Rodney Scott

Rodney was a senior public servant and senior leader of NGOs for 20 years before transitioning to academia. He now focuses on applied public administration research to help public servants to better deliver for communities. Current research interests include public service reform, collaboration, horizontal leadership, machinery of government, and institutional memory.

Rodney's work in the public sector included leading and advising on public service reform, and supporting public service strengthening in developing nations. He has held several deputy secretary levels roles in central agencies.

Recent books include:

• "Contemporary Public Administration in New Zealand: Stories culture and values" (Bristol University Press, 2025). This book tells the story of recent public service reform in New Zealand (2011-2024) and is co-authored by the former head of the New Zealand public service and leader of these reforms, Peter Hughes.
• "Contingent Collaboration: When to use which models for joined-up government" (Cambridge University Press, 2022). This book explores different ways that agencies can work together in different contexts, and identifies some practices which may be more or less suited to different problems, co-authored with public servant Eleanor Merton.
• "Targeting Commitment: Interagency performance in New Zealand" (Brookings Institution Press 2022). This book explores the performance management of outcome targets, and is co-authored with public servant Ross Boyd.

Rodney is currently a Vice Chancellor's Principal Research Fellow in the RMIT School of Law. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of New South Wales, Affilitated Researcher at Cambridge University's Bennett Institute of Public Policy, Adjunct Fellow at the Australia New Zealand School of Government, and Academic Fellow at the Future Government Institute. He provides expert advice to the Chanlder Institute of Government to support public service strengthening in developing countries.

Rodney has a PhD in system dynamics and public administration from the University of Queensland, and was a 2017 fellow at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government and a 2018 fellow at Oxford University's Blavatnik School of Government.