Nine of 18 Candidates Advance in Competition for Latvia’s State Chancellery Chief

Nine candidates have advanced to the second round of Latvia’s competition for State Chancellery director, after the selection commission assessed 18 applicants.

Candidates in the next round will explain their motivation, answer questions and present their vision for the future development of public administration and state human-resources policy. A third round will examine leadership skills, including strategic thinking, decision-making, accountability, results orientation, change management and team leadership.

At the end of the process, the candidate or candidates receiving the highest evaluations will be recommended to the prime minister for submission to the Cabinet of Ministers. The director will be appointed for a five-year term.

The position became vacant after Raivis Kronbergs left it in May. The State Chancellery serves as the center of Latvia’s government, providing the prime minister and government with data analysis, policy scenarios and expert input to support fact-based decisions. The selection commission is chaired by Justice Ministry State Secretary Mihails Papsujevičs, with officials from the Finance Ministry, State Chancellery, State Security Service and Foreign Ministry. Representatives of Latvia’s business and employers’ organizations have been invited to observe the evaluation process.