ABSTRACT
In this chapter, two philosophical silos that exist within the same Australian Department of Education—Command and Control (CaC) and Service Delivery Model (SDM)—are contrasted to highlight the tension between differing conceptions of autonomy and trust, and the resulting workload for principals. To reduce principal inefficiency, the CaC silo contracted a business consulting group, which conducted a time and motion study to monitor 1,004 discrete activities. Principals reported that the process diminished their faith in the Department of Education. The SDM process offered a very different conception of schools, expertise and support, and created a systematic support system to engage with principals, both proactively and reactively, when needed. This system produced an almost instant reduction in workload and positive change in principals' perception of the Department's support. A few simple changes to departmental functioning showed that positive change can be both significant and relatively quick when the starting point is bureaucrats' listening rather than telling.
