The country’s first Continuous Improvement in Public Services MSc

The country’s first Continuous Improvement in Public Services MSc is launching at The University of Buckingham following a request by the Institute of Continuous Improvement in Public Service (ICiPS) to set up the course.

The aim of the part-time Masters course, which will be delivered by world-leading Continuous Improvement (CI) in public service thinkers, is to help make changes from the bottom up in Government organisations.

Modules will be developed in the workplace for the course, which will be based around learning by developing.

The course came about when a member of ICiPS contacted John Bicheno, Director for the university’s MSc in Lean Leadership, asking if it was possible to set up a Master’s course in Continuous Improvement.

John Bicheno said: “They liked our hands-on teaching style and our system of executive placements. There were a number of meetings with ICiPS about content. Our aim is to create leaders who will make a difference to the public sector.”

It is hoped that the course will bring about improved efficiency in areas such as hospitals, local councils, criminal justice, work and pensions.

Programme director Dr Pauline Found added: “We’ve had lots of interest from a whole range of government departments. If we were to fast forward ten years I’d like to think that public services will be transformed and we would like to play a part in bringing about this change.”

There will be mentoring on the Vanguard Method – a system based on helping service organisations change from a conventional ‘command-and-control’ design to a systems design.

The two-year MSc, which begins in April, is designed for practising managers working, or aspiring to work, in the area of service operations. The aim is to improve the performance of their organisations.