How's Your Political Acumen?
IPSL, Inside Public Sector Leadership, is a unique online mentoring program designed to explore the unwritten protocols and grey areas that leaders in today’s public service need to navigate in an environment of increasingly centralized decision making, a stronger political service, permanent campaigning, big data and a 24/7 news cycle. This is the practical wisdom at the heart of Political Acumen.
The IPSL Master Mentor faculty come from a distinguished cadre of former Canadian provincial, national and municipal politicians and bureaucrats, who are excited to ‘pay-it-forward’ and share their experience and hard won lessons. They are joined by top academic and media experts sharing their knowledge and perspectives on what it takes to succeed in government today. |
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JUST WHAT IS POLITICAL ACUMEN?
Dr Jared Wesley’s definition of Political Acumen from his book: The Public Servant’s Guide to Government in Canada:
Political Acumen encompasses:
Dr Peter Constantinou, professor at York University, describes Political Acuity as . . . “an understanding and knowing that means you can anticipate future events and individual behaviours in a nuanced context.”
Dr Wesley and Dr Constantinou are Master Mentors with the IPSL program and will be speaking in Module 1 on January 8th, 2021. The terms, Political Acumen, and Political Acuity have the same meaning and are used interchangeably in the IPSL program by different experts.
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Everything a public servant does has an impact. The more effectively the public service operates, the better it can serve the public. There is always a need to improve confidence and trust between public sector entities and with the public.
Dr Jared Wesley’s definition of Political Acumen from his book: The Public Servant’s Guide to Government in Canada:
Political Acumen encompasses:
- Broad knowledge of internal and external power structures, both within and across government;
- Refined situational awareness when it comes to the political, economic and social environment
- Soft skills in diplomacy, including strong emotional and social intelligence, and skill in persuasion and collaborative negotiations; and
- A firm ethical foundation, grounded in the value of the public service.
Dr Peter Constantinou, professor at York University, describes Political Acuity as . . . “an understanding and knowing that means you can anticipate future events and individual behaviours in a nuanced context.”
Dr Wesley and Dr Constantinou are Master Mentors with the IPSL program and will be speaking in Module 1 on January 8th, 2021. The terms, Political Acumen, and Political Acuity have the same meaning and are used interchangeably in the IPSL program by different experts.
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Everything a public servant does has an impact. The more effectively the public service operates, the better it can serve the public. There is always a need to improve confidence and trust between public sector entities and with the public.
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PROGRAM TESTIMONIAL
“It is a rare opportunity to access such a well-structured series on leadership in the public service, not just the theory we see in typical programs, but the practical and exciting/gritty reality of what public service leadership is really about.” David Morhart Former Deputy Minister, Service Alberta, and, Past President, Institute of Public Administration of Canada. 
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INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL ACUMEN
What is it and why is it so important? Definition | Political Acumen| Political Acuity | Importance
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EXECUTIVE ROLES IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR
Who Does What and When? Expectations | Nature of Work | Skills | Attributes |
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FROM ELECTION TO OPERATIONAL REALITY
From Planning to Governing Process | Trust | Roles | Clarity | Relationships |
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NAVIGATING THE HALLS
Relationships, Mechanics and Information Flow in Government Challenges | Connections | Communication | Structure |
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POLITICAL PRESENCE
Speaking Truth To Power Courage | Trust | Difficult Conversations | Culture |
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SITUATIONAL AWARENESS
Scanning, Anticipating and Judgement. Information | Trust | Networks | Acumen | Relationships|
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ISSUES MANAGEMENT
The Inside-Out Story Media | Complexity | Trust | Timeliness | Relationships|
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THE MEDIA & PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT
The Outside-In Story Channels | Social Licence | Framing | Transparency |
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DIVERSITY & INCLUSION
Working with Empathy, Trust, and Respect Unconcious Bias | Empathy | Communication | Awareness|
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ETHICS & INTEGRITY
The Cornerstone of Good Governance Authenticity | Impartiality | Standards | Role of Culture
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CONFLICT COMPETENCE
The Cycle and the Solutions Trust | Psychological Safety |
Compromise | Anticipation | |
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CAREER BLINDSPOTS
Overcoming What's Holding You Back Networking | Feedback | Wilfull Blindness | Recovery |
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THE FUTURE OF INTERGOVERNMENTAL COLLABORATION
Perspectives on a post Covid-19 Future Federal | Municipal | Provincial & Territorial |
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COURSE FORMATThe IPSL Master Class in Political Acumen shares conversations between former public sector leaders, politicians, academics and media experts about what it takes to be successful as a public sector leader in Canada .
The program is designed around 12 key modules that focus on an aspect of political acumen. Each module begins with a panel conversation between 3 Master Mentors on our faculty. The panel style is conversational and interactive using story telling as a means of demonstrating concepts and reinforcing behaviours. Registered participants will also have access to an extensive Resource Room filled with articles, links, podcast interviews, video clips, and an E-HandBook companion guide designed to reinforce and enrich your learning experience. IPSL MASTER CLASS HIGHLIGHTS:
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WHO SHOULD ATTEND?Public Sector Leaders from all backgrounds, experiences, and educational levels will benefit from participating in the IPSL Political Acumen Master Class. Program content is relevant to Federal, Provincial and Municipal leaders across Canada.
Our alumni tell us after taking the IPSL program, they feel more confident, more inspired and more effective in their jobs as a result.
"My team attended as a group which meant we were able to discuss our learnings after each session. This approach added another layer of value to the program and allowed us to sharpen our skills even further. We continue to remind each other of advice we heard in these sessions.” IPSL Program Alumni |
Meet Your Master Mentor Faculty
Master Mentors who have been there. . .
Your Master Mentor presenters come from a distinguished cadre of former Canadian provincial, national and municipal politicians and bureaucrats, who are excited to ‘pay-it-forward’ and share their experience and hard won lessons. You'll also hear from top academic and media experts sharing their knowledge and perspectives on Political Acumen and what it takes to succeed in government today and tomorrow.
Your Master Mentor presenters come from a distinguished cadre of former Canadian provincial, national and municipal politicians and bureaucrats, who are excited to ‘pay-it-forward’ and share their experience and hard won lessons. You'll also hear from top academic and media experts sharing their knowledge and perspectives on Political Acumen and what it takes to succeed in government today and tomorrow.
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"The lessons really helped fill in my 'swiss cheese gaps' of knowledge." IPSL Program Alumni
"Making a mid-career change into the public service requires learning a unique culture that doesn’t have parallels in the private sector and leaves one with a lot of questions. This course goes a long way towards answering many of them, even ones you would never have thought of asking. I feel I was able to benefit from the hard won wisdom and experience of the presenters." IPSL Program Alumni
"I’ve been participating in this course and just wanted to pass on how excellent I think it is. This is the kind of highly practical and relevant real world advice that is missing from much management training. I appreciate how finely tuned the material is to the challenge of executive leadership in the public service. The examples are great. Thank you and keep it coming."
IPSL Program Alumni |
"As an aspiring ADM, and someone who wants to contribute to the best of my ability as an Executive Director, I can say that I was able to make use of the advice I heard after each session. I am more confident now as I interact with those at the political level because I was able to gain insight into what senior executives were thinking in real life situations. I recommend this program to those who are interested in a behind-the-scenes look at how this work is done by those with mastery in what to watch out for.”
IPSL Program Alumni "I think the presenters were fabulous and their stories are super interesting and informative. Much of it was a great reminder of how things “really” work." IPSL Program Alumni
"The course was excellent – I like the dynamic of having a 3 mentor panel with different views and perspectives – either because they had been in different positions or just different situations. Including a politicians perspective was super interesting to me." IPSL Program Alumni
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