Dr. John Langford

Dr. John Langford
Position
Professor Emeritus
Public Administration
Contact
Credentials

PhD (McGill), MA, BA, BA

Professional Information & Research Interests

Professional Information

John Langford joined the School of Public Administration in 1979. Prior to coming to Victoria he worked with the Royal Commission on Financial Management and Accountability, taught political science at York University and directed the York University Transport Research Centre. He became a full professor in 1983, ran the governance research program at the Institute for Research in Public Policy from 1984-86 and was director of the School from 1987-92. He was a Chief Federal Negotiator in the BC Treaty Process from 1993-2001 working mostly with First Nations on Vancouver Island.

As a teacher, his goal is to help students develop a critical understanding of the complex institutional, procedural and ethical dilemmas which they may confront as public administrators. He places a high value on developing oral and written communication skills. His classes - both face-to-face and online - are extremely interactive, focusing on dialogue and practical problem solving. In recent years, Professor Langford has taught largely online, designing and delivering courses in the School’s Diploma and MPA Online programs. He also gives professional development workshops for public servants in BC, Alberta, Yukon and the North West Territories. In 2009, Professor Langford was awarded the Pierre de Celles National Teaching Award by the Institute of Public Administration of Canada

Full CV

Research Interests

  • Administrative reform: recently this has focused on the capacity of governments to work collaboratively internally, with other governments and with for-profit and third sector organizations to transform service delivery.
  • Public sector ethics: recently this has focused on the challenges associated with building “values-based” ethics regimes and the impact of administrative reform on traditional public sector ethical standards.

Selected Publications

Journal Articles

  • “Allocating Risk among Public and Private Partners: the Mysteries Revealed”, Optimum Online, 38, 4, 2008 (with Ross Coates and Mary Koyl).
  • “ServiceTransformation and Public-Private IT Partnerships: MovingTowardsShared  Accountability” International Journal of Public Policy,   3,4, 2009 (with Jeffrey Roy)
  • “A Cold War Tourist and His Camera,” Photography and Culture, 4,  March, 2011 (with Martha Langford)

Books and Book Chapters

  • The Service State: Rhetoric, Reality and Promise, University of Ottawa Press, 2010 (co-authored with Patrice Dutil, Cosmo Howard and Jeff Roy).
  • A Cold War Tourist and His Camera, McGill University Press, 2012 (co-authored with Martha Langford).
  • The Responsible Public Servant, Insitute of Public Administration of Canada, 2014, (co-authored with Ken Kernaghan).
  • "It's not my problem: personal responsibility for policy advice”, chapter in A Fine Balance.
  • A Critical Exploration of Expertise, Evidence and Democracy in Public Policy and Governance, edited by Ted Parsons, (forthcoming 2014).
  • Integrating Service Delivery Across Levels of Government: Lessons from Canada and Around the World, IBM Center for the Business of Government, August, 2008 (co-authored with Jeff Roy).

Grants & Awards

  • ASPP Publication Award, 2010, $10,000
  • Concordia University Aid to Publications Grant, 2010, $4000
  • Pierre de Celles National Teaching Award, IPAC, 2009
  • Canada Council Publications Grant, 2009, $15,000

Recent Speaking Engagements & Event Participation

Paper, Lectures, Addresses

  • “Cold War Cairo”, a paper presented to Cold War Cities Conference, London, September 25, 2010 (with Martha Langford).
  • “Lobbyist Codes of Conduct” a paper presented to the Dialogue on Lobbying Conference, Vancouver, December 2, 2011     
  • “Report on Roundtable on Joint Service Delivery in Canada and Other Countries” (with Leslie Seidle), Forum on Federations, http://www.forumfed.org/post/Langford_Seidle_JDS_ottawa_oct2011.pdf

Courses Taught

  • ADMN 407: Managing Service Delivery
  • ADMN 422: Ethical Public Management
  • ADMN 504: Public Sector Governance
  • ADMN 523: Administrative Reform Issues
  • ADMN 554:  Responsible Public Management

Professional Appointments & Memberships

  • Member, CAPPA Accreditation Committee
  • Institute of Public Administraton of Canada

Faces of UVic Research: John Langford

In this video, John talks about his research into public sector ethics and public/private partnerships.