Samenvatting

Societal public administration requires connective public administration experts with certain skillsets. In this article, Professor Prins, chair of the Netherlands Scientific Council for Government Policy, uses her many years of experience as a scholar and practitioner to reflect on competencies that will be valuable. She mentions three: being equipped, being aware and having focus. She explains why and how public administrators can move from experts on the side to insiders with authority, how they can become more normative while retaining stature and how they can be beneficial as a connective force.