Ambode challenges workers on modernised, innovative public service

The Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode on Thursday challenged workers in the state’s employ to be more innovative and embrace attitude of modernizing governance.

Ambode spoke at a two-day training for workers in Ikeja, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria, saying that his administration was poised to examine those areas, processes, institutions and practices that needed to be overhauled and remodeled in order to achieve this end.

The governor, who was represented by the Commissioner for Establishments, Training and Pensions, Dr. Benson Oke said that the State envisioned a situation where the civil service met contemporary global standards and reasonable expectations of the citizens.

“From a citizen and governmental perspective, the key expectations from a 21st century Lagos State Public Service are the ability to transplant private sector-tested management theories into the public service, realistic and practically-grounded policy formulation and execution, the deepening of technical knowledge and utilisation of modern tools.

“The appreciation of the need to focus on details and importantly, the prioritisation of productivity on individual levels in terms of time utilisation and work modalities becomes imperative,” Ambode said.

The governor stated that agile management model called for public service institutions to be ready and open to integrating contemporary leadership principles and management theories into its modes of operations.

“The essence of the training is to fill the gap between the actual and the expected. When you want the best of your staff, you have to continuously move them from the current state to a higher level of production.”

He explained that the training would guarantee empowerment of the participants towards building accountability, encourage diversity of ideas and promote continuous improvement.

Speaking at the workshop, one of the facilitators, Prof. Mike Ikupolati said that Agile Management Model was the breaking down of a complex situation into units so as to make it more relevant to the people, stressing that the training would enable the participants to be more relevant to their immediate environment in order to develop the State further.

“Agile Management Model is about making the people that are ruling to be at the centre of your policy model. And when you do training like this, it will improve the attitudinal change of the staff, enhance thier skills and broadened thier knowledge so that policies of the government can get to the grassroot.” he said

Ikupolati said that human capacity development was a path to achieving a political goal and commended the state government for organising such training which is the key to optimal performance.