Creativity and innovation are necessities for the public sector, not just in order to keep pace with today’s rapidly changing landscape.
Incorporating them in government policies and operations can help enhance ways of developing solutions to global challenges. Cultivating a work environment that thrives on them can attract creative and innovative talents to become part of the public service amidst a competitive job market.
Most importantly, creativity and innovation – when promoted effectively – can lead to improved service delivery that is able to meet the needs and expectations of the people, which in turn boost their confidence towards their government.
It is therefore imperative for the public sector to foster them consistently. In Sarawak, Sarawak Transformation and Innovation Unit (STIU) under the Department of the Premier of Sarawak is tasked to facilitate creativity and innovation for federal and state agencies and departments in the Sarawak civil service (SCS).
According to its director Tuan Superi bin Awang Said, the unit employs six (6) strategies in building and sustaining a creative and innovative work culture in SCS:
- Inculcating the Right Values, namely the common shared values in SCS of integrity; kind and caring; professionalism; sense of urgency and ownership; team spirit; and result-oriented.
- Governance Structure through the SCS Transformation and Innovation Steering Committee. Chaired by the Sarawak Secretary, its roles include formulating policies and preparing guidelines pertaining to the transformation and innovation of SCS; and providing guidelines and steering the implementation of transformation and innovation initiatives in SCS.
- Empowering Innovation across various levels of positions – from support group to top management – and engaging them whether individually or in groups to develop teamwork, synergy and sense of ownership through the SCS Transformation and Innovation Ecosystem.
- Collaboration and Integration among diverse agencies and departments through quality initiatives such as Hybrid Kumpulan Inovatif dan Kreatif, Hybrid Key Focus Activities, and High Performance Team (HPT; now rebranded as One Team Retreat or OTR) Solutions.
- Cascading and Promotion via various creativity and innovation-related promotional activities, including sharing session, exhibitions, open days and publications.
- Providing Support System for SCS that consists of capacity building; facilitation and consultation; technological support; manuals; community of practices; and recognition such as Sarawak Civil Service Innovation and Creativity Awards (SCSICA) and Anugerah Kualiti Perkhidmatan Awam Sarawak (AKPANS) at the State level.
Speaking at INTAN Public Lecture at Institut Tadbiran Awam Negara (INTAN) Sarawak Regional Campus in Kota Samarahan on 16 October 2024, Tuan Superi described how numerous innovation projects carried out by government agencies and departments are not maintained upon their initial implementation.
To that end, the unit has recently established a new function focusing on audit management (Table 1). It involves monitoring and evaluating progress of these projects with the goal of guaranteeing their continuity.
The additional function will enable STIU to ensure that agencies and departments in SCS are committed to enhance their work processes and service delivery at all times.
Subsequently, it will strengthen the unit’s capability to support the civil service’s endeavour towards a culture of creativity and innovation.
| Function | Description |
| Transformation Management | Planning and managing SCS governance modernisationMonitoring implementation of SCS governance modernisation initiativesProviding consulting services on SCS transformation initiativesManaging measurement of SCS performance |
| Innovation Management | Managing and implementing initiatives encouraging culture of creativity and innovation in SCSManaging award and recognition, i.e. Anugerah Perkhidmatan Awam Sarawak (AKPANS)Providing advisory and consulting servicesSustainably managing research and development of innovation products/projects Managing creative ideas |
| Audit Management | Planning inspections of transformation and innovation initiativesProviding advisory services on governance complianceAuditing implementation of transformation and innovation initiatives |
| Policy, Research and Corporate Communications Management | Planning and formulating policies/standards related to SCS transformation and innovationImplementing best practicesReviewing work and development rules and processesResearching SCS developmentProviding advisory and consulting services |
| Management Services | Managing and administrating officeManaging assets and vehiclesManaging and developing human resourceManaging accounts, finances and procurement |
Table 1: Current functions of STIU (Adopted from a presentation by STIU Director Tuan Superi bin Awang Said during INTAN Public Lecture at Institut Tadbiran Awam Negara (INTAN) Sarawak Regional Campus in Kota Samarahan on 16 October 2024)
