Training Program: From Practice to Theory (of Change)

In Argentina, the National Public Administration Institute (INAP) provides training for all civil servants as they enter public service and during their careers. With a view to imparting knowledge that will further improve its educational offer, INAP’s National Directorate of Accreditation and Academic Evaluation set out to evaluate the impact of the Citizen Service Training Program aimed at public servants providing assistance and advice to citizens in all APN cross-cutting areas. This project was selected as the winner of the First CAF Impact Assessment Call for #BetterManagement among more than 120 applicants.

One of the activities carried out during the impact assessment was a theory of change workshop with the INAP team, which constructed the program's causal chain by defining the problem, inputs, activities, deliverables, intermediate results and impact (see Figure 1).

Figure 1. Theory of Change of the Citizen Service Training Program

This helped analyze—based on information collected during the training—the conditions for implementation that could favor or limit the impact of the program.

• Problem: Citizen service in government agencies is poor. Based on citizen satisfaction surveys for service provided by public institutions where the assessment was implemented, we note that the average degree of satisfaction with service is greater than 8 (on a scale of 1 to 10). This could restrict the scope for training improvement.
• Inputs and activities: Identification of competencies of officials providing public service and the specific needs of agencies to design relevant training according to job descriptions; curriculum design and teacher selection. Although the training programs were designed based on a diagnosis of the demands of jurisdictions, the offer did not necessarily fit the needs of all institutions. The surveys on officials’ satisfaction with courses, and class observations, found that the contents of some modules are not novel or do not fit the type of public service of the participating institution.
• Deliverables: Officials effectively attend courses and receive training. One of the key assumptions is that agencies value training and authorize their officials to attend face-to-face modules and devote some of their time to planned activities. Of the three institutions that were planned to participate in the evaluation, training was possible in one. Thus, it is also important to organize training committees, dates and schedules in a way that does not affect the operation of service offices. This was ensured through coordination of INAP and the institution. Even with authorization of their superiors, guarantees must be furnished that officials will attend courses, complete modules, and engage with training. Participation rate was very high (98%) and approval rate for the four courses was 77%. Teacher quality, peer dynamics, organization of training actions and quality of materials are important issues. Overall, the best-rated feature was tutor evaluation.
• Intermediate results: Officials are expected to build their capacities, gain knowledge of citizen service processes, procedures, regulations and strategies, understand their role in public administration, and be happier in their jobs. Officials must also be able to transfer knowledge and skills, values and attitudes to their institutions and their jobs; and conditions must be put in place within agencies to that end. The methodological strategies used included role playing, analysis of problem situations proposed by students, recognition of incorrect practices in specific situations and rethinking the discourse according to service guidelines. This elicited a positive response from the participants. However, some officials made assessments of the inconsistencies between the course and the guidelines of the agency’s authorities.
• Impact: The ultimate goal is to improve the quality of citizen service in government agencies. For the purposes of the evaluation of the Citizen Service Training Program, this was measured through citizen satisfaction surveys, focused on the quality of service provided by officials.