Carles Ramió, a political science and administration professor at Pompeu Fabra University, has been analyzing public administrations for over 30 years and believes that they are currently experiencing their worst moment since the establishment of democracy. The decline in our administrations is evident in the deterioration of essential public services such as healthcare, social services, and administrative procedures. The question arises, how did we suddenly reach this administrative collapse? The answer lies in a combination of factors, including a significant increase in population due to immigration, a long economic crisis, the rise of artificial intelligence, and the challenges posed by the aging population demanding more public services. These external factors have eroded the administration, which was already struggling to provide quality services with limited resources and lack of institutional strategy.
The slow decline of public administrations has been exacerbated by factors such as understaffing, aging employee populations, and the reactive approach taken during the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to a worsening of citizen services. The rapid digitalization of administrative processes and reliance on appointments have left many members of society stranded, unable to access essential services. The privileging of employee rights and benefits, coupled with outdated recruitment processes and a lack of leadership, have further contributed to the impending collapse of administrations. Employees are finding it increasingly difficult to meet citizen demands due to organizational bottlenecks and outdated bureaucratic processes.
A looming intergenerational turnover in public administrations presents both a challenge and an opportunity. With a large number of employees set to retire in the coming years, there is a chance to attract young, digitally savvy talent. However, without proper planning and modernization of recruitment processes, this potential influx of talent could be wasted. Urgent interventions are required to prevent the collapse of administrations and preserve public services. Proposed solutions include reallocating employees to critical areas, redefining job profiles to meet modern demands, redesigning citizen service systems, implementing new recruitment processes, and embracing data-driven governance.
Failure to address these challenges will result in the inevitable collapse of public administrations, impacting both vulnerable and affluent sectors of society. The market will be unable to compensate for the loss of public services, as evidenced by the current strain on private healthcare providers. When public services fail, private services also suffer. It is essential to take action now to prevent this impending crisis and ensure the continued functioning of essential public services for all members of society.
