Across European Union (EU) and OECD Member countries, the human resources (HR) function in the public service is navigating a landscape marked by multiple and overlapping changes, in this report referred to as ‘transitions’. While the nature of these transitions differs across countries, the consequences converge: the HR function must evolve to better anticipate, support, and guide workforce transformations Ultimately, these changes calls for a more resilient HR function in the public service, capable of dealing with uncertainty while managing long-term workforce development and organisational performance.
In France, recent public service modernisation initiatives have prompted a renewed focus on how the HR function should adapt to emerging workforce needs. The goal is no longer only to modernise HR processes (e.g. make them faster); there is now wider recognition that the HR function comprises a variety of stakeholders that can help anticipate and address the workforce transformation requirements linked to three transitions in particular: the digital, green and managerial transitions.
The HR function in the public service will increasingly be called upon to guide long‑term workforce evolution, strengthen analytical and planning capabilities, and support managers and services in navigating complex changes. This challenge is not unique to France: EU and OECD countries are also exploring how to build an HR function equipped not just to accompany change, but to shape it.
Across the Member countries of the EU and the OECD, including in France, the HR function in public administrations remains highly diverse. It involves a wide range of actors – at central, ministerial and, in some cases, decentralised levels – making it difficult to view the HR function as a single, unified whole. Managers at all levels also play a critical HR role, as they are often on the frontlines of workforce shifts. While the diversity of entities and approaches poses challenges for overall coherence, it also reflects administrations’ capacity to adapt to their national and organisational contexts. This is even more so important in France, a country counting over 2.5M public servants in the State administration in 2023.
Despite differences in the structure of the HR function across countries, a common reality emerges: the HR function is a diverse group of actors responsible for preparing the public workforce for the impact of several major transitions that are reshaping public administration. In France, as across OECD Member countries, the most deeply affected areas of HR work are leadership development, recruitment, strategic workforce planning, and learning and development. These domains constitute the strategic core of the HR function when it comes to supporting transitions, as they enable administrations to anticipate needs, attract and retain the right talent, and support employees in acquiring the skills necessary for evolving public missions. France’s HR function relies on a balance between central coordination and ministerial autonomy. While the interministerial Directorate General for Administration and the Public Service (DGAFP) provides common frameworks and tools, ministries retain flexibility in implementation, which supports adaptation but requires close coordination. However, the growing number of tools raises questions around their actual use and impact, as uptake remains uneven and difficult to monitor.
When it comes to the transitions, the digital transition is perhaps the most visible of them. In France, as well as across the EU and OECD, efforts to support the digital transition are progressing, with growing recognition of digital skills needs, the gradual structuring of a dedicated digital workstream, and continued digitalisation of the HR function, although these developments remain at varying stages of maturity. In recent years, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has added new layers of complexity, raising questions about ethics, workforce impacts, and the redesign of tasks. Many countries have already developed frameworks or tools to guide this shift, yet the challenges continue to grow as AI evolves rapidly.
The green transition presents a different picture. Many countries recognise the urgent need for effective climate action. However, initiatives to mobilise the public workforce around green objectives have rarely made the HR function an explicit part of the effort. Certain countries have developed training initiatives to foster environmental awareness among civil servants, but the integration of green transition considerations into HR planning remains uneven. France is among the countries that have taken more proactive steps in acculturation and awareness‑building, though often with limited long‑term workforce planning attached. More broadly, the challenge for administrations lies in determining how environmental imperatives affect job roles, future skill needs, and the competencies public employees will require to support climate‑related policies.
Many countries recognise the importance of effective management, but few have explicitly framed changes in managerial practice and culture as a ‘transition’ that must take place across the public service. Many governments are engaged in modernising management practices, promoting greater autonomy, improving workplace culture, and responding to new expectations around hybrid work, collaboration, and employee engagement. Yet, this is rarely framed as a systemic transition comparable to digital or green transitions. Additionally, contexts vary greatly among administrations, levels of government, and professional cultures. France faces similar issues, making it difficult to define a unified managerial trajectory.
What emerges from these three transitions is that their effects converge in ways that challenge the HR function’s strategic capabilities. Whether the transition is digital, green, or managerial, the HR function faces similar demands: they must strengthen leadership capacity to provide direction during uncertainty, ensure that employees have the skills needed for the future, anticipate workforce evolutions with greater precision, and foster continuous learning and mobility as a structural feature of public employment. The transitions therefore highlight the growing importance of HR to act not only as an administrative function but also as a strategic actor able to anticipate workforce needs and guide long-term transformations.
To do so, the HR function in public administrations must reinforce three areas: strategic course‑setting, operational capability, and collaboration. Course‑setting refers to thinking ahead, i.e. the capacity to articulate a clear vision for what the workforce of the future should look like and adapt to the many changes affecting the public service. Operational capability refers to what it takes to get the job done in a fast-changing environment: that is, the skills, tools, and practices of HR teams. Finally, collaboration involves stronger co-ordination within and across ministries and with external stakeholders.
The HR function looks very different across the EU and OECD countries: some have strong, data‑driven HR functions but struggle to co-ordinate effectively across ministries. Others are good at working collaboratively but have difficulty planning for future skills needs. This diversity creates valuable opportunities for countries to learn from one another. For France, as for many others, a key priority is strengthening the HR function’s ability to set a clear strategic direction. Improving workforce planning would help the public service anticipate changes more systematically, particularly in light of how major transitions will reshape jobs, roles, and the skills needed in the years ahead. This report shows that the HR function must keep pace with the transformations facing the public service by adopting a more forward‑looking approach.
