Policy 3: Policy Formulation and Advice

Description

This webinar gives you the confidence and skills to use critical thinking and different models and techniques to formulate policy options for decision-makers. Through a case study and discussion, you will explore creative problem-solving and policy formulation. Our facilitators bring real-world experience in public policy and insights to help you build your skills. You will also discuss how to best communicate your advice.

Certificate in Policy and Governance

This course is part of the Certificate in Policy and Governance offered by the institute. While there are no formal prerequisites for this course, we highly recommend that you consider taking the preceding courses or familiarizing yourself with their content. This background knowledge will greatly enhance your learning experience. Please be aware that the instructor may not revisit these earlier topics in order to allocate ample time for the current material.

Learning Objectives:

• Learn how conventional analysis can be supported by behavioural economic insights to improve the design and implementation of public policy. 

• Explore and practice how concepts such as status quo bias, default options, loss aversion, anchoring and saliency bias can be used to “nudge” citizens toward better policy choices. 

• Learn how governments can recognize behavioural biases that commonly affect policymakers and guard against these weaknesses.

Core Skills:

• Understand the fundamentals of policy analysis and the formulation of policy options.
• Learn about different ways of thinking–critical thinking and emotionally intelligent thinking–to understand and analyze policy issues.
• Understand how models can discipline policy thinking.
• Explore ways of comparing options for policy action.
• Learn how to communicate your analysis to decision-makers.

Duration:

• 3 hours, including brief intervals to ensure continuous engagement and learning absorption.

Facilitators

Catherine Waters is the Manager of the Learning Lab with the Institute on Governance. She has extensive experience as a consultant, researcher, and instructor/facilitator in the areas of public management, public policy, organizational development, and corporate governance. Catherine has a special interest in the areas of modernizing governance, citizen engagement and democratic participation, and Aboriginal governance. Catherine has co-authored articles in a number of policy journals. In the area of professional development and life-long learning, she developed and delivered distance learning for the Government of Nunavut and the Certified Management Accountants to expand access to training opportunities to a wider group of public servants.

Catherine teaches in Carleton University’s MA program in Public Policy and Administration, on Public Management and Labour Relations & Collective Bargaining.

Catherine previously worked in London U.K. as a Senior HR Manager for British Telecommunications plc, focusing on international business development in the US and EU and labor relations. Particular areas of interest included the integration of international joint ventures, organizational change, and professional development and training.

Catherine holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and French literature (Honours) from the University of Victoria, a Masters in Public Policy and Administration from Carleton University and an MSc in Labour Economics (With Distinction) from the London School of Economics.

As an IOG instructor, Catherine has provided custom training for various ministries in the Government of Ontario, including the Ministry of Transportation, and board training for Ontario agencies, boards and commissions.

Linda Savoie, after a somewhat dispersed early career that includes time as a military officer, an aircraft mechanic, a lawyer, an airline manager and a museum educator, Linda stumbled upon the federal public service in the mid-90s.

There she discovered opportunities to influence policy development and implementation in areas of interest such as climate change, civic engagement, and gender equality. For some 25 years, whether at Transport Canada, the Privy Council Office, Canadian Heritage, Status of Women Canada, or Library and Archives Canada, Linda worked closely, as an executive, with Deputy Ministers, Ministers, and political staff.

While all challenges were interesting, she is particularly thankful for having been able to explore the power of partnerships and alliances in advancing gender equality and the role of libraries and archives in community vitality. Since her retirement in 2022, when not skiing or cycling, she continues to serve as Past Chair of the Carlington Community Health Center and assists the board of a new foundation in developing its governance.