Policy Units - An Instrument for Navigation

Executive Summary

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1. In response to the Prime Minister's Office (hereinafter PMO) initiative to establish policy units in government ministries, the Reut Institute proposes this document as a conceptual framework for their implementation.The proposal integrates the unique Israeli context with the findings of a comparative study of different policy units in a number of leading countries.

2. Policy units world-wide vary in their structure and functions depending on the challenges faced by each country and the unique policy challenges of the individual ministries.

3. The Reut Institute proposes that policy units serve as a navigation tool for decisions makers. The units' structures and function will need to adjust to serve the ministries' goals and the key decision makers.

4. To satisfy these requirements, policy units should plan and synchronize.

• Planning – The policy unit is responsible for formulating a strategy to deal with the short, medium, and long-term threats and opportunities facing the ministry.

• Synchronizing – The policy unit is responsible for synchronizing the work of the public sector actors involved in implementing the ministry's strategy according to their shared mission.