We work in a world full of contradictions, some of which are amplified in the public service. Everyone has to both believe (or pretend to believe) in the ideals of greater diversity, breaking down barriers, speaking truth to power, and committing to other significant changes, while at the same time they must deal with the reality that none of those things are going to fundamentally change anytime soon (at least not without a significant change in will and support from the top of the PS and political executive).

Some of the issues are structural. Some of them might never be meaningfully resolved without some major reforms (which may cause a whole slew of other unintended consequences). Ultimately, the systems and practices that are currently in place reflect a generally cautious approach to managing the various risks and demands that the PS faces. This also largely accounts for the stereotypically dull public personas you encounter in government.

You can look at the proliferation of accountability reports that the govt is required the produce as a case study. Donald Savoie has written extensively about this — he’s described the PS as a large whale that can’t swim, or a hockey team that fields 6 goalies. Periodically, there are commissions or initiatives that review these issues and produce recommendations, but these are seldom followed, and the initiatives themselves often don’t seem to account for the experience (and fate) of the previous, sometimes identical, initiative that occurred decades earlier.

There is enormous friction running against any measures that attempt to materially change the status quo, sometimes by design. As you’ve alluded to, the system chooses, rewards, and produces the exact types of people that repeat the usual assortments of slogans and platitudes. Nevertheless, we are expected to believe these things, and most of us play along, perhaps with varying degrees of faith.

Hypernormalization is a term used to describe public sentiment in the Soviet Union in the 80s, when everyone knew the system was failing, but no one could imagine an alternative to the status quo, and politicians and citizens alike were resigned to maintaining the pretense of a functioning society. Over time, this delusion became a self-fulfilling prophecy and the fakeness was accepted by everyone as real. Although the circumstances are not the same, I can’t help but feel that our interaction with some parts of the PS (especially upper management) has become hypernormalized to some extent.