The public sector across Australia and around the world is navigating a period of complex transition and intense transformation, largely driven by the impact of successive and relentless waves of digital and technology innovation.

At the eye of that storm are public sector leaders whose capacity to combine competence, empathy and trust at the core of their performance is being tested to new limits of both opportunity and risk.

Central to that task is the way leaders turn up, how they show themselves to their colleagues, to the people they lead and - most of all - to the people and communities they serve.

In ways that, for some, can be challenging and uncomfortable, and which ask deep questions about generations of “good practice” in government and public administration, leaders are coming to grips with a new imperative to match their professional persona with their humanity.

This research, which explores how public leaders are fashioning their digital reputation, is a timely reminder of a mindset and toolkit which is becoming an indispensable part of a public leader’s core strength.

But these are not fringe interests or a passing curiosity. These are powerful new ways for leaders to drive big impacts on talent, performance and results.

Two observations from the research findings are worth bearing in mind.

Firstly, getting this right matters. The report notes that “leaders who use LinkedIn to share their human face, voice and values generate a stronger response than their peers.”

Just bear in mind that the 100+ leaders analysed command a LinkedIn audience of almost 170,000. Not a bad community of influence and practice.

And secondly, wrangling their digital reputation, in this case through the purposeful use of LinkedIn, activates a powerful chain of cause and effect: “Clarity drives confidence. Confidence drives authenticity. Authenticity drives connection. Connection drives performance.“

Authenticity, connection, performance.
It’s a powerful leadership trifecta at a time when the public sector is looking for better ways to build trust and confidence in its work and contribution.
The stakes couldn’t be higher.

A focus on integrity and ethics, on sustained and rising technical competence and on better ways to engage with the people and communities they serve are at a high - and rising - premium across government and the public sector.

What this research suggests is that at the heart of that challenge is how to mobilise the humanity of public leadership. We know it works and we know what sometimes gets in the way.

Martin Stewart-Weeks
Founder, Public Purpose