Monthly Archives: October 2010

If between 490,000 and 700,000 public sector jobs go, will redundant public servants find jobs in the private sector? Even they could create the jobs, would private sector firms be willing to employ former public sector workers? There is, to say the least, … Continue reading →

We had a few disagreements about the power of social media at last week’s HR Unconference. I said that I don’t think Web 2.0 and the social networks it has spawned will cause a revolution – at least, not a revolution in the … Continue reading →

In his call to arms for the Big Society, Nat Wei harks back to Regency and Georgian Britain, when social reformers emerged to set up the cooperatives, friendly societies, schools and housing charities that provided welfare during the nineteenth and early … Continue reading →

Reflecting on this yesterday, there is a further point I meant to make but didn’t. The Observer’s ‘secret civil servant’ has beaten me to it this morning. Another problem with reforming the public sector is that it is so interdependent. You can’t do … Continue reading →

Some bloke is ranting on about this on the Guardian cuts blog. Please leave any comments over at the Guardian. You’ll have to register but it’s free.

I think I’d get on well with Rowena Crawford from the Institute for Fiscal Studies. We certainly share a similar gallows humour. Her presentation after the June budget had a chainsaw on the front cover and her analysis of the spending review has … Continue reading →

Everybody knows that the NHS has too many managers and that their numbers are spiralling out of control, right? Well not according to Dr Stephen Black of PA Consulting. He reckons that the government’s target for cutting management will leave the … Continue reading →

If you are at all interested in public finances (and if you’re not, you should be) you could do worse than visit Christopher Chantrill’s site UK Public Spending. It’s packed with useful data and some tools for manipulating the data … Continue reading →

A few years ago, when I told a friend that I was running training sessions for executives on how to use management consultants, he thought I was having him on. “You’re selling consultancy on how to use consultants?” he said, “Please … Continue reading →

Without looking, can you guess which EU country has the lowest gender pay gap? I put this question out earlier on Twitter and most people suggested the Netherlands or one of the Scandinavian countries; a reasonable assumption given yesterday’s news from the … Continue reading →