The Bridge

Connecting you to the latest public policy and management research.

More than 16,000 subscribers
90 per cent of readers use The Bridge in their daily work
Research Briefs read by thousands of people every fortnight

Finding the latest policy and public management research can be time-consuming and difficult. Navigating academic research is not always easy as it can be complex to read.

That’s why ANZSOG launched The Bridge in March 2020 – to connect public managers with current and relevant research. Every fortnight, subscribers receive a free email which distils relevant academic research to the public sector into an easy-to-read format.

Since then, we have built a community of more than 15,000 Bridge subscribers. More than 90 per cent of The Bridge readers tell us they use The Bridge content in their daily work, and more than 70 per cent have shared The Bridge content with colleagues.

“I share it with my team for their general professional development and to broaden their reading choices. I love its format and brevity. and the personal touch at the end of what Maria is reading - always interesting.”

“I have found articles or summaries of them helpful when considering how to approach an evaluation or project design task. I also like to read about developments and issues relevant to the public sector beyond my own work, this helps me to see things in context and keep an eye on where we are going.”

The Bridge will continue to strengthen engagement between academic researchers and policymakers and allow research with practical application to reach a wider audience, as part of ANZSOG’s mission to strengthen the quality of public sector leadership in Australia and Aotearoa-New Zealand.

The Bridge is compiled and curated by Maria Katsonis – a former senior Victorian public servant with more than 20 years’ experience who is now a Public Policy Fellow at the University of Melbourne. Maria’s insights are vital to The Bridge, bringing a practitioner’s perspective to academic research. She was previously the curator of The Drop – a joint project between ANZSOG and The Mandarin.

The Bridge is emailed fortnightly to readers in Australia, New Zealand and globally. Full access to back issues and to Research Briefs can be found below.

Click on the slider to access The Bridge 2020 emails:

Edition 01, 25 March 2020 Co-design COVID-19 in Australia Spending reviews Infrastructure priorities	Edition 02, 8 April 2020 public dis/value the ethics of COVID-19 beyond coronavirus close the gap government as a system
Edition 03, 22 April 2020 policy sciences and COVID-19 changing behaviour during COVID-19 using mass surveillance to fight coronavirus what makes a leading democracy decarbonisation futures	Edition 04, 6 May 2020 agile governing the road to recovery from COVID-19 LGBTIQ+ communities and COVID-19 wealth of cities innovative cultures
Edition 05, 20 May 2020 understanding prevention and early intervention Australia and the world after COVID-19 COVID-19 global macroeconomics impacts Australia's children complexity in policy evaluation	Edition 06, 3 June 2020 ethical culture and innovation the psychology of COVID-19 public integrity and COVID-19 Aboriginal designed and led initiatives workplace diversity and inclusion
Edition 07, 17 June 2020 risk and rewards of public investments Indigenous evaluation strategy personalisation, disability and pandemics gender role attitudes COVID-19 digital contact tracing	Edition 08, 1 July 2020 pandemic leadership citizen participation behavioural economics commissioning public services COVID-19 and gender equality blog posts to bookmark
Edition 09, 15 July 2020 New Public Management and public services economic uncertainty in post-COVID cities New Zealand's frameworks for preventing family violence policy lessons from catastrophic events poverty in Australia policy podcasts for your playlist	Edition 10, 29 July 2020 Social Impact Bonds and evidence managing the COVID-19 transition insourcing government services COVID-19 research round up open data's impact
Edition 11, 13 August 2020 dark side of public innovation disinformation and COVID-19 social housing pathways COVID-19 research round up evaluation and reform in Indigenous policy	Edition 12, 27 August 2020 royal commission and policy influence skills for recovery post- COVID-19 systems-led design guide violence against women and mental health spotlight on the National Drug Strategy Household survey COVID-19, loneliness and social isolation
Edition 13, 10 September 2020 policy labs - the next frontier COVID-19 and public sector capacity enabling community led change Australian bushfire and climate plan the costs of COVID-19	Edition 14, 24 September 2020 public management in Aotearoa-New Zealand and Australia how to fail (forward) welfare 5.0 evidence-informed policymaking COVID-19 and the information state
Edition 15, 7 October 2020 boundary spanning co-designing for impact high performing leadership reassessing contracting out mental health prevention	Edition 16, 21 October 2020 why policy narrative matters reframing risk in innovation a Real Deal post COVID-19 are women leaders really better? national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth report
Edition 17, 5 November 2020 complexity in public services collaborating after a crisis designing public policy Australian homelessness in 2020 the future of jobs	Edition 18, 19 November 2020 being a public manager in times of crisis Indigenous evaluation strategy using collective intelligence to solve public problems Australia's Federation post-pandemic playbook equal opportunity in Australia 2020
Edition 19, 3 December 2020 public sector innovation intensity behaviour change scale up toolkit Australia's productivity experience evidence based policy (or not) family matters	Edition 20, 17 December 2020 feeling good about giving commerce Claus new year resolutions that stick five scientific findings about Christmas what you read in The Bridge
April 21, Edition 51 is the public sector creative? learning from how women led during COVID-19 a primer on coercive control public sector dynamic capabilities revising down the rise of China

Click on the slider to access The Bridge 2021 emails:

Edition 21, 27 January 2021 trust in government social policy and COVID-19 gender inclusive competition policy technology and the future of the government workforce steering through capability	Edition 22, 10 February 2021 beyond nudge 2021 global risks a weak centre of government COVID performance index 'thou shalt nots' of systems change
Edition 23, 24 February 2021 neutrality in the minister’s office building agile government infrastructure beyond COVID-19 design toolkits in the public sector understanding coercive control	Edition 24, 11 March 2021 where to for public value? policy capability for a COVID world 2021 economic and political outlook mapping social cohesion lawyers, managers and public authority policy podcast for your playlist
Edition 25, 24 March 2021 systemic design practice for policymaking Close the gap campaign report 2021 government trends how can we tell if we are effective system stewards? COVID-19 health information and CALD communities	Edition 26, 7 April 2021 loss of capacity in public sector agencies design guide for participatory policymaking re-opening Australia in 2021 co-designing Indigenous policy innovations in healthcare policy podcast for your playlist
Edition 27, 21 April 2021 leading with political astuteness learning policy, doing policy gender equity insights COVID-19 fallacies and hard truths urban productivity and affordable rental housing	Edition 28, 5 May 2021 behavioural insights teams in Australia and Aotearoa-New Zealand robots and policy design managing divergent recoveries why emissions need to plummet this decade workplace innovation
Edition 29, 19 May 2021 designing digital services for better user experience the case for inclusive growth developing policy and practice networks employing and retaining older workers fraud and pandemics	Edition 30, 3 June 2021 does performance measurement drive improvement? roadmap to reopening a new design framework focused innovation policy counting culture
Edition 31, 17 June 2021 COVID-19 as a leadership game changer Chinese-Australians in the Australian public service make healing happen good data and trust climate change and security	Edition 32, 30 June 2021 nudge and co-design: complementary or contradictory? using targets to improve public services productivity by the numbers Australia as a space power housing: the elephant in the economy
Edition 33, 14 July 2021 COVID-19: policy making and trust public service for the real world digital talent and skills Australia over 40 years Australia's youth	Edition 34, 28 July 2021 when the front-line challenges policy design wellbeing and public policy Indigenous Voice co-design government at a glance a right to come home?
Edition 35, 11 August 2021 when the public deliberates on policy design engaging clients in commissioning creating social connectedness vaccine hesitancy report card whistle while you work	Edition 36, 25 August 2021 workplace gender equality the bright side of public service big picture Indigenous policy how robots will change public policy homelessness in Australia
Edition 37, 8 September 2021 administering inequality and the NDIS Australia’s future infrastructure needs the social state public audits in the new normal digital culture guidebook	Edition 38, 22 September 2021 innovation and intelligent failure hate speech against women global megatrends Australia’s wellbeing national water reform
Edition 39, 6 October 2021 Indigenous policy making Working from home Is kindness the blind spot in public policy? Tools at the centre of government	Edition 40, 20 October 2021 the public sector performance paradox managing the next crisis intergenerational well-being making commissioning work the potential and limits of economic statecraft
Edition 41, 3 November 2021 wicked and less wicked problems the future of work is hybrid system-shifting design governance of the COVID-19 crisis health impacts of the 2019/20 Australian bushfires	Edition 42, 17 November 2021 growth oriented public sector leadership mental health at work public value is unknowable Australia’s prison dilemma COVID-19 vaccine audiences
Edition 43, 1 December 2021 commissioning consultants to enhance policy capacity First Nations culturally safe evaluations improving workplace gender equality loneliness and social connectedness in Australia Australia’s burden of disease	Edition 44, 15 December 2021 The Bridge greatest hits Christmas music earworms making New Year’s resolutions stick why cats obsess over Christmas trees the psychology of gift giving

Click on the slider to access The Bridge 2022 emails:

Edition 45, 27 January 2022

judging success in policy pilots
evidence based policy (or not)
dealing with distrust in politics
rethinking technology policy
health spending and the pandemic

Edition 46, 9 February 2022

red tape and improving regulation
trends shaping education
preparedness won’t stop the next pandemic
making democracy work
report on government services

Edition 47, 24 February 2022

developing collective governance capacity
mission oriented innovation
the future of work is hybrid
an agenda for change
the social economy’s contribution to the circular economy

Edition 48, 9 March 2022

overlooking frontline workers’ contribution to innovation
reviewing joined up social services
economic and political outlook 2022
ending homelessness
culture as a public good

Edition 49, 23 March 2022

risks in public–private partnerships
valuing health for all
zooming into better work-life balance?
climate change impacts and adaptation
reducing poverty and inequality is possible

Edition 50, 6 April 2022

seven strategies for wicked problems
resetting the budget
a crypto primer
close the gap by transforming power
precarious housing and wellbeing

Edition 51, 21 April 2022

is the public sector creative?
learning from how women led during COVID-19
a primer on coercive control
public sector dynamic capabilities
revising down the rise of China

Edition 52, 4 May 2022

unpacking value destruction
building innovative capacity in government
a world reaching inflection point
COVID-19 housing policy responses
artificial intelligence: your questions answered

Edition 53, 18 May 2022

four lenses on people management
participatory Indigenous development policy
ten lessons on research impact
future skills for engagement
decarbonising infrastructure

Read The Bridge’s Research Briefs below:

Research

Black swans and unknowns in public organisations

Published Date: 17 June 2022

An article in Public Administration Review discusses the concepts of ‘black swans’ (unpredictable events) and ‘unknowns’ (gaps in know...

Research

Collaborative innovation and the impact of red tape

Published Date: 20 May 2022

Red tape negatively affects both innovation and collaboration in the public sector. A paper in the International Journal of Public Administration ex...

Research

Image of people gathering around a table at work having a discussion

Four lenses on people management in the public sector

Published Date: 17 May 2022

A paper from the Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford University reviews key questions, research areas and empirical evidence about people manag...

Research

Image of the hands of two people sitting across the table

Unpacking value destruction

Published Date: 03 May 2022

Public services do not always create value. When poorly organised or delivered, they can destroy value and make service users' lives worse. A rese...

Find all the bridge articles