Trading Places: New Program Lets Federal and Volunteer Sector Workers Swap Jobs

A new exchange program aimed at developing greater mutual understanding between federal government departments and voluntary organizations gives workers in both sectors the opportunity to swap jobs for a year. The Policy Internships and Fellowships Program, a $1.1 million initiative funded by Health Canada and Human Resources Development, will be managed jointly by UVic’s centre for public sector studies (CPSS) and Carleton University’s centre for voluntary sector research (CVSRD).

Through the initiative, senior managers in federal departments and voluntary sector organizations are invited to apply for a 10-day training session at UVic’s Dunsmuir Lodge in August followed by a 10-month term in a new position. The two universities will evaluate the interns’ experiences at the end of their terms to determine the initiative’s effectiveness in giving employees the ability to perform in each other’s environments.

“Walking in the shoes of the other provides invaluable experience upon which to understand the other perspective,” says Dr. Sharon Manson Singer, senior fellow at UVic’s CPSS. “This opportunity will give 10 managers, along with the sponsoring departments and organizations, the chance to see ‘the other side’ and have a better understanding of the organizational structures they deal with on a daily basis.”

“Better public policy should be the result,” adds Dr. Susan Philips, director of Carleton’s CVSRD.

Managers interested in applying for an internship position can visit the websites for the CPSS (www.uvic.ca/padm/) or the CVSRD (www.cvsrd.org). The competition will close on June 25 and the participants will be announced in early July.

The CPSS, part of UVic’s school of public administration, delivers workshops and courses on a variety of public sector management issues, focusing on improving the ability of the public sector to pursue its objectives.

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