Context

This research was prompted by the increased emphasis placed on training and development in the State sector by the current Government¹, and by concerns about the relative lack of information collected on training and development in the sector. This lack of information on training² was highlighted in the course of the policy work that led to State sector access to Skill New Zealand's Industry Training Fund. Some of the policy agencies involved suggested that it would be desirable to gather information on State sector training to better inform future policy development, and to allow evaluation of the effects of policy changes.

The State Services Commission (SSC) was also considering whether information on training should be included in its information gathering processes. This would increase its ability to provide advice to Government on the capability of the State sector, particularly the Public Service³.

This research examines some of the reasons for the current scarcity of information on training in the State sector, and aims to develop a framework of measures to gather information likely to be of interest to Government. It explores the purposes for which governments may have an interest in information on training, examines possible measures and associated measurement issues, and looks briefly at the benefits and costs of introducing the measures. The primary focus is on the requirements of the Government, but it is also intended that the framework should be useful for Public Service departments and other State sector agencies to use for their own purposes.

¹ The Labour-Alliance Coalition Government elected in the 1999 election.

² "Training" is used as shorthand for training and development throughout the paper, except where a particular emphasis on development is intended. The definition of training used is "all the various processes by which an individual develops the competencies required for current and future employment-related tasks" (see the section on Literature Review for discussion).

³ The Public Service comprises the 39 departments listed in the First Schedule to the State Sector Act. The State sector includes Public Service departments and other organisations defined as departments for the purposes of the Public Finance Act 1989, Offices of Parliament, State-owned enterprises, Crown entities and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. The SSC's legislative functions apply mainly within the Public Service.