The History of the PSSN
Apolitical Over the past decade, the PSSN has attracted senior government officials from around the world. Senior officials from multilateral institutions such as the OECD, the World Bank, NESTA and the Asian Development Bank as well as the private sector have also contributed to the Annual Retreat, offering their strategic expertise to the public sector, as well as learning about the nature of public sector strategy.
2010
First International Public Sector Strategy Workshop
LONDON
2011
Second International Public Sector Strategy Workshop
ABU DHABI
2012
Third International Public Sector Strategy Workshop
SEOUL
2013
The Uniqueness of Small CountryStrategies
ABU DHABI
In partnership with Chatham House
2016
Effective Governance in a Strategically Complex World
OXFORD
In partnership with Salzburg Global Seminar and Apolitical
2017
How Can the Public Sector Excel Under Changing Dynamics?
SALZBURG
2018
Mechanics for the Future: How Can Governments Transform Themselves?
SALZBURG
2019
Agility for an Accelerating World: Can Governments Keep Up?
SALZBURG
Country partners: Australian Public Service, Privy Council Office of Canada, Irish Public Service and Civil Service College Singapore
2020-2022
During the pandemic, meetings took place online, including network exchanges of post-pandemic and long-term strategic planning with representatives from Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the OECD.
2023
Annual Strategic Foresight Retreat: Strategy and Implementation in a Permanent Polycrisis
LONDON
2024
Annual Strategic Foresight Retreat
SALZBURG
What's been achieved?
PSSN has developed thematically and expanded in size since 2010. Whilst changing every year, PSSN has always offered the opportunity for senior public servants to interact informally with their cross-sectoral peers. This has proved to be an invaluable testing ground for creative ideas and new ways of thinking which can be applied to daily work in serving government.
The Network has allowed members to sustain contact well beyond the end of the Foresight Retreat. It is now a network of high-level government officials, who come together annually to consider the disruptive forces shaping the next 10 or 20 years.
From exploring how to future-proof society in the face of automation to upholding the social contract in the 21st century, examining the impact of migration flows on government policy and defining a core set of attributes for successful central units, the PSSN has proved to be an invaluable testing ground for a discussion of new ideas. Conclusions are summarised in a report after the seminar, which is made publicly available for interested readers.
