Abstract
The ideal leadership profile for top civil servants in the German ministerial administration is that of a “generalist.” From the generalist perspective, the professional qualification of civil servants is not primarily based on specific policy expertise, but on well-rounded competencies that are required in all domains of the federal administration. Traditionally, in the German politico-administrative system, those capabilities are assigned to fully qualified lawyers who acquire leadership competencies over the course of a long, step-by-step career in the civil service. When appointed as a “political civil servant,” hence, as director-general or state secretary in a federal ministry, these people are in their fifties, and have served in up to twelve different positions in the civil service. However, in recent years, more top positions have gradually come to be recruited from outside, thus adding experiences from other areas to leadership positions (e.g., private companies, interest groups, or academia). Despite the high relevance of the merit principle for the promotion of civil servants in Germany, there is no overall policy governing personal management, training, and development. Further, because of the established institution of “political civil servants,” and due to the experiences of the Nazi dictatorship, the idea that top civil servant positions are basically apolitical and mainly “managerial” was never accepted in Germany.
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© 2015 Werner Jann and Sylvia Veit
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Jann, W., Veit, S. (2015). Germany. In: Van Wart, M., Hondeghem, A., Schwella, E., Suino, P. (eds) Leadership and Culture. Governance and Public Management Series. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137454133_12
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137454133_12
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