Recommendation 6

The public sector needs more of the right people to deliver the government’s ambitions for the digital transformation of the state. There are 100,000 digital and data professionals but not enough are in leadership roles, which are too often filled by generalists. Enthusiasm from non-experts at the top and insufficient skills at the coalface is a dangerous combination. Bringing more of the right skills into the public sector and ensuring that those in leadership roles have the necessary digital expertise will require reforms to recruitment and retention mechanisms, including pay, as well as a broader process of cultural transformation. Digital skills should not be treated as an optional extra, but as core to delivery in a modern state. (Conclusion, Paragraph 31)