Open Invitations for Filling Posts in the Public Sector (GR0021)

Introduction of an open system in the selection of executives serving for a fixed period of time in positions of responsibility in the public sector. This system will replace the current process of appointments to positions of increased responsibility. The system will include interventions in the following areas:
1.Institutional level: Establishment of an open selection process for executives. The process will define the minimum required qualifications and all the information regarding the selections will be publicly available.
2. Operational level:
- Proposal for an integrated process, including the selection of members of the Selection Committee, the publication of the call for interest in http://www.opengov.gr and the publicity of selection practices.
Draft law proposal.
3. Technical level:
- Collection and publication of data to the executive job market, as well as the internal job market. It will record all vacancies, the expiration date of the filled posts, the requirements of the post and the supervising entity.
- Extension of the Census database application

Commitment 3.1. Open public sector job posts

Commitment Text:

Introduction of an open system in the selection of executives serving for a fixed period of time in positions of responsibility in the public sector. This system will replace the current process of appointments to positions of increased responsibility. The system will include interventions in the following areas:

•       Institutional level: Establishment of an open selection process for executives. The process will define the minimum required qualifications and all the information regarding the selections will be publicly available.

•       Operational level: - Proposal for an integrated process, including the selection of members of the Selection Committee, the publication of the call for interest in http://www.opengov.gr and the publicity of selection practices. Draft law proposal.

•       Technical level: - Collection and publication of data to the executive job market, as well as the internal job market. It will record all vacancies, the expiration date of the filled posts, the requirements of the post and the supervising entity.

o   Extension of the Census database application

Milestones –Timescales

•       3.1.1 Regulatory interventions: Completion by the end of March 2015

•       3.1.2 Operational and technical changes: gradually until end of September 2015. A plan to implement changes will be drafted by the end of 2014, in order to gradually introduce the new system.

Responsible institution: Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reconstruction

Supporting institution(s): None

Start date:     July 2014          End date: September 2015

Commitment Aim:

This commitment aims to tackle deficiencies in public sector recruitment by establishing reforms to increase transparency and prevent favouritism in public appointments. A transparent and meritocratic system for selecting qualified candidates for high-level public sector jobs is an important accountability policy issue in Greece. As of October 2009, the http://www.opengov.gr website operates on an ad hoc basis when publishing public appointments of high-ranking positions (e.g. managers, board of directors members, directors of public entities, and some consultant positions). However, this operation is neither mandatory nor institutionally enforced. Therefore, all open recruitment calls on the opengov.gr website and the selection process itself depend on the political will of the relevant minister or authority. To overcome this voluntary operation, the government planned to introduce a legally binding open system for selecting executives, implement operational changes regarding the selection process and technical changes regarding advertising each position.

Status

Midterm: Not started

Greece had not begun implementation by the midterm review and open calls still operated in a limited and unpredictable fashion. The government only published a small subset of high-ranking positions with open calls of interest. Most appointment processes remained opaque.

End of term: Not started

According to information gathered at a meeting with the interministerial OGP government team, the government has taken no further action in implementing the commitment.^{[Note 24: “Government Interministerial OGP” (meeting, the Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reconstruction, 31 Aug. 2016).]}

Did it open government?

Public accountability: Did not change

Ever since its inception in 2009, open calls for recruiting high-ranking public sector positions operated on an ad hoc basis and were solely dependent on the political will of each minister.  Introducing a comprehensive regulatory framework, along with appropriate procedures, could have had a transformative impact in selecting high-level personnel by attracting expertise found beyond the public sector. Attracting experts via a transparent meritocratic process will aid in depoliticizing the public sector. The ad hoc process of releasing open calls was evident from 2014-2016, when only fifteen calls were posted online.^{[Note 25: See “Home>Invitations,” Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reconstruction Public Administration and Local Government National Centre Documentation Unit and Innovation, http://www.opengov.gr/home/category/invitations/.]} Since there was no progress in implementing the commitment, the Openwise IRM research team conclude it did not change the status quo or improve open governance.

Carried forward?

The third Greek action plan includes a modified version of this commitment. Commitment 7, “National Register of Line Managers of the Public Administration,” aims to apply a modern system for selecting line managers at the top of the administrative hierarchy in the public sector.