Data held and harvested by government can be used to take chunks out of departments’ operating costs, Stuart Watson learned at a CSW round table. Pic: Paul Heartfield

Cornerstone research recently investigated what people look for – and more importantly, prioritise – when considering a career in the civil service. Here are some of the findings

The DWP now assesses 95% of new child maintenance cases accurately, the NAO has found

Peter Hennessy interviews former MI5 chief Eliza Manningham-Buller about the three decades she spent tackling the Soviet threat, the IRA and Islamist terrorism

New York City’s Department of Probation (NYCDOP) wished to carry out an IT re-engineering initiative to enable better collaboration with internal and external stakeholders. It, therefore, decided to implement a Reusable Case Management System (RCMS) that would be the pivot of its IT landscape. Clearly, the RCMS had to handle future growth of the agency and function alongside existing and planned systems.

Julian Kelly is the government’s first ever director-general of public spending and finance. He tells Winnie Agbonlahor about his plans for strengthening the profession

A monthly interview with people who've crossed organisational and sectoral boundaries to join a new working world.

The director of public prosecutions, Alison Saunders, started in the job just as phone hacking and sex abuse trials put her organisation under the media spotlight. She tells CSW about a turbulent first year leading the Crown Prosecution Service. Photo by Mark Weeks

The days of having a job for life are long gone. Research has indicated that on average people will have seven careers in their lifetime and whilst the need to move on to a fresh challenge isn’t surprising, are some organisations missing a trick? Research carried out by Cornerstone OnDemand across Europe found that over three quarters of organisations (77 percent) understand that internal recruitment is critical; however, 54 percent do less than a third of their recruitment from existing talent. So why the disconnect?

Philip Rutnam explains his love for this historic cultural meeting point

Merrick Willis, the outgoing chief executive of the Charity for Civil Servants, tells CSW about his organisation’s work to support struggling officials – and the scepticism that he encounters among Whitehall departments and senior managers

Austerity has transformed SCS recruitment. Winnie Agbonlahor finds that departments are now looking more in than out, and shaking it all about. Illustration: Matt Kenyon

As the government’s chief operating officer Stephen Kelly returns to the IT industry, he tells Matt Ross that the civil service is being transformed by changing systems, inspirational leaders – and ‘the great reformer’

The women leading the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman and the Local Government Ombudsman are calling for their organisations to be merged and strengthened, making life easier for service users. Winnie Agbonlahor meets them

As Whitehall looks to the cloud, how do those on the ground mitigate the risks? A recent round table explored the issue, as Samera Owusu Tutu reports.

He may have lost a referendum but Alex Salmond is far from beaten. 

A monthly interview with people who've crossed organisational and sectoral boundaries to join a new working world.

CSW reviews the latest release from The Public Management and Leadership Series 

Bronwyn Hill explains why she loves going to her rowing club every weekend – and she hasn’t picked a genteel West London group! 

Vincent Belliveau, senior vice president and general manager EMEA at Cornerstone discusses the importance of onboarding in supporting both employee engagement and retention

The government’s chief scientific adviser and head of the science and engineering profession, Sir Mark Walport, tells CSW about his priorities in the role

Whatever the result of the next General Election, the UK will operate a new kind of government after 2015.

Sir Jonathon Porritt has been an environmental campaigner for 40 years – including nine spent working directly with civil servants. He tells Winnie Agbonlahor why, despite his disappointment with the ‘greenest government ever’, he has reasons to be optimistic

As the civil service gears up to meet the challenges of 21st century government, new skills and capabilities are vital. Yet in a time of restrained public spending, attracting and  retaining skilled employees has never been so challenging.