DEFINITIONS AND COMMON UNDERSTANDINGS
This paper provides definitions for common terms and constructs related to policy in the public and
community services sector.
Agreed definitions and common understandings will facilitate policy practitioners in the public and
community services sector working collaboratively. It is anticipated that the definitions will be used
in Partnership Forum initiatives related to policy and that the policy constructs may be used where
appropriate to underpin policy processes.
POLICY DEFINITIONS
Policy - Policy can be considered as a "Statement of Intent" or a "Commitment".
Note: A policy is typically described as a principle or rule to guide decisions and achieve rational
outcomes. The term is not normally used to denote what is actually done; this is normally referred to
as either procedure or protocol.
Public Policy refers to those plans, positions and guidelines (of government), which influence
decisions (by government). There are various types and forms of policy including:

Broad policy which enunciates government wide direction;

Specific policy which may be developed for a particular sector or issue area; and

Operational policy which may guide decisions on programs, and project selection. With
respect to the forms that government policy can take, it is reflected most typically in
legislation, regulations and programs. These are often referred to as policy instruments.
Policy Process also known as the Policy Cycle refers to the activity of developing policy and generally
involves issue identification, research, analysis, consultation and synthesis of information to produce
recommendations.
Figure 1: The Australian Policy Cycle
Figure 1 - Although policy process frameworks (such as ‘The Australian Policy Cycle’ in The Australian
Policy Handbook by Peter Brigman and Glyn Davis) are useful conceptual tools, they often do not
reflect the dynamic and ‘organic’ nature of policy development.
Policy Instruments are the tools used to implement policy. For example, Governments may use
regulation, service delivery and communications to achieve a policy’s intended outcome.
POLICY/STRATEGY DEFINITIONS
Vision is a statement of aspirations describing a desired future.
Mission is the statement which details how a vision or policy will be achieved by an organisation.
Objectives are those things that need to be achieved in order to realise outcomes.
Outcomes - Outcome - An outcome is broadly the result of something else happening, planned or
otherwise. Outcomes are the difference or differences that programs, services and projects make
to individuals and communities. Outcomes may be identified by evaluating to what extent programs
or services have met defined objectives.
Strategy is the overall process of deciding where we want to go and how we are going to get there.
Strategic Direction describes the desired future and sets out what needs to be achieved in order to
bring it about.
Strategic Framework (Plan) is an overview of the vision, mission, values, outcomes (goals,
objectives), strategies, indicators and targets for an activity, initiative, or organisation.
POLICY RELATED DEFINITIONS
Capacity Building is the term used to describe activities that help strengthen organisations such as
staff and board training, technology and other capital purchases and funding.
Citizen Centric service considers citizens’ needs at every stage of the service design and delivery
process. That is, citizens’ needs become the organizing principle around which the public interest is
determined and service delivery is planned.
Co-creation involves setting up new modes of engagement that allows individuals to insert
themselves in the value chain of an organization. Platforms used to achieve this can be physical such
as a meeting or a store, or virtual such as a website. The idea of co-creation is to unleash the
creative energy of many people, such that it transforms both their individual experience and the
economics of the organization that enabled it. Anything can be co-created such as a process, a
service, a product.
Co-design is where customers are integrated into value creation by defining, configuring, matching,
or modifying their individual solution from of a list of options and pre-defined components. Codesign is done using toolkits that allow users to design a novel product by trial-and-error
experimentation and delivers immediate (simulated) feedback on the potential outcome of their
design ideas.
Self-directed services is where a service in which an individual learns how to do and then
leads/participates in choosing, contracting and accessing needed services, supports and goods for
the purpose of handling the tasks of daily living and to improve their quality of life.
Cooperation is the process of working or acting together. In its simplest form it involves things
working in harmony, side by side, or agreeing on working towards a common goal.
Collaboration is a process where two or more people or organizations work together to realize
shared goals (this is more than the intersection of common goals).
Integration Process of attaining close and seamless coordination between several departments,
groups, organizations, systems.
Governance is a set of processes, customs, policies, laws and institutions affecting the way people
direct administer or control a project, program or organisaiton. The need for governance exists
anytime a group of people come together to accomplish an end. Though governance literature
proposes several definitions, most rest on three dimensions: authority, decision-making and
accountability.
References:
A Guide to Policy Development, Office of the Auditor General, Manitoba January 2003
The Ontario Institute on Governance 2011 on www.iog/governance
My Life: My Way – Self Directed Supports in Western Australia – Discussion Paper September 2011
‘The Australian Policy Cycle’ in The Australian Policy Handbook (4TH Edition) by Peter Brigman and Glyn Davis, 2004 Allen
and Unwin.
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition.html
von Hippel, E. (2001). Perspective: User toolkits for innovation. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 18 (4), 247257.
‘Defining Public Policy’ in the Public Policy website (2009) - www.profwork.org/pp/study/define