Post-new public management, civil service training and development : insights for the Korean civil service

Leaders in the public sector face continuous challenges in improving the quality of public service and policy efficacy to respond to the challenges of sustainable development, global competitiveness, and democratic governance in the post-New Public Management era. In this context, how have advanced industrialized countries invested in civil service training programs to maintain civil service competency to strengthen sustainability and global competitiveness? How have these countries reformed civil service training programs under the continuous pressure of government reforms in this era of austerity, uncertainty, and complexity of governance? The purpose of this research is to examine these questions by conducting an exploratory, comparative study of the civil service training programs of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland. Based on the findings of this research, the paper addresses the implications of the findings for reforming civil service training programs in South Korea, and it proposes directions for reform in the governance context of South Korea