and
safe homes in which to live. These have a positive effect on citizens’ health and wellness. Occupational
safety laws, minimum wage standards, professional licensing of health providers, and the advent of the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration were all set into motion to advance public health through the
development of policies and regulations by public administrators.

As populations increase and communities evolve, public administrators must create and implement policies
which will drive better and fairer health outcomes that are appropriately administered and implemented.

3. Rapidly Advancing Technology

Emerging technologies are having a significant impact on how governments and organizations interact with
their constituencies. With increased capabilities and accessibility, today’s software and hardware is allowing
public administrators to better analyze data and trends, learn about best practices from colleagues around
the globe, and institute policies and procedures that streamline operations and provide more transparency
to stakeholders.

Technology can have the benefit of lowering the costs to do business for both organizations and those they
serve. Less physical resources like paper and file storage facilities are needed to acquire and store
information, and computing systems are becoming more compact and energy efficient. Personnel can
accomplish more tasks in less time and automation and online access means travel and time to obtain files
and forms is reduced for those an agency serves.

The advent of mobile devices, like smartphones and tablets allows teams to quickly find and share
information, communicate with their leadership and citizens, and address issues as they arise, all in real
time and wherever they may be working, whether in the field or in their offices.

As technology advances, the need to guard sensitive information also becomes a priority. Programs
designed to infiltrate computing servers to steal confidential or personal data are constantly evolving and
today’s public administrators must remain vigilant and employ up-to-date systems to ensure information
remains secure and the public trust is maintained.

4. Grassroots Advocacy
More people have access to information through the internet and their use of mobile technology. They can
communicate quickly and easily to influence public opinion and affect everything from the outcome of
elections to a nation’s revolution. Technology has changed the way news is reported, how agencies interact
with the public and how elected bodies respond to proposed legislation on all levels of government.

Never before have people been able to effect change through advocacy efforts as rapidly as they can now
and will continue to do. With the push of a button, messages can almost instantly reach millions of people
and mobilize them to take action on critical social issues.
GLOBAL TRENDS IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

As information from around the world is shared and brought to the public’s attention, societies are
converging to demand change. Environmental issues, human rights abuses, international accords and
other topics that once were isolated to individual countries and regions are now global concerns.
Governments and their policies face greater scrutiny not only from their own citizens but from a global
audience and must now operate from a broader mindset.

Social media is also having a dramatic effect on how public administration is conducted. Citizens and
leaders can express their insights and opinions to large and diverse audiences, and administrators can
communicate important information more directly and succinctly with the public. However, these same
platforms can also be a place for disgruntled or dissatisfied people to share their disdain for government or
organizational actions, or spread misinformation which can impede the progress of important initiatives that
could benefit their communities.

Social Media Is Also Having A Dramatic Effect On How Public Administration Is Conducted.

5. Sustainability
It’s not just about saving the rainforests or protecting natural resources. Global crises are calling attention
to public administrators’ development of policies and expecting those policies to address public interests
that include everything from utilizing renewable energy sources to minimizing opportunities for government
corruption.

With climate change having many organizations debating or planning, public administrators must find ways
to meet today’s needs without compromising future generation’s needs. President Theodore Roosevelt’s
administration saw an urgent need to protect the country’s natural resource and established policies to
protect national treasures.

With the continually changing tides of public policy priorities, public administrators have to evaluate the
urgency of addressing environmental concerns. Organizations that value social responsibility and
stewardship are more likely to have established and evolving sustainable public administration policies.
Public administrators play an important role in keeping sustainability top of mind in public policy.

With The Continually Changing Tides Of Public Policy Priorities, Public Administrators Have
To Evaluate The Urgency Of Addressing Environmental Concerns.

References:

(n.d.). Retrieved May 24, 2022, from https://www.fit.edu/your-college-decision/trends-in-public-administration/

(2022, May 24). Retrieved from https://assets.kpmg/content/dam/kpmg/xx/pdf/2021/04/modernizing-government-global-trends.pdf