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DPMC has one overall outcome and four contributing outcomes. This section describes our outcomes, the range of operational factors and influences that we have to take into account, our strategies and activities, who we work with, and how we assess whether we are achieving our outcomes.
The overall outcome that DPMC works to achieve is:
To achieve our overall outcome, we provide the continuity of constitutional and administrative services that helps maintain New Zealand’s strong parliamentary democracy. One of our roles is to be the “constitutional and institutional glue” that holds the system together; another is to be the “oil” that allows the free flow of information, advice and policy for government decision making.
Our high-level outcome is also the responsibility of many other parts of the government system, including ministers and the public service as a whole. Along with the two other central agencies – Treasury and the SSC – DPMC is responsible for providing the leadership that enables the public service to carry out the business of government efficiently, effectively and collectively. DPMC works at the point of intersection where ministers, agencies and advice streams come together at the Cabinet table – ensuring that the final decisions of the government have been given effective public-service support at a departmental level.
DPMC has identified four contributing outcomes that it seeks to achieve. They are:
These contributing outcomes overlap one another in various ways – with some DPMC business units contributing to several different outcomes. But the ways in which DPMC “makes a difference” can be seen from separately identifying each of these outcomes and considering how DPMC works towards them. Each is discussed in detail under the relevant contributing outcome, see Contributing Outcomes.
The present government established six goals to guide the public sector in achieving sustainable development:
The DPMC’s overall outcome clearly supports the government’s goal to “maintain trust in government and provide strong social services”. Its contributing outcomes support this goal and also contribute to other government goals.
DIAGRAM 1: DPMC's Place in New Zealand's System of Government
DPMC services the central actors, processes and decision-making machinery of the executive branch of government. Its key roles are:
DPMC’s operating environment has become increasingly complex in recent years. The restructuring of the electoral system, and the consequences of coalition and minority governments is making policy management and the co-ordination of decision-making processes more challenging. There are now much greater expectations within government – as well as from the general public, stakeholders and political allies – about who is to be consulted on policy making and at what stages of the political process.
In this environment, an increasingly important role for DPMC is to take account of links with other areas of government policy and to consider the longer-term implications of particular policies.
Each of the three central agencies has differing but complementary roles in developing effective outcomes for the public service as a whole. The Treasury seeks to improve the effective and efficient use of state resources and regulatory powers and to improve decision-making and performance-management systems for the state sector. The SSC focuses on producing a high-performing state sector by promoting the development of senior managers and effective public-management systems in the public service.
DPMC’s emphasis is on effective support for the decision-making processes of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. The aim is to ensure that the elected government and its administrative agencies can design and deliver policies and services that improve the lives of citizens, within a framework of stable constitutional government. Diagram 1 above shows DPMC’s areas of responsibility and the various policy and information flows through the system of executive government.
The common purpose of the three central agencies is to create a public-management system that facilitates a high-performing state sector. Treasury and SSC have developed joint protocols for working together with departments. DPMC contributes to the work of the Officials’ Policy Committee, which helps provide a more whole-of-government approach on issues by removing obstacles to collaboration between state-sector agencies. Senior managers at the three central agencies have formed a State Sector Performance Group to provide more collaborative direction for all three agencies.
The announcement in March 2005 of the Development Goals for the State Services is an example of the three central agencies working together to create a state sector that is as effective as possible. The development goals are performance aspirations for the state services – with the overall goal being to create “a system of world-class professional state services serving the government of the day and meeting the needs of New Zealanders”. The SSC is the lead central agency for this initiative, but the DPMC will play a key role in helping to implement the development goals that relate to networking, co-ordination and the accessibility of state services.
There are no objective overall measures of “good government” currently available. Indices and survey data on measures such as the transparency of government policy, level of human development, honesty of public officials, lack of political corruption, and so on are available from a range of international sources, but none of these are directly applicable to the specialised nature of DPMC’s outcomes and activities.
In terms of performance indicators, DPMC relies on a number of standard quantitative and qualitative measures that have been developed for its Statement of Forecast Service Performance. Both types of data relate closely to the department’s key servicing functions, and provide measures of satisfaction about the services provided to our key customers (the Governor-General, the Prime Minister and Cabinet) or statistical data on levels of achievement reached. The measures chosen provide assurance that these services, as part of the DPMC’s outputs, are being provided at acceptable levels – and that because these outputs feed directly into the department’s four contributing outcomes they also are being achieved satisfactorily.
Each year DPMC conducts evaluations of some of its activities. For example, any response to an actual security event involving ODESC (Officials’ Committee for Domestic and External Security Coordination) is evaluated to identify areas for organisational improvement. Counter-terrorism exercises are independently evaluated and improvement action plans are prepared as a result of the evaluation. The department’s information-systems security was independently audited in 2004.
These evaluations provide an independent check that systems, processes and activities are of an acceptable standard – and provide opportunities for improvement and learning within DPMC.
Achieving DPMC’s outcomes depends on the work of other departments and agencies. This has been discussed in the context of the interaction with other central agencies but it also applies across the public service. The extent of DPMC’s contribution or impact varies among its different contributing outcomes and business units.
Rather than being a mechanistic result of particular outputs that can be sourced directly to one department, outcomes provide a strong signal of where the government is heading over the medium to long term. They can be seen as a “progress report” on the effects of government interventions that allows the government to assess (in broad terms) whether it is achieving its aims and where it needs to put in greater effort.
Many of DPMC’s specialised co-ordination and centre-of-government functions are not the kind of activities that have obvious alternative outputs for delivering them. By their very nature, they are specialised services that need to be delivered by dedicated units free from the distractions of other tasks and responsibilities.
There seem to be obvious synergies from having all centre-of-government functions under the same umbrella, with the Prime Minister, Cabinet and the Governor-General all being advised and serviced by one agency. The cost-effectiveness of DPMC’s current service functions is difficult to analyse, as there are no obvious alternative arrangements to compare them against. DPMC’s activities – including their cost effectiveness – are subject to the scrutiny of the Auditor-General and Parliamentary select committees. The annual Budget round and regular feedback from key stakeholders provide other means of assessing DPMC’s cost effectiveness.
Chart 1: Outcome and Planning Framework
