More than quotas: diversity and inclusion to improve public service

On the first day of GovInsider’s Festival of Innovation 2025, panellists in the session Diverse Voices, Unified Mission: Managing Diversity in Public Service discussed the challenges and opportunities of implementing more diverse and inclusive practices in the public sector. 

Kicking off the conversation, Malaysia’s Air Selangor, Organisational Change Management’s Head, Diana Jayasauri, asked the room to raise their hands if diversity and inclusion were core values of their organisation. Most hands from the audience were down. 

“The core values set the tone of an organisation to uphold trust and conviction. To make diversity and inclusion a part of an organisation’s DNA, it is important to add [them] as core values,” she said. 

The speakers highlighted the importance of diverse voices in improving public service delivery, addressed the difficulties of managing quotas, and shared practical steps to harness diversity in the public sector. 

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A mindset shift toward inclusion 

The panellists emphasised that the main challenge is creating a mindset shift. 

 “Diversity is about numbers, and inclusion is about mindset,” said Singapore’s Open Government Products (OGP), Assistant Product Manager, Col. Vicky Wang. 

“If you hire the number of people you want into the organisation, you tick in a box and say, ‘my company is diverse’. But the problem doesn’t end there. How do you make them feel included once they’re part of the team?”  

Shifting the perspective from enforcing diversity quotas to embracing inclusion is crucial for creating an environment where everyone feels like a valued member of the team, enabling everyone to contribute meaningfully to an organisation, Wang added. 

The speakers added that to create this mindset shift, it is important to recognise and eliminate the human tendency of unconscious bias, particularly when hiring.  

“We have to create a conducive environment for talent development… a more competency-based HR management system that does not look at gender, race, or age difference,” said Singapore’s Public Service Division, Workforce Development’s Chief HR Officer and Advisor, Low Peck Kem.  

The shift towards a competency-driven growth allows every member of the team, regardless of their identity, to feel included.  

Understanding context  

“Sometimes, the more you tell people you must have a certain ratio [of diverse hires], the more you get resistance. I think diversity is beyond just setting quota and setting targets,” Low noted.  

However, in certain contexts, quotas can help to pave the way toward more inclusive practices. Such was the case in the Indonesian public sector, said Satu Data Indonesia’s Executive Director, Dini Maghfirra.  

“We try to mix between merit system and affirmative action. We provide opportunities for underrepresented communities to join the government sector,” Maghfirra shared.  

She added that the government began to provide mentorship and leadership development programmes as a way of creating a network that empowers women and other underrepresented communities to participate in all levels of government.  

It is about “breaking the glass ceiling”, said Maghfirra. 

Sharing a local example, Wang commended the work that Women in Tech does to celebrate women’s participation in male-dominated fields and empower girls and younger women to explore these fields without fear or shame. 

A public service that reflects real experiences 

The resounding sentiment in the session was that a public sector without diversity cannot effectively serve the needs of its citizens.  

“It is our responsibility to uphold trust. How can you make people trust you if you don’t welcome everyone’s voices?” Jayasauri asked. 

“You must have avenues for people to voice [those] different views,” Low added. “If you have a public service that is reflective of the demographics of the population that you're serving, then you will be able to get diverse views from different angles.”  

Cultivating a space where diverse perspectives are valued is essential for improving public service delivery, as it facilitates more informed policy development and holistic problem-solving. 

To not leave anyone behind, organisations must recognise that programmes or initiatives are not a one-size-fits-all, said Maghfirra.  

She shared an example that the Indonesian government launched to improve nutrition in the country.  

Given the diverse ethnic groups and geographical characteristics of each region in the country, the nutrition programmes had to be adapted by minding the cultural preferences of each region, such as replacing rice with tapioca for some regions.  

In this sense, cultural sensitivity is essential for a public sector that embraces diversity and is serious about inclusion, speakers noted.  

How to improve diversity and inclusion? 

Before the session concluded, the audience asked the panel for specific strategies to improve diversity and inclusion practices. 

On a practical level, Low shared that job rotations can help nurture competency growth and promote inclusion in different teams and contexts. 

With more structured job rotations, people can expand their skill sets and provide different perspectives in each position they encounter, which also erases the stigma around changing jobs or moving sectors. 

In terms of hiring practices, Wang suggested implementing training to learn how to manage unconscious biases and adopt more inclusive and competency-oriented hiring.  

Jayasauri also noted that small steps such as speaking in different languages in the workplace can also create a habit of embracing differences and promoting inclusion.  

Crucially, a policy of zero tolerance for any kind of discrimination must be in place to foster an inclusive public sector, Maghfirra added.  

You can find full FOI recording on the diversity panel on-demand here.