Conference Agenda

According to scientists, the new era will have a serious impact on public services mostly on the way these are delivered and on the impact on the public sector’s accountability, but they also point out “the danger that organizations might be unable to adapt; governments could fail to employ and regulate new technologies to capture their benefits; shifting power will create important new security concerns; inequality may grow; and societies may get more fragmented” (West, 2015). Taking into account the discussion and the fact that in the new era changes will be extremely fast, it’s important to explore, search, discuss and predict the necessary skills of the new generation that will staff the public administration. Public administration faces three main changes: Firstly, public sector should have a flexible working environment responding to citizens' needs. The discussion is about agile governance including continuous improvement of regulatory processes (Scwab, 2016). Secondly, the integration of technologies and AI in the public sector for the delivery of public services imposes changes in human resources both in terms of the skills required to cover new public functions and public sector recruitment systems. Thirdly, public governance requires adaptive organizational culture and ethics which will ensure the existence of rules on one hand and the necessary open minded framework for the citizens on the other.

Based on the above the discussion focuses on the evolving landscape of public administration, emphasizing the importance of developing and refining skills and competencies that drive innovation, efficiency and adaptability in governance.

Main Topics:

Core Competencies in Public Administration (Exploration of traditional and emerging competencies required for effective public management, Comparison of global competency standards for new civil servants.)

Innovation and Digital Transformation: (Necessary digital skills for new civil servants, Competencies required for managing e-government & smart cities, Fostering innovation within bureaucratic systems).

Leadership in Public Administration: (Skills necessary for future public leaders to navigate complex, dynamic environments).

Ethics, Accountability and Public Trust: (Ethics and integrity in decision-making processes, Competencies & skills required to maintain transparency and accountability for rebuilding public trust in the age of information and disinformation).

Collaborative Governance and Stakeholder Engagement: (Skills needed for: cross-sectoral collaboration, both within governments and with civil society, enhancement of citizen’s participation and for managing partnerships between government, NGOs, and private sector).

Capacity Building and Continuous Learning: (Approaches for lifelong learning and professional development in the public sector, Training and knowledge sharing in skill enhancement for future civil servants).

The research questions will focus on:

The most critical skills and competencies required for public administrators to adapt to modern challenges like digital governance.

Education & training evolvement to foster innovation and digital literacy among public servants.

The competencies required for public administration leaders in order to develop the agility to balance innovation with the demands of accountability and transparency.

The ways that public administration professionals can leverage collaborative governance models to engage with stakeholders.

The strategies to ensure that ethics and accountability remain core competencies in an era of increasing complexity and public scrutiny.

In a rapidly evolving global landscape where digital transformation and automation are reshaping public administration, this research investigates the application of ubuntu, an African philosophy emphasizing community, shared humanity, and interconnectedness, to public sector reforms in Malawi. As Malawi navigates the challenges of modernizing its public administration, this study seeks to explore how the fusion of ubuntu values with digital reforms can enhance administrative resilience, inclusivity, and performance. It addresses three key questions: (1) How can ubuntu philosophy guide public sector reforms in Malawi amidst the integration of digital technologies? (2) What are the challenges and opportunities of merging ubuntu with modern digital reforms? (3) To what extent can a fusion of traditional and modern reform approaches enhance the resilience and performance of Malawi’s public administration?

Africa stands at a critical juncture in its administrative evolution, with digital advancements offering promises of enhanced efficiency, transparency, and service delivery. However, these changes also pose risks, such as exacerbating inequalities and alienating marginalized communities. Malawi faces the complex challenge of adopting technological innovations while maintaining its socio-cultural values, deeply rooted in ubuntu’s principles of solidarity and mutual care. This research contributes to the growing discourse on how African values can shape technological progress to ensure that reforms benefit not only state efficiency but also the well-being and empowerment of citizens, particularly those in underdeveloped regions.

The study is framed within the intersection of African philosophical thought and governance theories, using ubuntu as the guiding theoretical lens. Ubuntu’s principles of interconnectedness, collective responsibility, and human dignity are contrasted with theories of digital transformation and administrative resilience, particularly focusing on how automation reshapes governance structures. The analysis explores whether a hybrid approach—combining ubuntu with modern reformist ideals—can produce more robust and sustainable administrative systems across Africa.

A mixed-methods approach is employed in this study. Qualitative data will be gathered through semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders involved in public sector reforms in Malawi, including government officials, civil society leaders, and IT specialists. Focus group discussions will provide grassroots perspectives on the impact of digitalization. Quantitative data will be collected through surveys of public servants working within automated systems, assessing their experiences and attitudes towards these changes, particularly in relation to ubuntu values. Additionally, the study will analyze policy documents and reform strategies implemented by the Malawian government over the past decade.

The findings of this research will offer valuable insights for policymakers, public administrators, and civil society actors seeking to balance technological progress with the preservation of socio-cultural values, ultimately contributing to more inclusive, resilient, and effective public administration in Africa.

Nowadays, policy narratives are frequently used as a communication strategy by governments to persuade target populations and garner policy support. However, few studies have empirically examined whether and through what mechanisms policy narratives can promote citizens' compliance. To fill this gap, we use the case of urban renewal policy to conduct a 2 × 2 factorial survey experiment. We investigated whether and how narrative characters, narrative strategies, policy support, policy understanding, and community attachment affected citizens' compliance intentions regarding the policy on installing elevators in old residential communities. The results from a sample of 970 citizens in Beijing indicate that policy narratives are effective in strengthening citizens' compliance intentions, and this effectiveness is achieved through a mediating variable of policy support. Additionally, this study finds that policy understanding positively moderates the first-stage indirect effect of policy narratives on citizens' compliance, while community attachment negatively moderates the second-stage indirect effect of policy narratives on citizens' compliance. Furthermore, our findings suggest that, compared to community attachment, policy comprehension exerts a stronger moderating effect on mediating effect. The study also reveals the substitution effect between policy support and community attachment. The contributions and limitations are discussed at the end of the article.

Effective onboarding is crucial for integrating new civil servants into public administration (PA), facilitating their adaptation to the organizational culture and ensuring they can contribute meaningfully to their roles. The unique context and the complexity of PA, require a tailored approach to onboarding that emphasizes specific skill sets. This abstract explores the core skills required for a successful onboarding process in PA and how these skills impact new civil servants’ performance and retention.

One of the key skills necessary for a successful onboarding process is effective communication. Civil servants must navigate a variety of communication channels and engage with different stakeholders, including colleagues, superiors, and the public (Noblet & Rodwell, 2020, Bauer, 2010). Additionally, the ability to adapt to new structures, procedures, and workflows is critical because PA is characterized by complex hierarchies and legal frameworks, and new civil servants must quickly adjust to these elements to function effectively (Spencer, 2022, Van der Voet et al, 2016). Knowledge of regulatory and policy frameworks is also particularly important in ensuring compliance and avoiding administrative errors (Aubyn, Germeys, & De Gieter, 2020) and help them also understand the importance of public trust.

Technological proficiency is becoming increasingly important in PA as many government functions become digitized (Cordella & Tempini, 2021, Harris & Thomas 2016), so digital literacy is a key driver of efficiency and innovation in the public sector. Beyond technical skills, soft skills are also critical because PA relies heavily on collaboration and consensus-building and newly appointed civil servants must be equipped with the interpersonal skills needed to navigate this environment (Noblet & Rodwell, 2020). Ethical awareness is equally important, as civil servants are held to high standards of accountability and transparency (Aubyn et al., 2020, Cooper, 2012). So, issues such as building trust, strengthening teamwork –and virtual teamwork-, encouraging positive team interaction create trust (Larsen et al. 2020) and fairness among civil servants and cultivate psychological safety and error culture.

In addition to developing these key skills, onboarding programs should be designed to promote long-term civil servant’s retention, and job satisfaction. Ahmed et al. (2019) note that effective onboarding strategies that foster a sense of belonging and purpose can significantly reduce turnover rates among civil servants. Additionally innovative spirit and lifelong learning should be enhanced from the beginning of civil servants’ daily work.

In the article we will give some information about the procedure so far for the introduction of newly appointed civil servants followed by the Greek PA. By designing onboarding programs that address the competencies afore mentioned, PA can improve civil servant retention, job satisfaction, and overall performance, ultimately enhancing the quality of public service delivery.

Research Questions:

1. What core skills should be included in the onboarding process in PA for newly appointed civil servants?

2. How can PA better incorporate digital literacy and technological skills into the onboarding process?

3. What are the most effective onboarding practices for fostering innovative spirit, long-term retention and job satisfaction among civil servants in PA?