Inequality, Big Society, professional unemployment and other ‘lite bites’
Yesterday’s full English breakfast of a post on public service reform hasn’t elicited too many responses. I had promised to elaborate on some of its themes but I feel now like an over keen dinner party host trilling from the kitchen that ‘there’s plenty more if anyone wants seconds’ – impervious to the sound of the dog munching away at the firsts it has been surreptitiously fed by desperate guests.
So here instead are a few tasty titbits:
What shall we do with the redundant consultants?
First, a call for ideas: the news that the Sustainable Development Commission is to join the growing list of doomed quangos means that there will be even more intelligent people with skills in the general area of research, evaluation, communication and co-ordination coming into what is already a massively overcrowded market. There are thousands more people wanting to be consultants at just the time when public sector demand for consultants is likely to dive. So what is to become of these people? Is there some kind of link to the problem of who is going to organise the Big Society in disadvantaged communities. What kind of incentives might be used to encourage some of these talented, public spirited, professionals to offer their skills freely or very cheaply?
Can the Big Society get out of the Moral Maze?
Those who are interested in the Big Society debate – and the splendid Tessy Britton has about thirty people involved in an on-line conversation – may want to tune into the Moral Maze tonight (Radio 4 eight o’clock), which is exploring the Prime Minister’s big idea. Given the politics of the other panellists I suspect that for the purposes of the programme I may be press ganged into being a Big Society sceptic. But, however I perform, there are some great witnesses, including the ubiquitous Phillip Blond and Nick Pearce, the deeply wise former head of the Number Ten policy unit.
Agreeing to differ
Tomorrow we are hosting a debate between, on the one hand, Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett authors of ‘The Spirit Level’ with its argument that inequality screws up the whole of society and, on the other, researchers commissioned by the right of centre think tank, Policy Exchange, who say the whole thesis is deeply flawed.
In my role as chair I will be attempting to achieve what I described in last year’s annual lecture as a ‘transcendent’ moment in debate; when it is possible to identity what it is people actually disagree about. This in my experience is very rare as most political and policy debate comprises people making erroneous allegations about what the other side thinks. So I am hoping for more light than heat tomorrow. But given that supporters of both sides have apparently been rallying their troops it’s not going to be easy.
No related posts.
Comments
7 Comments on Inequality, Big Society, professional unemployment and other ‘lite bites’
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Liz Philpots on
Wed, 21st Jul 2010 4:05 pm
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Sarah Grant on
Wed, 21st Jul 2010 5:49 pm
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carl allen on
Thu, 22nd Jul 2010 10:39 am
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Sarah Grant on
Thu, 22nd Jul 2010 10:54 am
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carl allen on
Thu, 22nd Jul 2010 11:38 am
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Matthew Kalman on
Thu, 22nd Jul 2010 1:35 pm
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john jenkins on
Thu, 17th Mar 2011 3:00 pm
Sorry your feeling let down by the lack of response – it’s just that I (and perhaps others) am still trying to get my head around what Big Society will mean for me in my business (medical research charities) and personal life – while it is undoubtedly a good thing – it also seems to be flexing and morphing as I hear more.
So – keep up the good work (your blogposts are really helping to increase my understanding), thanks for the moral maze hint (perhaps it will morph into something more concrete for me?) and good luck refereeing !
You ask a pertinent question Matthew but I feel you are best placed to answer it.
What kind of incentives might be used to encourage you to offer your skills freely or very cheaply?
Leading by example?
BIT and BOB are two professional volunteers and great friends
BIT saids Lead by Example … no incentive needed as I am busy at being well off with time at my disposal (even though I have to sometimes make the time from my busy schedule)
BOB saids Rhetoric and Reality … Incentive needed as I am not well off and have time at my disposal but that time is now spent looking for opportunity to be well off (I spend all my time loooking as that is my priority)
BIT and BOB see no dilemma or contradiction and remain great friends.
Just to clarify Carl…..
BIT can’t commit to volunteer consistently because he’s too busy creating and maintaining his wealth from his priority in the private sector. His DIP into volunteering is to help his conscience at his privileged position – say he runs the bbq at a roundtable fundraiser
BOB can’t commit to volunteer consistently because he’s too busy trying to create wealth, get a job or appropriately train himself
The recipients of BIT and BOBs volunteering are very grateful for anything they can get because otherwise only the wealthy could access..hmm
Hello Sarah, BIT and BOB have been well trained in the art of balancing self-interest and active citizenship … as mentioned in the old compact on the relationship between the government and the voluntary/community sector.
It is ingrained in them to give, when they can, without being asked. Indeed their circle looks for causes to suport as a norm.
That is why BIT and BOB are self-described professional volunteers, with the professional having little to do with their privileged status in life.
Some are BITS and BOBS and others are umm, disinterested and incurious?
It’s useful to discern the most likely motivations we will come across for ‘Big Society’ volunteering.
A couple of years back the report ‘Painting the Town Green: How to Persuade People to be Environmentally Friendly’ (produced by WWF, Transport 2000, Friendsd of the Earth and others) used a basic Maslow-style segmentation to divide motivations into:
• Ethical living
• Smart Living
• Safe Living
To understand people’s motivations you’ve got to be this granular, at least – as the Ethical Living self-actualisers and the sustenance-driven ‘Safe Living’ folks are VERY different.
Using the ‘Ethical Living’ wording in a message targeted at the ‘Smart Living’ folks will fail completely.
I wrote a short online article about that report here:
http://www.integralstrategies.org/envirocommunication.html
It’s titled: ‘Ethical living – Smart Living – Safe Living’: how to target environmental communications’.
Matthew K
Hi all,
As someone who has worked in the field for 40 years, The consultants need to demonstrate their prowess to call themselves a consultant for Big society today.
To get volunteers to come out of their closets and start to motivate and take up issues and identify needs that only volunteers can, The consultant has to be able to show what and where they hae done before. The building of trust and the claim to leadership has to be earned. The process of demanding large commercial salaries to offer irrelevant or impractical advice and support, is not is what is wanted at the grass roots. Its real people, working alongside real people, on issues that matter and when payment is looked for the consultant has to take the risks and have their hand out last
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