Ottawa’s frequent use of consulting firms such as McKinsey is “inevitable” given the underfunding in the retention of specialists within the federal public service, believes an expert heard in a parliamentary committee.
“The issue of spending a lot of money on management consultants […] is no accident. It’s an inevitable dynamic of a public service that has suffered from a lack of investment in recruiting talent and in reforming human resources practices,” Amanda Clarke, associate professor at the School of Public Policy, said Monday. and Administration from Carleton University.
Testifying before the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates, she mentioned that the federal government often uses the services of other private multinational companies, such as Deloitte and PwC, also known as PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Mme Clarke also deplored the cumbersome organization that prevails within government departments and agencies, which she says is too “siloed” and has “too many rules”.
“I also think that over the years [la fonction publique] suffered from unhelpful oversight and the burden of reporting […] that make it very difficult to be creative and innovative,” she said.
Mme Clarke was one of the first witnesses heard in the parliamentary inquiry into the contracts awarded to the consulting firm McKinsey.
Over the past few weeks, Ottawa’s massive spending in this area has made headlines.
Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) shared by email an update on the amounts paid to this company since 2015 under contracts entered into by this department. It was previously reported that the total cumulative value was $101.4 million, but it ended up being $116.8 million. “The contract data is a freeze frame and is subject to change,” PSPC said in a written statement last week.
During their study in committee, federal elected officials will also hear testimony from federal ministers as well as McKinsey’s senior management. On Wednesday, the firm’s ex-boss, Dominic Barton, will appear.