ASoG Executive Education Program highlights technical competence in public service webinar

The Ateneo School of Government (ASoG), through its Executive Education Program, successfully convened a public webinar on “Strong Skills, Strong Service: Developing Technical Competence for Public Service Excellence” on 4 February 2026, from 10:00 am to 12:00 nn, via Zoom.

The webinar highlighted how technical competence, rooted in analytical rigor, sound management, and collaborative practice, supports effective governance and responsive public service delivery. Discussions focused on how public sector professionals can deepen their ability to diagnose problems, design programs, manage resources responsibly, and work across sectors to deliver results that matter to citizens.  Participants were encouraged to view technical skills not as abstract requirements, but as practical enablers of everyday public service work.

The session featured resource speakers from the academe and with public policy practice. Dr Janet S Cuenca, faculty member of ASoG and senior policy expert with over 20 years of experience in policy research, shared insights on policy diagnostics and evidence-based decision-making. She outlined the five stages of the policy cycle and underscored how systematic analysis helps government institutions better understand challenges, assess options, and translate data into actionable and effective policies.  

She was joined by Dr Czarina Medina-Guce, sociologist and public policy expert specializing in participatory governance and results-oriented evaluation, and author of the Participatory Governance framework adopted in the Philippine Development Plan 2023–2028. Dr Medina-Guce emphasized how aligning planning, budgeting, accountability, and monitoring systems strengthens institutional performance and public trust. She highlighted technical competence as a unifying compatibility that connects participation, results orientation, and accountability into coherent policy design.  

The final session was delivered by Mr Jhon Louie B Sabal, Assistant Professor IV at Xavier University–Ateneo de Cagayan, whose work focuses on local economic development, MSME recovery, and cross-sector collaboration. He shared that today’s public sector challenges are increasingly complex and interconnected, requiring public servants to collaborate effectively with government colleagues, academe, the private sector, and civil society. He emphasized collaboration as a technical skill that enhances trust, improves outcomes, and keeps public service adaptive and citizen-centered.

Dean Jennifer S Oreta PhD, of the Ateneo School of Government, opened the webinar by welcoming participants from across the country and noting the strong turnout. She emphasized that public service excellence begins with competence, grounded in understanding public problems, managing resources responsibly, and working with others to deliver results. In today’s governance environment, citizens rightly expect evidence-informed decisions, results-oriented systems, and institutions capable of learning and adapting. Developing strong technical skills, she noted, empowers public servants and strengthens the institutions they serve.

The webinar was attended by nearly 1,000 participants via Zoom and YouTube livestream, representing national government agencies, local government units, the private sector, civil society organizations, and academe The event provided a shared learning space for practitioners to exchange perspectives and reaffirm their commitment to professional growth, collaboration, and effective service delivery.

In line with its mandate to strengthen public sector capability, the ASoG Executive Education Program will roll out a series of open technical skills training starting this month. These programs are designed to further strengthen the analytical, managerial, and collaborative competencies of public sector professionals, supporting evidence-based decision-making, results-oriented planning, and effective cross-sector collaboration in public service.

For more information on upcoming courses and customized programs, please contact execed.asog@ateneo.edu.